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  After breakfast on Sunday Bill and Dr. Stevens played golf while Janet, Martha and Effie made out the guest list and planned the menu. They would be married in church and then have a reception at the country club.

  “Do you think it can all be done in that length of time, mother?”

  “Of course.”

  “What about the invitations?”

  “I’ve already checked, and Mr. Jenkins will be able to have them printed up by Tuesday. Mary Lou, Effie and I can address them and have them in the mail by Wednesday. Now, come on upstairs and let’s you and Effie and me take a look at your grandmother’s wedding gown.”

  As Mrs. Stevens took the gown out of the box, Janet saw it was even more beautiful than she’d remembered. Her mother had worn it too, and Janet would be the third generation to wear it. Martha fastened the tiny buttons down the back and then stood back to admire it. The full skirt billowed and rustled as Janet moved. The silk taffeta had been carefully preserved and had turned from stark white to golden cream. The lace yoke was as lovely as the day her grandmother had worn it, and not a seed pearl was missing.

  Martha’s eyes went moist at the sight of her. “You look just like your grandmother, darling. She would have been so proud. Oh, my … how she did love you …”

  “And I her. I remember the first time she took me to New York. I was about six, wasn’t I?”

  “About that.”

  “I remember staying at the Waldorf-Astoria. It was all so elegant and she was so grand, I thought of her as royalty.”

  “She was, rather. Do you know I didn’t speak a word of English until I was three? She was going to make sure I never forgot I was French. My father knew it was no use to fight her, so he used to tell me stories about his English and Irish ancestors on the sly.” Martha laughed, shaking her head, remembering. It was a time for memories. A once-in-a-lifetime time …

  “She sure must have seemed out of place in Kansas City,” Effie said as she pinned the bodice of the gown.

  “I’m sure she was, and it must have been difficult to adjust. Kansas City is a long, long way from Paris.”

  “I guess you’re right.” Effie nodded. “Kansas didn’t much take to foreigners back when your papa brought her home as his bride. Still doesn’t, for that matter. Bet they’d never seen the likes of her. And she was one stubborn lady, especially toward the end. Never forget it.”

  “You mean about not selling her house?”

  “That’s what I mean … here, Janet, turn around so I can fit the back.”

  Janet did. “What about the house, mother?”

  “Well, when my father built it, Kansas City wasn’t what it is today. But eventually the city began to spread out and all kinds of building went on around my mother’s house. By then my father had died and she was living in the house alone except for the help. Nothing I could say would persuade her to come and live with us in Wichita.”

  “How well I remember that,” Effie agreed.

  “Well, there she was, living in what was practically a chateau surrounded by all those tall buildings in the busiest part of town. The real estate agents made all kinds of offers, but she wouldn’t even let them inside the gate. She ignored them and the buildings … just went on caring for the house and tending her rose garden. Everyone thought she was an eccentric old lady. She just laughed at them, didn’t care what they thought … she was a truly extraordinary lady …”

  “That she was,” Effie said. “Take a look and see if you think I should take a tuck here at the bust line.”

  “No, it’s perfect,” Martha said.

  “All right. Now the veil.”

  The heirloom veil was made of six yards of lace and tulle, with a Juliet cap that framed Janet’s face so perfectly that Effie indulged in a rare smile. “That young man of yours is in for quite a surprise. You’re about the prettiest bride I ever did see. No, the prettiest.”

  Rarer still for Effie, she held Janet close for a moment, then abruptly released her and cleared her throat. “Well, I’d better get downstairs and start doing things. There’s going to be a passel of folks traipsin’ in and out all day. People …” And with that cryptic allusion, she took herself out of the room before anybody, God forbid, could spot the liquid in her eyes.

  After Bill and Janet left on Sunday night the marathon began. They were the first customers in Cartier on Monday morning. Bill wanted her to have something extravagant in platinum and diamonds. She wanted a simple wide gold band.

  “There’ll be other occasions,” she said when he persisted. “But this is the most beautiful ring I’ll ever own.”

  “I know, but it just seems so plain—”

  “Not to me.”

  He shrugged. “If you like it.”

  “I love it.”

  Bill wasn’t too keen on the idea of wedding rings for men, but he couldn’t bring himself to tell her. He settled for a narrow gold band, grateful that Janet didn’t press for lovers’ bowknots.

  When they left the jeweler’s he went to the office and she to Bonwit Teller, where she met Kit for a shopping spree.

  The lingerie department was her first priority.

  “What do you think, Kit?” she asked as they surveyed the negligees strewn about the dressing room.

  “The one you’re wearing. I love the set, especially the gown—sexy as hell.”

  Janet viewed herself in the mirror. It was white satin and lace, gorgeous but … “Do you think it’s a little too sexy?”

  “Nothing can be too sexy. Take it. Bill will be hanging from the rafters.”

  “Okay, sold. What about the others?”

  “I’d buy every one of them … except I don’t know why you need so many. You won’t have them on that long….”

  By one o’clock Kit was exhausted from watching Janet try on clothes. “Listen, Janet, I’ve got to slow down. These kids have got to be fed.”

  “Gee, I’m sorry. Come on, we’ll have lunch.”

  As they sat in the restaurant, Janet was so preoccupied with all the things she had to do she almost forgot about eating.

  “You’d better eat, sweetie, or they’ll carry you down the aisle on a stretcher.”

  “God, Kit … did you ever think it would happen?”

  “Truthfully? No. But you’re irresistible, kiddo. I understand he’s even crazy about your folks.”

  “And they thought he was wonderful. The whole thing’s like a dream, I didn’t know anything could be so perfect—”

  “The biggest surprise of all is Mama McNeil. Talk about miracles.”

  “She’s really been a darling, Kit. There was only one complaint.”

  “Oh? What was that?”

  “She wanted us to wait so she could entertain for us … but when I explained, she took it well. The thing I’m a little nervous about is meeting Bill’s whole family tonight at dinner.”

  “Don’t worry about them. Alice is a little ding-a-ling, oblivious to everything but her children. She’ll be adorable, congratulate you, then bend your ear about Randy making the rowing team at Yale, Gwen being a French scholar and the twins budding Johnny Weissmullers. One word explains her … boring. Betsy is something else. After she birthed three kids, she traded in marital bliss for tennis, bridge and membership in every women’s club in Long Island. I don’t know if she realizes or cares, but Tom has cheated on her for years. Harriet and Gordon are the real winners. I always wondered how they got into the family. Anyway … you’ve apparently already charmed the only one in the family you had to worry about, so put your mind at ease.”

  Tuesday and Wednesday were also hectic, and she had a dozen last-minute things to do before leaving for Kansas on Thursday morning.

  Bill wasn’t too keen on letting her go. “I’m going to miss you like all hell,” he said.

  “I hope so,” she answered, nibbling playfully on the lobe of his ear as she got into bed with him.

  “I don’t see any point in your going home. I have to be there in a week.�
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  “Darling, we went over this. I’ve got to, you know I do—”

  “I don’t know anything of the kind. All we have to do is be there three days in advance to get our blood tests and license.”

  She laughed. “Well, a little abstinence will make you want me more on our wedding night—”

  “The hell it will,” he answered sullenly. “You may regret this. I could get used to doing without you …”

  “Do you think so?” she whispered, getting on top of him.

  As their lips met, all thought of tomorrow, of any time but this moment, was forgotten.

  Exactly as he had feared, the next few days seemed to stand still. It was the nights that drove him out of his mind, and by Sunday evening he told himself he should have insisted they go to Mexico. Being alone gave him too much time to ask questions. There were moments when the idea of a large wedding seemed frightening. Yes, by God, tonight he made up his mind he couldn’t be separated from Janet any longer. Her presence was what constantly reminded him that he wasn’t losing anything, he was gaining … if he ever needed her, it was now. He’d already spoken to her that day, but he just wasn’t going to wait it out. He couldn’t …

  “Janet,” he said, sitting now on the edge of the bed, speaking to her in Wichita, “meet me at the airport tomorrow. I’ve taken about as much of this stupid separation as I’m going to. The company’s in between major projects right now anyway, and this is as good a time as any to give a chance to those take-charge types I hired, see how they handle it when the buck stops at their desks instead of mine. Why the hell I didn’t think of this before, I’ll never know.”

  She couldn’t believe it. “Oh God, darling, I’m so pleased …”

  Hanging up, he smiled at himself, then laughed out loud, thinking that for a guy who’d resisted marriage he’d sure made a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree turnaround. By God, he was happy … well, wasn’t he? … of course he was … and he’d stay that way, even if it killed him….

  Now the time seemed to be flying. There was scarcely a moment for them to be by themselves, what with all the affairs given in their honor. Which didn’t exactly displease Bill. Since he obviously couldn’t be sleeping at Janet’s side in her parents’ house, it was a little easier to get through the lonely night when he was woozy from too much champagne.

  Janet, however, was not quite so fortunate. Sleep eluded her and she lay awake in the dark, thinking about the future she would share with Bill … that soon the pillow she hugged to her side would be replaced with her husband….

  Kit, Nat, Charles and Carol had arrived three days before the wedding, and Bill’s family arrived en masse the following day. Martha Stevens had reserved rooms for them at the local inn, making sure that each of them received flowers or fruit baskets with cards of welcome.

  That night they all gathered at the Stevens’s home for a buffet dinner, and by the time they finished the meal and went into the study to view the wedding gifts, Violet was decidedly impressed and taken with Janet’s family. She’d imagined the Stevenses would be middle-class midwesterners, simple, provincial and folksy, but to her relief Martha was elegant, poised, warm and accomplished, her charm altogether infectious. She was totally taken with Dr. Stevens, who was not only urbane but a gentleman … somehow she saw a hint of Jason in him. Breeding, Violet thought, could not be acquired … one was born with it. Violet didn’t miss a thing—the antiques were magnificent, and handed down, not bought. Tonight she approved more than ever before of Bill’s choice. Janet would indeed be an asset to him. In fact, when all was said and done, he’d picked a girl much like herself, whether, of course, he realized it or not …

  Well, it would be her little secret. She would never let him know, but yes indeed, Bill, it turned out, was a very sensible young man after all….

  The moment had arrived.

  When Bill saw Janet moving down the aisle, her arm on her father’s, he was deeply moved. If he had thought she was beautiful before, she was absolutely extraordinary now. And in that moment, all the doubts that had secretly plagued him about giving up his freedom were stored away deep within his subconscious. She was magnificent, this Janet Stevens. Soon to be his wife.

  One hundred guests shared his opinion.

  She took her place alongside him, and the two looked quietly, adoringly at each other as the minister began. The ceremony was a long one, the explanation of the union explicit … Abruptly Bill felt a moment of acute anxiety, which Janet sensed … and she too became nervous.

  Finally the part he had been waiting for … “I now pronounce you man and wife in front of God and this assembly. You may kiss the bride.”

  Relieved it was over, Bill did just that. In fact, he did it for so long that there was nervous laughter from the guests.

  Walking back down the aisle on her husband’s arm, Janet looked at Kit. The smile said thank you.

  Bill whisked his bride into the waiting limousine, and the long entourage followed.

  At the country club, the reception line was long and tiring, but no one would have guessed it from the happy faces of the family as they stood accepting congratulations and best wishes … they were the perfect couple … the most handsome … their lives were sure to be joyous, everyone agreed as Bill and Janet moved out to dance alone on the dance floor.

  She looked near-ethereal with the bouffant gown billowing about her and the veil draped over her arm. The perfect couple …

  Now the pictures were taken. Janet wanted a replica of her grandmother and grandfather’s daguerreotype and she stood poised slightly behind Bill, who was seated. This was her tribute to her grandmother, who had not only passed on her name to Janet but also a gown befitting this momentous occasion in her life.

  At five she and Bill left the festivities and went upstairs to the country club’s reserved rooms—he to his, and she to hers—to change. Dressed in her pink silk suit she looked at herself in the mirror, then at her mother, who had come up to help her dress and to spend a few minutes alone with her. In that moment all the childhood years in Wichita came rushing back to her. How wonderful the dreams, and memories, were. But the future that lay ahead was another gift of life, and she faced it with no doubts. Bill had stood by her side today as she knew he would the rest of her life … Leaving the room, she walked out into the hall, where Bill was waiting for her. Her hand in his, they proceeded down the staircase to where the guests and family all waited. She paused halfway down the stairs, throwing her bouquet to one of her favorite cousins. There were tears in Martha’s eyes, and a tightness in Dr. Stevens’s throat and visible weeping from Violet. Then a flurry of excitement as the two dashed out with the traditional throwing of rice….

  Sitting in the car alongside her, Bill took Janet in his arms and kissed her. This was his wife. “I love you more than those words can say, Mrs. McNeil.”

  “And I you, Mr. McNeil.”

  The bridal suite looked like a bower of flowers. They toasted each other with champagne. Lovemaking that night was better, more deeply felt than before. The difference, Janet was certain, was in knowing that they belonged to each other, and the feeling was a kind of exaltation …

  Later he said, “Darling, how did you ever put up with my nonsense?”

  “Who knows?”—she said it with a straight face, then smiled—“but that’s the past … I want to spend the future doing just what I promised your mother I’d do—making you happy. And I assure you, it will only be doing what comes naturally.” Whereupon she kissed him, long and soundly. “Can’t, in fact, wait to get started …”

  “You already have …”

  The next day, in a flurry of last-minute good-bys, the two families waved to the newlyweds from the window of the airport.

  Violet and her family were to take the evening flight to New York, and as Martha stood with Violet at the boarding gate the two women embraced.

  “It was the loveliest wedding, Martha, and you’ve made us all feel so welcome. Thank you.” />
  “Oh, my dear … Janet has been blessed with a family such as yours.”

  Violet was rarely given to sentimental tears but now she gave in to them. “You’ll have to come to New York so we can return your hospitality.”

  “We will, Violet, and you’re always welcome here.”

  Martha was filled with a sudden loneliness as she watched Violet and her family walking across the airfield. Her husband took her hand, as if guessing her feelings. At this moment she regretted not having had more children, that their only child was to be settled so far away from them. But perhaps there would be grandchildren. And if God was good to them, maybe she and James would live to see great-grandchildren.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  WHEN BILL CARRIED HER over the threshold to his apartment she remembered the first night she had spent here. On that night she would never have possibly believed this would be her home and Bill her husband. There was still a feeling of unreality about it all, and the month they had just spent in Bermuda had done nothing to bring her down to earth. But now that they were back, life soon settled into a comfortable pattern.

  Each morning she fixed breakfast, then saw Bill off to the office. After her household chores were finished she would dress and sometimes meet Bill for lunch. Then she would shop for groceries, prepare dinner and wait for Bill to come home. Their evenings together were the best part of her day. Now there was a security about it all, with no doubts to be suppressed and no feelings that went unexpressed.

  They spent Sundays with Violet McNeil—at Janet’s insistence, though Bill wasn’t too keen about it.

  “Janet, my mother’s going to expect us every Sunday. I’m warning you.”

  “I think it’s the least we can do. She is your mother and we have a duty—”

  “I don’t want to do things out of duty. Besides, if we start out this way she’s going to sulk and feel neglected if we miss a week. I don’t want to be put in that position. Not again.”