I smiled and shook my head, but trying to keep my eyes off those balloons was nearly impossible. How could he not have seen them when he came to stand here?
Finally, Alec very slowly looked over his shoulder to see what I was looking at and when he turned back his eyes were wide, and then he did it. It started as a low chuckle that only me and the pastor could hear. But he glanced back over his shoulder again, and that low chuckle turned to laughter. It didn’t take long for the guests on the groom’s side to begin to laugh along with him.
I shook my head and gave him a warning look, but it was too late. I fell into a fit of giggles that progressed to laughter. The pastor looked at us, confused, but continued with the service. Jennifer and the best man joined in with us, and it didn’t take long until nearly everyone in the room was laughing. I was certain that almost no one knew what it was that had started Alec laughing, but once he started, he couldn’t stop.
“Do you, Alec Blanchard, take Allie McSwain at as your bride?” The pastor asked hesitantly.
By this time Alec was laughing so hard that he couldn’t answer, he just nodded. His face turned red from his laughter, and I wiped at the tears that were coming from my eyes with a tissue Jennifer had handed me.
“Well, usually it’s a verbal agreement,” the pastor said very seriously.
Alec nodded again and squeaked out, “I do.”
The pastor looked at me wide-eyed. I nodded. “I take him as my husband, too.”
He nodded. “Well, alright then. As long as you both agree.”
I stepped in close to Alec, and he looked into my eyes, and for a moment he stopped laughing. I leaned in, and he kissed me. There was applause that went up throughout the room, and we both stepped back and laughed again.
“I thought you weren’t going to have balloon animals at your wedding?” he teased.
I shook my head. “Apparently I didn’t know what I was talking about.”
He laughed again, and we turned toward our guests as the pastor introduced us as husband and wife.
***
Jennifer asked me if I wanted her to go and tell Mr. Winters to stop, but I decided that there was no use in that. The balloons made him happy, and apparently, they made Alec happy. That in turn made all of our guests happy. I may have been too harsh when I said there wouldn’t be any balloon animals at my wedding, because they were a hit. Everyone wanted one. After the wedding was over, Mr. Winters got busy making more of them while the caterers set up the food buffet-style on three tables we had pushed together.
I went to the kitchen to see what the caterers were working on. “How are things going in here?” I asked as they worked to get the food ready to be served.
Richard Thomas from the Sandy Harbor Catering company popped something into his mouth and nodded. “Sorry, I didn’t get to eat breakfast earlier. We’re just about ready though.” He took a sip from a cup he held, then set it on the counter. “I’ll take this out to the table.” He picked up a bowl of shrimp that was set over a bowl of ice and headed out to the ballroom with it.
“Allie, we can set the cake on a table for you if you’d like us to,” Jodi Miller, one of the other catering assistants said.
“Could you?” I asked, feeling relieved. “I was dreading trying to move it. I put dowels in it to keep it steady, so it should be fine, but I always hate moving wedding cakes.”
She nodded. “No problem. We’ll get that set up for you.”
She and Lisa Wilson got on either side of the cake, and Richard returned to the kitchen to help them. They lifted the cake, intending to put it on the small cart they had brought along. And then my worst nightmare occurred. Richard suddenly let go of his side of the cake, and it tilted. I caught my breath as he quickly recovered and managed to keep the cake from falling to the floor. “Oh. Oh, I’m sorry,” he said, turning to me. His face went pale as he looked at me. “I think I lost my balance.”
I breathed out as they got the cake safely onto the cart.
“It’s okay,” I said breathlessly. I held my breath as Richard pushed the cart out of the kitchen, his head down.
Jodi smiled, looking embarrassed. “Sorry, Allie.”
I nodded. “It’s okay. Everything is okay.” My heart was pounding in my chest, and I said it as much to reassure myself as them.
I settled myself down, and the caterers went back to work. We had opted for a seafood feast complete with clam chowder, lobster, crabs, and an assortment of sides and bread that were traditional Maine dishes. Thank goodness the caterers were staying to make sure that everyone was served because it was a lot of food. They were also going to clean up when we were done.
I hovered near the kitchen doorway as they worked, trying not to be too big of a pest, but I was probably failing at it.
“Allie, that was the sweetest wedding,” Lucy said and hugged me. “And your dress is so pretty.”
“Thank you, Lucy. I feel bad that you weren’t a bridesmaid.” I had told her that I would love for her to be a bridesmaid, but that it was up to her. Alec could have found another groomsman to make it an even wedding party, but I didn’t want her to feel bad about saying no if she didn’t want to.
“Oh, please,” she said, waving the idea away. “I would have to
