Dolly (Part three-Max Mitchell series)

TWENTY SIX

"Miss Mitchell, these are the most most current dresses available. There's nothing newer than what we have, here."
"Nothing, huh?" Stef said, eyeing the attendant we'd been assigned at an exclusive wedding dress boutique in Manhattan. Just going by the look Stef was giving my Mom and Sister, we weren't in the right place. I had tried on numerous dresses, and hadn't been ultra-impressed, like I'd hoped I'd be.

"Thank you. I'm just going to take some time to decide." I said, trying to be polite as I gathered my things. Stef was already walking to the door, cell phone to her ear.
"I told you, we should have just let Tj handle it." She said to me, as I hustled to keep up with her.
"I didn't want to demand a personal wedding dress thing. I was hoping I could just find one, and buy it."
Apparently I was being ridiculous because I'm almost positive I saw Stef's eyes roll all the way to the back of her head.
"What are we going to do now?" My mom asked.
"We'll get Tj over today, and we get measurements, and then we let him work his magic."

***

"Ok Max, we need to figure this out. Tell me what you want."
"That's the thing. I don't know what I want."
"Right. I forgot about how difficult you are when it comes to fashion decisions."
"Sorry." I said, and grinned sheepishly.
"What's your favorite dress, the one that you love most?"
I pondered his question for a moment.
"Oh! I know. Hang on." I jumped off of the couch and bounded up the stairs to my closet. I grabbed the pink dress that I wore for the Adele performance.
That dress held the memories of the first night I'd really let Tom in. It brought me back to the night of the Grammys and just thinking about the way he looked at me when I wore it gave me goosebumps. I knew that my wedding dress had to make me feel the same way.

I took it out of the garment bag, and Tj looked at me quizzically.
"That? You wore that for a performance."
"So? I love it. It's cute, it's girly and I love the way I feel when I wear it."
"Oh-kay...so, we want to find someone to make a wedding dress that looks like that?"
"Is that an option?"
"Honey, you're the bride, and anything is an option. Especially when Lady Gaga is one of your bridesmaids."
"I told you we should have just called him first." Stef said, giving me a pointed look.

Tj left and the four of us sat in the kitchen, working out a plan.
"Where will you get married, Maxi?" My Mom asked.
"I don't know. I'm open to ideas."
"Here?" My sister suggested.
"Here? Like, at my house?" I aggressively shook my head no. The thought of all of the commotion surrounding us, in my own house sounded awful.
"Max, you know...you always said you wanted to get married at the Tree." My mom said, thoughtfully.

My breath caught in my throat. She was right. My childhood memories flooded back to me. Memories of peeking through the doors of the ballroom, to get a look at the brides in all of their splendor, romantically lit by candlelight. I used to dream of being one of them, being swirled around the floor by my very own Prince Charming. I could still imagine the smell of roses filling the air, and the sounds of glasses clinking and people cheering for the bride and her groom.

Swiftly, I grabbed my phone and dialed the Tree to see if there was any miracle that would allow me to be married there.
"Thank you for calling the Tree Hotel at Iffley, how can I help you this evening?"
"Hello. This is Max Mitchell speaking. Is Martha available?"
"Please hold."
"Maxine! So nice of you to call."
"Hi Martha. I've got some exciting news."
"A wedding?"
"Yes. A wedding...and a baby in about eight months. I was hoping there was a place there for me to get married, and soon."
"Oh! The day has finally come! Your Granny and Grandpa would be bursting." She cooed, and I had to fight off tears.
"I've just got to be married there. It doesn't matter when."
"I'm meeting with our hotel manager in the morning. I'll try to pull a few strings and see what I come up with. Can I ring you tomorrow?"
"Yes. Of course. Thank you Martha."
"We're going to make this happen, Maxine. Not to worry."
Her words made me feel relieved, and hopeful.