Chapter Thirty

Jessie hardly expected her wedding day to be like this. Out of deference for the football schedules, they’d chosen a date in mid-October when the Sinners had a bye week and UL played an early afternoon game, leaving plenty of time for Coach Mo to shower, shave, and struggle into his rented tux in order to make the seven p.m. sunset service and reception. Jessie said he could simply wear a suit, but her dad refused to be outshone by the Billodeaux men who owned custom-made tuxedos because they so often attended charity affairs. Teddy, having filled out since the last time he used his, took the garment to the elderly tailor who did alterations from his tiny shop behind his home in Chapelle.

As for her gown, Corazon shortened it, and they did a trial run to make sure the fabric wouldn’t tangle in the wheels of her chair, a new one matching Teddy’s but in blue, her favorite color. The rest of the dress with its crystal-strewn strapless bodice posed no problems with her more toned arms, and the fingertip veil fit perfectly. Around her neck, she wore the simple pearl necklace Teddy had gotten for her birthday, recently returned along with her phone and other belongings by the Shreveport police.

Xochi purchased a buttery yellow high-waisted gown with a bodice of sparkling crystals that charmingly showed off her baby bump. She’d styled her dark hair up threaded with ribbons that matched the color and appeared in the bindings around the flowers.

Beau Regard of Beau’s Blooms had clapped his hands gaily in excitement over the suggestion that they use flowers from Xo’s garden in the two bouquets. “I do so love an original idea. It’s always roses, roses, roses and calla lilies, but lately peonies, so out of season right now. How perfect for an autumn wedding!” He and his partner came to harvest the blossoms a day in advance to chill and suck up preservatives prior to being wrapped. A centerpiece of more substantial varicolored mums rested on Jessie’s train, used as a head table drape, but the amber vases on the pale yellow cloths covering the smaller tables held more of the garden flowers with little wisps of fern.

When Jess thought about the wedding she’d planned with her mother, Dale making most of the decisions, she often felt her mom was more in love with Troy than she. And her dad, well, he’d been so proud of the young man he’d helped coach to greatness in the NFL. Surprisingly, when she’d called her brother to see if he wanted to attend, he’d said, “Can’t Sis, got a game that weekend, but I think you made a good trade. I know I’m speaking ill of the dead, but Troy Gilbert was a jerk through and through. From what I remember of Teddy, you couldn’t find a nicer guy. Be happy.” At least one of the Minvielles had seen through the big-man-on-campus façade.

Jessie clutched her bouquet and stared out at the rented tables and chairs arrayed around the oaks, far too many for their tiny affair. Outside of the immediate family circle only Mawmaw Nadine and the Abbott grandparents were invited. She’d questioned Nell, dressed in a more subdued yellow suit than Xo’s choice, about the arrangements and had gotten the reply, “Billodeauxs, you never know how many will show up,” which seemed like an evasive answer. No time to worry about that. Her in-laws-to-be had footed the bill for everything. No quibbling from her.

Her dad was running late. Had he changed his mind about pushing her chair to the gazebo to keep her hands free for the flowers? She should have known when the sound of a large bus coming to a stop before the house drowned out the crickets and tree frogs just warming up for the evening. Thundering feet rounded the home, and Jessie watched from the tall windows of the dining room as the entire UL team, dressed in suits and ties as if they were on their way to a bowl game, lined up to make an aisle for her. X-avier gave her a wide grin and a thumbs-up.

“Oh, Mama Nell, we’re going to need another pig to feed them all.”

“Already taken care of. We have plenty of food and champagne, plus the bus to get them all back to Lafayette safely.”

Jessie gauged Teddy’s smile as he sat by the justice of the peace waiting for her to become his wife. The fairy lights strung on the gazebo and along the oak limbs made him glow, or maybe that was his inner light. “Did everyone know about this but me?” she asked.

“Pretty much,” Xochi said. She tucked a daisy boutonniere into Coach Mo’s lapel as he puffed to a stop next to his daughter.

“Sorry, honey. Some of my boys spend more time primping than the most girlie of girls. I swear X-avier fiddled with his fro for an hour. Anyhow, we’re here, your groom is waiting, and the team has another surprise for you.”

“Oh, really,” she said with a little trepidation in her voice.

“It’s good, just wait.”

“I wish Mom had come with you.”

“I tried, I really tried. Nell talked to her, but your mother doesn’t give in easily.”

Joe came to walk Nell down the improvised aisle. Xochi followed them, and Mo steered his daughter’s chair down the back porch ramp. As soon as they appeared, X-avier sounded a pitch pipe and led the Cajuns into an a-cappella version of All You Need is Love by the Beatles.

“They’ve seen Love Actually?” Jessie murmured.

“Some of them, but they all went along with it. Rehearsed after football practice. Some have really good voices, like X-avier who’s kind of a showboat, but the others are doing the da-da-da-dums. For you, baby.”

“Oh, so sweet.” Glad she’d worn waterproof makeup Jessie pushed away the tears with her own smile.

The justice of the peace, a woman who clearly doted on marrying people, spoke a few words about the joyous uniting of a loving couple. Xo took her bouquet. Awkward Trinity did not fumble the rings. Jessie and Teddy repeated their vows, exchanged rings, and turned to face their witnesses, a wall of handsome Billodeaux men, their sisters and wives, plus Brinsley, the butler, all dressed as if they attended a royal wedding in Xochi’s backyard. Their eyes lit upon Lizzy in Mawmaw Nadine’s arms, Nurse Shammy on one side ready for any emergency, and Nell on the other. Dressed in a sunny, ruffled dress, a white bonnet and booties, the baby watched wide-eyed, beguiled by the lights and the sun setting over the bayou turning its brown waters to gold.

Teddy whispered, “Did you see that? She smiled at us, her first smile.”

Maybe not, but if Lizzy had started smiling earlier none of her caretakers gave the secret away. Jessie held out her arms. Shammy wrested the infant away from Mawmaw Nadine and propped her in the crook of Jessie’s elbow. The team started another chorus of love, love, love as Mo wheeled his daughter forward, Teddy beside her. Jessie glanced up at a solitary form standing on the porch, her mother wearing the suit she’d chosen for another wedding, and dabbing at her eyes with a hankie.

“Teddy, take the baby!” She handed Lizzy over and pushed away from her father’s control. “Mom!”

But the woman had gone. As fast as she drove her chair, Jess couldn’t catch up, the long tables in the house for the buffet presenting obstacle after obstacle right down to a whole roasted pig with an apple in its mouth presented in a nest of ruffled purple and white cabbage leaves occupying a pedestal of its own. On the front porch, she heard the slam of a car door and watched her mother’s SUV pull out of a space behind the team bus. Gone. For the second time that evening Jessie wanted to cry.

Her dad and Teddy minus the baby came up behind her. Mo squeezed his daughter’s shoulder. “I guess she did want to see you in your wedding gown. Don’t worry. She’ll come around.”

“Jessie, please don’t cry. Come back outside. The team has arranged a first dance for us,” Teddy said.

“A dance?” she sniffed, trying so hard not to let the tears stream.

“Yes, follow me.” He led her back to the yard where champagne bottles popped, and recorded music, or maybe a karaoke machine, played in the background. Most of the team had retreated to tables, each with its own bottle of wine, but X-avier Hopkins stood in the gazebo, microphone to his mouth.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Mr. and Mrs. Teddy Billodeaux.” He paused for the applause with impeccable timing. “While I wish them all the best in life, I do have to say I would have liked a chance with Jessica before Ted intercepted her heart. Now, my mama says football don’t last forever, so I’m thinkin’ I might make a wedding singer. Don’t you laugh now.” He waited for the laughter to subside. “Here’s my version of At Last My Love Has Come Along, no disrespect meant to the great Etta James. I figured if it was good enough for Obama and his lady, it’s is good enough for this fine occasion too.” He launched into the song and wasn’t half bad.

Teddy held out his arms to Jessie. “Climb aboard, and put your arms around my shoulders.”

“You sure this is going to work?” But Jessie obeyed, alighting on his lap in a cloud of white. When it came to the Billodeauxs she figured she’d be saying that for the rest of her life and be proved wrong.

Teddy moved his chair in a series of deft serpentines, each ending with a twirl and back again, then a series of wide circles growing smaller and smaller until Jessie laughed and threw her hands in the air. “I’m getting dizzy.”

“I’m getting tired—but you are much lighter than the kicker they made dress up in a Goodwill wedding gown so we could practice.”

“That’s where you’ve been when you had to go out to do all those interviews? For a while, I thought you had a girlfriend on the side.”

“Not me. This is forever, Jess.”

“Yes, yes it is, Teddy.” They sealed these second vows with a kiss, drawing more applause. The song ended. The kiss continued—until X-avier interrupted.

“I might be persuaded to perform a few more times after we tuck into the spread that awaits us. I hear we got two whole pigs, Junior Polk’s famous crab cakes…” X-avier consulted a notecard. “Mawmaw Nadine’s brisket and fabulous bread pudding, Miss Corazon’s taquitos and quesadillas, all else catered by Down By The Riverside Restaurant. Family and wedding party first. Just leave some for the team.”

“Wish I were as smooth as X-avier,” Trinity Billodeaux muttered. He pushed the dark curls he should have had cut for the occasion out of the way of his black-framed glasses. “If there were any girls here not my sisters or married, they’d be all over him.”

Teddy, just in front of him in line, answered, “Maybe he’ll give you lessons, but chin up, Lorena and Mack aren’t engaged or married either. And look at me, who would have thought I could be so lucky?”

After the meal, the couple cut the three-tiered traditional wedding cake edged in icing lace ordered from Pommier’s bakery, a cake Jessie had considered too big when they selected it. It went fast since the football players had no desire to take any back to the dorm in little boxes. A good local photographer took traditional group pictures and candids to commemorate the occasion. Coach Mo kept a sharp eye on his team and herded them back onto the bus when all were happy but not drunk or combative.

Before leaving, he took a check from his pocket and handed it over to Jessie. “From the day you were born, we set up a wedding fund for you. Never told you about it because we didn’t want any begging to use it for other stuff until we started paying the deposits for the occasion.”

“With everything that happened I forgot all about it. I guess you couldn’t get most of those deposits back.”

“No matter. Joe wouldn’t let me pay for anything but the use of the team bus. What’s left is yours to start a new life. Live it well, honey.” Mo kissed his daughter on the cheek. “Okay, the team is singing Ninety-Nine Bottles of Beer. I need to go before we get arrested for disturbing the peace.” Jessie suspected her father’s sudden exit masked a few tears.

Junior Polk took his place. “The keys to our condo in New Orleans.” He tossed those to Teddy. For Jessie, he had an envelope. “Gift cards to some of the best places in town to eat, and free drinks at Mariah’s Place. We all picked our favorite spots. Mariah said you’d better stop by and see her. She has to approve the bride.”

“We will,” Teddy promised.

Nell kissed them both. “This is a good time to leave. We’ll handle everything from here. Gifts have been piling up in the bedrooms, but you can open them when you get back.”

“Gifts?”

“Yes, when word got around town, people who wished you well went to LeClerc’s and ordered off your previous list. You made that man ecstatically happy. Now, drive carefully. Call when you get there. Love you both.”

The family lined up on the front porch, lighting the night with sparklers to see them on their way. Nurse Shammy waved the baby’s tiny hand at them as they got into the van and let Joe stow their wheelchairs. As soon as his dad stepped back, Teddy drove over the bayou bridge, blocking the happy scene on the porch, but on the other side, Jessie could see the lights in the oak trees on Xochi’s lawn still twinkling and reflecting off the dark water.

“We’re on our way, wife of mine.” Teddy took the turn that would head them toward New Orleans. “I brought the wedge.” He earned a radiant smile for that.

Jessie unfolded her father’s check jammed into the envelope containing the gift cards. “We certainly are. Twenty-three thousand dollars, Teddy. Enough for a down payment on a little house with a picket fence.”