The Face In The Mirror (13 page)

“We’ll get up in the morning and find out what the state of Tennessee
requires for us to get married,” he said, and squeezed me tighter.
“I saw a little chapel on the main road as we drove into town.”
“Were you looking for a chapel, Renie?” he asked with a grin that made
that damn dimple appear.
“No, I just saw a beautiful chapel that caught my eye. I’ll show you
tomorrow. Oh, my. Mrs. Mitchell Donovan again,” I giggled and he kissed the
top of my head.
“Mitchell?” I whispered, later, not sure if he was awake.
“Mmm hmm?” he replied in a sleepy voice.
“I will make this the best part of your life. I love you.”
“It already is, Renie. You came back.”

We spent a lazy day on Sunday. Have I said that I love waking up with
Mitchell Donovan? I love the way he smells. It’s not a musky scent - it’s a clean,
refreshing smell. His arms cradled me, and it was warm there. When I stirred, I
felt him pull me closer. He kissed the back of my neck and the warmth of his
breath, the closeness, and the idea that in a few days I was going to be his wife
again gave me a feeling of bliss like I hadn’t felt in a very long time.

“Good morning,” he said in a soft voice.
“Hey.”
“Sleep well?” he asked, as I turned into his arms.
“I did. You kinda wore me out last night,” I said with a sigh.
“It seems to me that it was the other way around,” he said, and smiled. It

was more of a grin at first, but it slowly spread beautifully across his face. It was
the kind of smile that expressed pleasure and playfulness, and I hoped that I
would see that smile every morning for the rest of my life.

“Let’s order room service,” he suggested.
“Mimosas!”
He turned to reach for the phone, but I pulled him back. “Mitchell?”
“Renie?” he said, and the smile was even brighter.
“I can’t wait.”
“I’ll hurry.”
“No, not breakfast.” I looked at him, and the look on his face had my heart

Room service delivered our breakfast, and we ate in bed. I was ready for
coffee after the busy night we’d spent. Once we were finally up and ready, we
drove around to find the courthouse. I suggested that we drive out of town so I
could show Mitchell the chapel I’d seen. It was built like a log cabin, nestled in
a little cove. There was a small creek that ran along side with a wooden
footbridge that crossed over to the chapel. No one was there, so we walked
around and saw the most amazing stained glass windows. Mitchell loved it as
much as I did.

After we found our way around, we moseyed into an arts and crafts
community, checking out the few shops that were open. Sunday wasn’t a busy
day in this part of town. Heading back to Gatlinburg, we found a restaurant
and had burgers and beers. While we ate, a misty rain and fog blew in.

“Want to explore some more, or would you rather head back to the hotel?”
Mitchell asked.
I looked at him and waggled my eyebrows.
He chuckled and leaned closer, talking in my ear in a hushed tone. “What
are you suggesting, Renie?”
“Why, whatever do you mean?” I snickered.

Monday morning, we went to the courthouse for the marriage license.
There were a dozen couples ahead of us. When we finally had our turn with the
clerk, she asked several questions. She looked at our names on the paperwork
and smiled.

“Well, Miss Donovan, you won’t be havin’ to change your name, I see,”
she said with a heavy southern twang.
“I already did,” I grinned, looking at Mitchell as he squeezed my hand.
“Before the marriage? Now that’s different,” she cackled.
“No,” I said, “after the marriage the first time.”
“Oh, you like Donovan boys, do ya?” she said, laughing at her own
comment. Her small, round frame shook with each word.
“Just this one,” I said.
She looked up, confusion on her face. Mitchell said, “We decided to do it
again.”
“Well, you don’t need a license to renew vows here in Tennessee. You just
go to a chapel if that’s what you’re lookin’ to do.”
“No, we need to get married again,” I said. “We divorced nine years ago.”
“Oh! So you’re gonna give it another go! Ain’t love just a funny thing?”
“Ain’t it?” Mitchell laughed, caressing my back lovingly.

After we took care of the license, we drove to the chapel to inquire about
starting our lives together once more. We could have called, but I wanted to see
inside. They had an opening at seven Wednesday evening, so we set out to do
some shopping.

Mitchell led me toward a jewelry store. “We don’t need to do this,” I told
him. “I still have the original set in a safe deposit box.”
“Nope, we’re making a fresh start,” he said. “We can sell those and invest it
in Convenient Cuisine.”
He made me look around at all the inventory to see if I saw something I
liked. The jeweler looked on as I finally turned to Mitchell. “This should be
your choice. You’re giving me back a piece of your heart. You should decide
which one.”
I looked up. Both Mitchell and the jeweler had smiles on their faces.
“While you were looking, I had the jeweler set a ring aside that I liked. I
wanted to surprise you,” Mitchell said.
The jeweler took the ring-sizer from the counter and then had me slip my
finger in to check the size. When I did, both men were smiling again.
“But what about a ring for you?” I asked.
“If it’s OK with you, I already took care of that. It’ll match yours.”
“Perfect,” I said.

Mitchell found a slate gray suit that he liked. He paired it with a crisp white
shirt, and a ‘passionate purple’ tie. He went to the dressing room, and when he
stepped out I felt a shudder run up my spine. That suit was made just for him.
The fabric touched his body in ways that left me breathless. It was rich and
regal looking, and I thought there couldn’t be a more handsome man on the
face of the earth.

He changed and Hilary, the sales assistant, put the things he wanted aside.
“I’m gonna run next door and see about shoes while you shop. You can pick
another tie if you want, that purple one just grabbed my eye. I love you, Renie,”
he called over his shoulder as he left.

I must have had a big smile on my face, because as he walked out, Hilary
turned to me with a grin. I thought about the clerk at the courthouse’s
comment ‘ain’t love just a funny thing…’

“Well, we have a huge job ahead of us,” I said to Hilary. When she looked
at me, puzzled, I added, “I gotta look at least as good as that man.” I sighed,
fanning myself, and we both laughed.

“We’ll shoot for ‘even better’,” she said with a big smile. “Tell me your
thoughts so we know where to begin.”
“OK, definitely not white, not young-looking, and not old-looking. Oh,
and not short,” I said, excitedly.
“I’ve had some experience at this. We usually do this the other way around,
choosing the bride’s attire first, but since your groom is in gray and purple…”
“And I love my groom in that gray and purple,” I said fanning myself
again.
“Let me pull a few for you to look at.”
We talked about size, and then she left me alone for a few minutes. While
she was away, I looked around.
When she returned, carrying three dress bags, I suddenly felt giddy.
“Shall I show you my favorite first?” she asked.
“Yes, please,” I said, and as I did, I felt tears bubble to the surface.
“It’s because it’s such a special time,” she said, patting my back.
“It is that, but it’s my mom… I just lost her a few months ago. This brings
back so many memories of my first experience with this.”
“I always try to think of my mom looking down at me during special
moments in my life, and she is always smiling.”
“Oh, she’d be smiling, all right,” I said, remembering. “She loved Mitchell
the first time, and she’d be so happy to know that we found our way back to
each other.”
“You were married before? To each other?”
“Yes,” I said, and my heart skipped a beat. “And then one of us needed to
grow up some more. It was me. Let’s see what you’ve got there.”

We went to a dressing room where she’d hung the dresses. She placed the
one she wanted me to see first on the door. As she unzipped the bag, I held my
breath. It was nothing that I would ever have thought to try. It wasn’t offwhite, or champagne colored. It was the palest lavender I’d ever seen and
looked like a soft cloud of organza with tiny pearls at the waist. It was simple
and elegant, and absolutely the most beautiful dress I’d ever seen.

“It’s gorgeous!”
“Slip off those jeans and sweatshirt and let’s see,” she said.
I kicked my sneakers off and got down to my underwear to slip into the

dress. Hilary helped me, keeping me facing the door so that I couldn’t see.
“I like the surprise factor when my brides turn and look in the mirror,” she
said.
She zipped it and said one word. “Perfect.”
I couldn’t wait to turn around. “Can I look now?”
She turned me to face the mirror. The dress was a flowing Grecian style.
Pearls adorned an empire waist, and half-cap sleeves sat right on the edge of my
shoulder. It was stunning, but not ‘over the top’. I stood there, looking at my
reflection, and I swore I saw my mom smile back at me.
“You’re right, it
is
perfect!” I turned to see the back and side views in the
three-way mirror. The back was really low with a drape of the fabric flowing to
the floor, and suddenly, I could feel Mitchell’s hand on my bare skin. We heard
the bell at the front door ring out, indicating that someone had entered the
shop.
Hilary stepped out of the dressing room, and I decided that she didn’t even
need to open the other bags. This was
the
dress - my dress.
I heard Mitchell’s voice and heard Hilary say that we would be right out.
“Zip it back up in the bag, and put the other two away,” I told her with a
big smile when she returned.
“I told you, I know these things!” she laughed.
“Wait, I guess before you put it away I need a proper bra or whatever to
wear under it, and shoes and jewelry.”
“I have a bustier ready for you to try on, and no slip is necessary with the
under layer of the dress.” She left a moment, and when she returned, she
unzipped the dress. “Try this,” she said. I slipped the dress down to put the
bustier on and she zipped me back up.
“Perfect! You should do this for a living!” I laughed.
Finally, we exited the fitting room and Mitchell was there, looking around.
“I need a few more things,” I told him and walked to the jewelry. I picked up a
strand of pearls. The length would have them skimming about mid chest, and
Hilary nodded her agreement. I added pearl studs, and then went to look at
shoes. The length of the dress was perfect, so I knew about what size heel I
needed and found a pair that I liked. Hilary and I discussed flowers and she
said they would be waiting at the chapel.
“One more thing,” she said. “We’re in for a cool-down. Do you have a
wrap?”
“A sweatshirt,” I laughed.
“Might want to take a look at this. I have one and I use it quite frequently.”
She handed me a soft white, crocheted wrap and then showed me how to drape
it around my arms.
At last, I told Mitchell, “I’m ready!”
“I hope so,” he said. Hilary smiled at me tenderly, hearing his words.
“I have a courier who will deliver your things to The Vista. We’ll have
them freshened up and they’ll be taken right to your room.”
I don’t know why, but I felt the need to hug the woman who was helping
make our day perfect. As I did, she spoke softly in my ear. “I hope this is a
beautiful new beginning for you. I know your mother will be smiling down on
you.”

By three that afternoon, with our wedding plans set, we returned to The
Vista. We parked the truck and went to the room for a minute. As I went to the
bathroom, I heard Mitchell on the phone.

“Surprise,” he said, as he hung up, answering the question on my face
when I returned.
We took a trolley back down the mountain to take in the excitement of
Gatlinburg. We shopped, found a little hole-in-the-wall Italian restaurant and
had a bite to eat. They served the best garlic bread-knots I’d ever eaten.
“Wow! It’s a good thing you’re eating these, too!” I grinned, kissing him. I
decided to move from my side of the booth to his.
“Mitchell…”
“Mmm hmm,” he said, sipping his glass of wine.
“Thank you, for loving me.”
“Renie, I never ever stopped.”
“I believe that I’m more excited about this wedding than the first time we
did it.”
“Why?” he asked, slipping his arm around my shoulder and pulling me
closer.
“Because it’s just us, and I’ve found that I like just us a great deal.”
Tuesday we took a drive out of town and toured Cade’s Cove in the
National Park, seeing deer and a couple of black bears as we drove the loop.
The leaves were in full color and the park was crowded. When we walked, we
held hands. When we paused to appreciate a view, Mitchell’s arm was around
me and my head was on his shoulder. I really didn’t want to be more than an
inch away from him. We’d stopped on our way there and picked up sandwiches
and snacks. We drove around until we found a spot to have a picnic, dropping
the tailgate on the truck to eat. It was cool, but the sun was warm and
welcomed.
I loved sharing this with Mitchell. Everything about this trip was better
than the honeymoon we enjoyed a dozen years ago. My dad had sent us to
Jamaica as our wedding gift. It was beautiful and I loved it, but this trip was far
more intimate and romantic than that was. Back then, we’d been too busy
cramming everything in that we’d forgotten to enjoy ourselves, and it was more
exhausting than pleasurable. Oh, we honeymooned – sex, morning, noon and
night - but we didn’t appreciate all that we’d experienced on the island.
This was better. Maybe because we’re older, and with age you look at
everything
differently. But I think it’s better because of what we are learning
about each other – again.