to the moon & to saturn | cate blanchett

chapter 32

The first sound Elle heard on her wedding day was Cate's husky voice whispering good morning into her ear.

Elle yawned and sank backwards into Cate's body heat. Rain pattered against the window. Her eyes fluttered open to find that it was completely pitch black in her room. She closed her eyes as Cate nuzzled herself into her neck, peppering kisses across her back up to her ear. She allowed herself to relish in Cate's kisses before asking what time it was. Her voice came out a hoarse whisper.

"Three in the morning," said Cate sweetly, as if this was a completely normal and acceptable time to start the day. "It's our wedding day, my darling."

"I love you," Elle mumbled dreamily into her pillow.

"Did you hear me, sleepy girl? It's our wedding day," Cate repeated, trailing her fingers down Elle's bare arm.

Elle's brain was stuck somewhere between her dream realm and the reality of Cate's touches. The older woman caught onto this, chuckling softly into Elle's shoulder. Her loose blonde hair brushed against Elle's skin, causing the younger girl to shiver.

"I can't wait to marry you," said Elle drowsily. She grabbed Cate's hand. "At a reasonable time this afternoon. Can we go back to sleep now?"

"You can," said Cate softly. "I need to finish our garments."

Elle's brain kicked into gear once she realized Cate planned to leave the bed. She rolled over and pinned Cate to the mattress, lazily covering the older woman's body with her own.

"Can't leave now," said Elle, smiling into Cate's hair.

Elle's body shook as Cate chuckled at her childish behavior.

"Do you want to get married naked, dear?"

"Yes."

Becoming increasingly more alert and awake, Elle gently traced Cate's collarbone with her lips. A low groan emerged from Cate's throat as Elle's mouth surpassed her collarbone and moved down to her breasts. Elle's tongue circled one of Cate's taut nipples.

"Darling," Cate warned.

"Mhmm?"

Cate lifted Elle's chin. She couldn't see Elle's eyes due to the darkness, but she felt the tiredness concealed within her actions.

"Go back to sleep," she ordered.

Tenderly, Cate rolled Elle off of her — it was easy, as the girl's sleepy brain overtook her once more. She planted one last kiss firmly on the side of Elle's head, then stood up in the darkness, leaving her side of the bed cold. Elle snuggled into the spot Cate abandoned. The woman's scent immediately lulled her back into a deep sleep.

"Dream a little dream of me," Cate sung in a hushed whisper.

She slipped on a navy blue jumpsuit and exited the apartment.

Over the last week, she had set up camp in the back room of her store in order to design and execute three outfits: one for herself, one for her beautiful bride, and one maid of honor dress worthy of Dylan.

Her own outfit was the first that she completed. It was easy to design for herself because she knew exactly what she wanted: a simple white fitted suit. The blazer and pants took almost no time at all; she'd made those same patterns for herself an endless amount of times. To add a bit of spice, she constructed a bodysuit to wear under the suit that resembled lingerie, made of a stunning sheer lace. She imagined Elle's eyes popping out of her head when she saw how the bodysuit exemplified her cleavage.

While her own outfit took little effort, Elle's outfit had proven to be a challenge. She wanted the attention of the wedding to be solely on Elle, so she poured an excess of creativity and love into her design. Truthfully, she was both proud and frustrated at her progress. The fabric she picked was exquisite (a lining the color of Elle's complexion covered with wispy white feathers), but difficult to work with and to maneuver into the shape she wanted. It was cut, but it needed to be sewed, so it layed abandoned on a table nearby. That would be a project to tackle after Dylan's fitting; the maid of honor herself promised to stop by quickly before heading over to the secret venue. Dylan took her maid of honor duties very seriously.