Holding a Hero

by Layne, Lyssa

  Being that he worked with machines, the jeweler suggested a diagonal channel cut into the band to lay three diamonds. That would allow them to lie flush with the band and protect them from getting caught on anything. I loved the idea but because the gold was so bright I asked if he could make the channel black so that the diamonds would pop more and not blend in with the glistening gold. I also wanted diamonds with a higher clarity because I knew how much he had spent on my engagement ring, he deserved it. He said he could and gave me the price of the black channel and higher quality diamonds. I gasped at the price but looking at my own sparkling ring made my decision. This was forever and Sean would be wearing this for the rest of his life. He didn’t deserve ordinary.

  I asked if the jeweler could take half of the payment now and the rest when I came to pick up the ring. He was very kind and explained that normally he didn’t do it that way but he also didn’t have that many soon-to-be-wives take such care in designing a ring for their husbands and that he would do that for me. I had just designed a beautiful ring for Sean and happily paid what was due, the jeweler letting me know it would be done in a few days. I took my claim check and went off to work, trying to picture Sean’s face when I slipped his ring on his finger.

  I got to work a few minutes early, buzzing with excitement. I wanted to surprise Sean with the ring on our wedding day but when I saw him and he asked why I was so happy, I blurted out my secret.

  “I just met with a jeweler and designed your wedding ring!”

  He gave me a kiss as he embraced me. “You didn’t have to do that.”

  “And you didn’t have to give me such a beautiful engagement ring. I wanted to.” I beamed.

  He took a step back and gazed down at me. “I know I’ve said it before but how did I get so lucky to get you?”

  “How did we get so lucky?” I corrected him teasingly. “I’m glad we did though. Now we’ve got to get into work, handsome. I love you.”

  “I love you more.” he answered and slapped me on my butt as I walked to my work station.

  NINETEEN

  The next few weeks flew by as we secured a quaint chapel in his town. We were to be married at ten a.m. on the seventeenth. We decided to have our reception at The Egg & I, our favorite brunch restaurant, before heading up to Evans for our honeymoon. Because we were still tight on money we decided to only stay two nights up there, then come back and move him into the house. We would go back to work a few days later. We had a lifetime to take a proper honeymoon and felt that this was a good start.

  We were eating lunch at work making small talk but I knew something was on his mind as several times he cleared his throat.

  “Spit it out, handsome.”

  He took a drink of his soda and slowly set it down. “Well, the guys from work and my brother-in-law want to throw me a bachelor party and I know you had a bad experience with your first husband with that so I said I would talk with you first.”

  I felt a lump form in my stomach but quickly pushed it away. “First of all, my first husband didn’t respect my wishes of not having strippers in the house that we were supposed to share and he also had drugs there. So if you’re asking to have strippers and drugs at my house, then you are right, the answer is no.”

  “No! Nothing like that.” he sputtered. “They wanted to take me to the bars. They mentioned Hooters, then Grand Central for drinks and then the Hunt Club.”

  He paused as he mentioned the last place. The Hunt Club was the local strip club that had a very unsavory nickname and reputation. Despite its nickname, I actually knew several of the dancers and the strict rules that were enforced there.

  “Sean, you deserve to have a fantastic bachelor party and I give you my blessing. I hope you have fun.”

  “Really?” he asked incredulously.

  I laughed. “Of course. Just don’t fall in love with anyone else, okay?”

  He leaned over and kissed me sweetly. “Not a problem. There are no other goddesses out there.”

  Oh, could he make me melt. We went back to work and I didn’t think any more of our conversation until I glanced over and saw several of his friends surrounding him, talking animatedly and pointing at me. One of the friends that he was talking to was Brent, who worked in my area. He waved a hand at Sean and began walking towards me. I turned back to my boards, wondering what he was up to.

  “Hey Celeste. How’s it going?”

  I could tell he wanted to ask me something but he didn’t have the guts to just come out and ask me, so I let him stew. “Good, Brent, how are you doing?”

  “Good. Good.” he paused and watched me work. “So, Sean told me you were good with us throwing him a bachelor party.” he paused again.

  “Of course. He needs to have a good time. I think it’s great you guys are doing this for him.”

  “Really? Even with the Hunt Club?”

  I started laughing and turned to face him. “Yes, Brent, even the Hunt Club.”

  “That’s so cool of you!” he exclaimed.

  I turned back to my work thinking that was the end of our conversation but he didn’t walk away.

  “Well, we need your help.” he started.

  “Planning a bachelor party? Sorry, Brent, can’t help you with that.”

  “Actually you can. See, the guys and I think it would be funny if he had a ball and chain attached to his leg the entire night.”

  “Oh, I get it.” I laughed. “The whole ball and chain thing. That’s clever.”

  “Thanks, we thought so too. But we thought it would be funnier to have a picture of you wagging your finger at him, taped to the ball. We actually have one here tonight just so we can get it ready for the party”

  “I want him to happily marry me, Brent, not start out with him hating my face.” I joked but was warming to the idea.

  “Oh, he won’t, Celeste. Us guys have been talking and I should not be telling you this but you’re a really cool chick. Any guy would be lucky to be marrying you. You’re a guy's chick.” he blushed.

  I couldn’t stop the laugh that came out. “Aren’t all heterosexual girls a guy's chick’?”

  “No! I mean, other girls wouldn’t be that okay with their guy going to Hooters and then the Hunt Club. And the fact that it’s okay that he can do his own things likes gardening and video games, that’s really great!”

  I stopped smiling and stared soberly at Brent. “Well, to be honest, the strip club is okay for the bachelor party but next time…” I leaned in closer to him and lowered my voice. “Next time you guys want to go to the strip club, I want to go!”

  He gaped at me, completely stunned. “Are you serious?”

  I leaned back and grinned. “You bet. I think it would be fun. And I know some of the girls there, they are very nice.”

  He shook his head. “Are you sure you want to marry Sean? I could make you very happy.”

  I clapped him on the shoulder. “Sorry Brent, Sean has my heart. But you’ll find someone. I’m not so unique.”

  “I don’t know about that. Lucky guy. Let me go get the camera.” he mumbled as he walked away.

  He came back a few minutes later with the digital camera and several cohorts. He took about twenty different pictures because I couldn’t get my face stern enough, the laughter twisting my frowns up into grins. He finally got one that we decided was suitable enough and when he enlarged it and taped it to the bowling ball, we all laughed hysterically. My finger that had been pointed at the camera took up most of the frame and looked huge next to my face. As I went back to work the guys quickly drilled holes and secured the chain that would be attached to Sean for the night. I felt a little sorry for him to have to carry a bowling ball around all night but I knew that they would all have fun.

  I began to wonder if any of my friends would throw me a bachelorette party. They had thrown me a pretty big one for my first wedding, stretch limo, champagne and dancing but it had turned out pretty disastrous. I had run into the first love of my life that night, wh
o informed me that I wasn’t married yet and that we could have some fun that night. Already having doubts about getting married, I was sorely tempted but stayed faithful, and decided that I should leave before the alcohol swayed me to go with him. Several of my friends were having fun and became very angry at my decision to leave so they stayed at the bar and sent me on my way. My sister and a couple of friends came with me, which I was thankful for. The limo driver proceeded to hit on me the entire ride home, making me very uncomfortable. Then when we pulled up in front of my house, my jaw dropped as I saw my future husband walk out with a stripper, helping her into her vehicle. I honestly hadn’t minded that his buddies were getting him a stripper for his party but I had asked that out of respect for me and the house we were going to make our home that they have the stripper somewhere else. Obviously he hadn’t respected that.

  Seeing her walk out of our house was like a slap in my face. Coupled with the drinks I’d had it fueled my anger and I was out of the limo before it stopped. I confronted him and when he was unapologetic and blasé, I gaped at him, realizing that he was also high. He knew how I felt about drugs and the fact that they’d had a stripper and done drugs in the house infuriated me. The evening was a disaster. I seriously doubted my friends would want to throw me another party.

  As it turned out, one of my other friends was getting married a week before I was so she suggested we have our bachelorette parties together. I was very wary because we didn’t have that many joint friends so I counter suggested that we start at her house then go on to the local dance club and meet everyone else there. She agreed and I told the other friends the plan. Sean thought it was a good idea and we decided to hook up the day after our parties. It was our first Saturday night apart.

  I drove over to my friend’s house ready for fun and to get my mind off of Sean. I knew the guys were meeting at six to have dinner and drinks at Hooters. If they got done at the strip club early enough, yeah right, they would show up at the club. My other friends would be there about eight or nine and I was excited to see them. We loved dancing.

  I walked into my friend’s house and was surprised at the group. Instead of ladies our age, older women sat around the living room, dressed in their Sunday best. I looked down at my attire and pulled my coat closed. I was going dancing so I had dressed in a skirt, low cut blouse and heels. I was ready to party, not go to church. Finger foods and soda were laid out on the table and petite appetizer plates were placed neatly at one end.

  Not wanting to be rude, though I had already eyed the door several times, I made polite conversation. A mutual friend showed up and I breathed a sigh of relief. She was also dressed for clubbing and looked at me bewildered. I shrugged as she was pulled into introductions. After twenty minutes of casual conversation, we both claimed that we needed to feed the nicotine beast and went outside.

  “Where’s the bachelorette party?” she asked.

  “I don’t know but I’ve got people showing up at the club in fifteen minutes.” I sighed.

  “Well let’s go then. Can’t disappoint the rest of the party!”

  She didn’t need to ask me twice. We went inside and I explained that we had friends waiting for us and had to go. Everyone was gracious and understanding and my fellow bachelorette said that she would rather stay. Knowing we were free to go, we all but bolted out the door to our vehicles and made our way to the club. We could hear and feel the music throbbing from the brick building as we got out. I felt my energy rise and I recognized the song and felt the rhythm fill me. This is what I enjoyed. Moving my body to amazing music and enjoying the camaraderie of fellow dancers. We got our drinks on the main level and went down into the basement where the dance floor was.

  The dark room was surrounded by stone-looking pillars; waist-high wooden walls surrounded the dance floor and pulsing, colored lights flashed on the dancers. The bartenders were around the outer walls with a walk area in front of them. There was a path in between the bars and the dance floor and people would often ‘cruise’ around to see who was there. I looked around for my friends and felt an excited lurch in my stomach. Sitting at some benches across from the dance floor were Sean’s friends. Was he here? I made my way through the crowd and tapped Brent on the shoulder. He swung around and a huge smile filled his skinny face.

  “Celeste! What are you doing here?”

  “I’m supposed to meet some girlfriends for my impromptu bachelorette party.”

  “Impromptu?” he asked.

  I explained what had happened and he shook his head. “You just missed Sean. He’s pretty messed up. I think it was all of the shots at Hooters, then the strip club. His brother-in-law was pouring him into his truck then driving him back to his brother-in-law’s house to sleep it off.”

  I felt my heart drop in disappointment. To be so close to have seen him tonight. Brent leaned over and yelled in my ear over the music.

  “But hey! The rest of the guys are still here. Let us throw you a party, right now!”

  He hollered at the other guys and quickly explained his plan. They all raised their glasses and cheered. Someone ordered another round and a round of shots. We spent the next couple of hours dancing, drinking and exchanging the events of the night. They had made Sean carry around the bowling ball the entire night until he got sick at the club.

  “We cut him off then and we made him drink water.” Brent explained. “But he got a really cool t-shirt from Hooters and all of the girls signed it.”

  I hadn’t realized I frowned until Brent put a hand on my shoulder. “Nothing happened, everyone was really respectful.”

  I glanced up at him and smiled. “It’s not that. I’m glad you showed him such a good time and he has something to remember this night. It’s just that I don’t have anything to remember this night. No pictures, t-shirt, nothing. It wasn’t exactly what I had in mind. No offense. Without you guys I wouldn’t have had a party at all.”

  “Well, we could sign your shirt.” he laughed.

  I glanced down at my expensive blouse and shook my head but an idea came to mind. “Not this shirt but what if I gave you something else to sign?”

  He looked at me funny. “Like what?”

  “My bra.”

  “I’m all for that but I think we could get arrested, not to mention really piss Sean off.” Brad shook his head.

  “Not on me, silly. But I can get it off, right here and now, without anyone seeing anything.”

  “No way.”

  “Just watch.” I pulled both of my arms inside my blouse, unhooked my bra in the back, and slipped the strap over one arm then the other before sliding my arms back through my sleeves. I put my hand into my shirt from my opposite sleeve and pulled my bra out through the cuff. I was given a round of applause by Sean’s friends and the bartender who witnessed the feat.

  “This drink’s on me. That was really cool!” the bartender exclaimed as he handed me a cold beer. He pulled out a black sharpie marker and handed it to Brent. “Don’t let her efforts go to waste.”

  The guys took turns signing my bra, each one trying to be more creative than the last. I finished my beer and changed to water, knowing I had to drive home. I also wanted to get a good night’s sleep in so I could hear about Sean’s night when he called. I knew it would be late morning, possibly early afternoon if he was that drunk but I figured I could get some riding in before he became coherent. The guys complained as I told them that it was time for me to leave. I had really enjoyed myself and was sorry I had to go. As I left that night I knew I couldn’t have had a better bachelorette party.

  TWENTY

  I had just finished riding my mare when Sean called. I glanced at the time, one p.m.

  “Hi handsome. How was your night?”

  “Oh my god. I don’t remember a whole lot after Hooters.”

  “But the guys said you had a blast at the strip club and then the dance club.” I teased.

  “You were at the club?” he asked groggily.

  “Yes.
They threw me a bachelorette party. It was a lot of fun. They all signed my bra.”

  “While it was on you?”

  I heard the disbelief in his voice. “No silly. I took it off. Without exposing anything I might add. What kind of a girl do you take me for?”

  “My girl.” he grumbled.

  “Well, your girl took it off discretely. You got a signed Hooters t-shirt, I got a signed bra.”

  He chuckled. “Can I at least see it?”

  “On or off of me?” I teased.

  “How about you wear it then I’ll take it off?” he teased back.

  “Once you are in the land of the living, yes, you can. But you still sound hung over. Why don’t you try and get some more sleep.” I suggested.

  “I’m going to head home in a few. Lots of screaming kids make it hard to sleep here. Will you come down and see me tonight?”

  “Yes but it’ll be later tonight. I owe Dad a nice dinner. Will seven work?”

  “That’ll be perfect. I can sleep until then.”

  “Get some rest, baby. I love you and will see you later.” I purred.

  “Okay. I love you too.” he paused. “And Celeste, wear the bra.”

  Dad and I had a nice supper and talked about Sean’s party. He laughed when I told him about the ball and chain his friends had forced him to wear.

  “He sounds like he has a great sense of humor.” Dad laughed.

  “Yes, he does. He’s very easy going.” I murmured.

  “You seem a lot more relaxed with him. More so that I’ve ever seen you with any other man.”

  “It’s weird, Dad. He’s my friend, my best friend and I don’t feel any competition with him. I want to make him as happy as he makes me.”

  “That’s a good thing, Celeste, a normal thing. It's how a marriage is supposed to be.”

  “Wasn’t it that way with Mom?” I asked.