Page 97 of Our Song
We reached the bottom of the steps and into full view of the table of our loved ones, and heads spun to look at us, catching the movement out of the corner of their eyes.?Everyone gasped in unison, and Eunice stood up, covering her mouth and, what I’d assumed and hoped, were tears of joy.
“Please stand for the bride,” Doyle yelled, improvising, his head darting around in confusion since I was supposed to appear from the kitchen door behind him.?
As we passed the table of our family and friends, I noticed there wasn’t a dry eye. When I reached Lee, I met Vance’s eyes from across the room, and he nodded his head toward me, and for the first time in a long time, I saw the Wilder patriarch smile.?
I joined Lee by the Christmas tree, and he shook my brother’s hand before wrapping him in a hug, both of them whacking each other on the back.?
“I don’t think I need to tell you to take care of her,” Charlie said quietly. “But the offer to kick your ass if I see fit still stands, brother.”?
“I’d never let either of you down, Charlie. Not a chance. Though, I would like to see you try and handle a fight,” Lee retorted, and they both laughed.?
Lee turned to me and smiled, bending down to whisper in my ear. “I thought you’d run away on me. I was getting a little nervous.”?
“I’m your girl, Leland Wilder, and I intend on making that official today.”?
Once we said, “I do,” and Doyle rushed out to his car to pick up the cake, which Sutton heavily criticized, we danced the day away with our family and friends. After dessert, when everyone had gone their separate ways to celebrate Christmas Eve, Lee and I, as husband and wife, made our way upstairs to our home.?
When I opened the door to our living quarters, Pickle flew out from inside the tree and crawled up Lee’s entire body like a howler monkey, resting on his shoulders.?
“Do you think she knows I’m her step-dad now?”?
“No, I think she’s got some weird, decades-long, deranged love for you. I can commiserate.” I took a deep breath, the dress tightening around me as I exhaled. “Hey, help me out of this dress. It’s getting a little claustrophobic.”?
When our friends and family had gathered at the Wilders’ for Thanksgiving, Lee and I decided that day, on the walk home, that we’d surprise them with a wedding. I ran out the following Monday to secure a dress, I just didn’t think that I’d be so swollen when I finally got around to wearing the damn thing.?
“I have a present for you,” Lee said once we were in our pajamas, munching on cookies, and watchingMeet Me In St. Louiswith Pickle purring away between us.?
“I thought we agreed on no presents, just the rings,” I said, trying to keep my voice even.?
“It’s nothing big. Well, it’s kind of big,” he said, jumping up and darting across the room. He plucked a gift from under the tree and handed the small, wrapped present to me.?“Open it up,” he said, jerking his chin toward it.?
“It better not be a bar,” I laughed, as I unwrapped the package. Inside was a blank CD case with no writing, no cover. Confused, I asked, “What is this?”?
He coughed nervously and took the case from me, popping the disk into the CD player we only kept around for him to listen to his demos on.?He pressed play and sat back next to me, on the opposite side now that Pickle had stretched out and taken up the entirety of one side of the couch.?
The song was slow and obviously professionally recorded with the entire band. The bass, guitar, and piano notes floated through our place, coming from the speakers Lee had set up all over the house. After a few bars, his voice came over the speakers, clear and steady as he sang a song about a love he’s had his whole life and how the happiest moment of his life was when he heard her say, “I do.”?
As the song went on, he sang about the storms they’d weathered through, but how they were each other’s anchor no matter what. How he’d hoped that he was the kind of man that would make her daddy proud, how he couldn’t wait to see their children, and how he hoped they looked just like her. How her momma was watching over them with love, and how he hoped that they’d have a love eternal, just like her parents.?
I hugged my knees to my chest and let the tears fall, the music wrappingaround me like a comforting embrace. It was during the last chorus that it finally clicked.
“What’s the name of the song, Lee?”?
“It’s just a working title, but Ryan and I are thinking of calling it ‘Our Song.’”?
I laughed through the tears. “You finally wrote our song.”
“I didn’t write it, we did. All these years. Though, to be fair, most of my songs are about you.” He leaned in, kissed the top of my head, and then gently lifted my chin so our eyes met. He kissed away my tears, then sat back with a smile. “I couldn’t help but notice there’s a gift under the tree from you to me, Mrs. Wilder.”
I nodded, using the sleeve of my sweatshirt to mop up my face, which was soaked with emotion. “You can open it, if you want. My gift is a little better than yours, though, so don’t get jealous.”?
He scoffed as he reached under the tree. “I write you songs, Magnolia. What could be better than that?”?He unwrapped the present and flipped open the top off the box, staring at the gift inside for a few moments before looking at me in complete shock.?
“You might write me songs, Leland Wilder, but I’m baking you a baby.”?
THE END
