Cassandra scooped Betsy off of the floor and into hug. "Oh baby girl, what am I doing?" Though the question was directed at Betsy, Cassandra was asking herself more than she was asking Betsy. Cassandra looked at her daughter as she squirmed and babbled in her arms. Her little girl looked more like Darryl each day. Cassandra wondered how it was that Betsy only had a hint of the Goth genes. "Alright silly girl, I'll put you down. Keep your hat on. Grandma will be up in a minute to get you." As if right on cue the Goth women stormed the room. The wedding was a big affair and Cassandra felt lost in hustle and bustle even though the day was supposed to be all about her. Bella took a moment to fuss over her oldest daughter and then picked up Betsy. The three women stood before her beaming smiles and showering her with platitudes. Cassandra felt like a fraud. Her eyes teared and the women enveloped her in a hug.
"Shed a couple of tears now and then dry up Cassandra," Bella teasingly scolded. "Just don't let your father see you cry or he'll sob while he is walking down you down the aisle."
"You are also smudging your make-up!" added Floramaria. She took a minute to double check Cassandra's hair and touch up the make-up.
"Okay, one last thing before we go downstairs," Jada said. "We have some things for you."
"Something old; your grandmother Cornelia's moonstone earrings she received from your Grandpapa on their wedding day," Bella explained.
"Something new; a garter," Floramaria blushed as she quickly handed it over to her sister. "I know you didn't get one and brides are supposed to have one so I bought it for you."
Jada took Cassandra's hands in hers, "Don't be nervous! Marriage is wonderful. Now, something borrowed; this is the bracelet I wore when I married Cyrique. I hope it brings you luck."
Cassandra looked to her mother wanting to tear up again. She doubted they would be this nice to her if they knew what she had done. Bella passed Betsy to Jada and ushered them out of the room.
"A private moment for us and I'll take you down to your father." Bella hugged her daughter close. "I'm so very proud of the woman you are. You will make a wonderful wife. As you are my oldest I have something special just for you. It is your 'something blue'." Bella gently unwrapped a small square of tissue paper. Cassandra eyes grew wide at the gift. She smiled her first genuine smile of the day. Her mother held before her a delicate silk handkerchief, the Bachelor family crest cross-stitched in blue.
"This heirloom has been passed down to a Bachelor woman on her wedding day. It is a reminder of the proud family in their lineage. My father had no sisters and so this was given to my mother on their wedding day and she gave it to me when I married your father. Someday you'll give this Betsy. For now it is yours to keep safe." Bella wiped away her own tears, "Now, let's get you downstairs. Your father and your future husband are waiting for you."
As the women were upstairs fussing over Cassandra, Don was pacing quietly in the kitchen. He watched through the window as guest after guest arrived. A Goth was getting married; in Sunset Valley that was a big deal, and though it was like marrying Sunset Valley royalty his future mother-in-law kept the guest list short and personal. He wouldn't have minded if the Landgraab family was there but he didn't know what he would have done if the Altos were invited out of obligation. Don's attention was pulled back into the room as Sheldon came bounding in and launched himself into Don's arms. The boy knew exactly want he needed in this moment. Then in a flurry of activity Jada and Floramaria came downstairs and went outside with Betsy. It was time. Cassandra would be coming down soon and Don needed to get outside and in place.
"This heirloom has been passed down to a Bachelor woman on her wedding day. It is a reminder of the proud family in their lineage. My father had no sisters and so this was given to my mother on their wedding day and she gave it to me when I married your father. Someday you'll give this Betsy. For now it is yours to keep safe." Bella wiped away her own tears, "Now, let's get you downstairs. Your father and your future husband are waiting for you."
Cassandra met her father at the front door. Mortimer gave her a quick kiss on the check and offered his arm. Cassandra linked her arm through his and adjusted her dress so she wouldn't trip on her first step through the door. Her father said something to her but it didn't register so she smiled at him. Cassandra turned the corner for the full view of the aisle and her groom waiting for her at the end. Don smiled when she looked at him. Cassandra's heart skipped a beat and she thought for sure that he would run when he could look into her eyes. He would know. A crazy thought flittered into her head. Maybe she should run first, before he had the chance. Cassandra gripped her father's arm tightly to steady herself. Mortimer reached over and rested his free hand on top of his daughter's hand clutching his sleeve.
Before Cassandra had a moment to decide whether she would run or not there she was, standing in front of Don. He smiled at her and she noticed the the twinkle in his eye when he stares at her with adoration. He wasn't running. He couldn't see the secret she thought was etched on her face. The ceremony progressed and Cassandra heard little. She just stared into Don's eyes. Cassandra snapped back to reality upon Jada's nudge. Jada handed her the ring. Cassandra closed her eyes and recited her vows word for word; concentrating on not creating a scandal with a slip of the tongue.
Don had Cyrique standing as his witness but he had given the special job of caring for Cassandra's wedding band to Sheldon. Sheldon fumbled in his pocket for a moment and then triumphantly presented the ring to his dad. Don carefully took the ring from Sheldon and then shook his hand. Don was slightly worried that his normally animated bride was so clearly reserved during the ceremony but brushed the thought aside, chalking it up to nerves. Lovingly, Don slipped the band onto Cassandra's finger and promised her his love and life for as long as they should live. Sheldon flashed a thumbs up to Cassandra and clapped happily. Catching sight of the boy, who for all intense purpose was her son, Cassandra couldn't help but to smile. She started getting caught up in the majesty of their wedding; creating a love, a family. They were her reason for being there.
Don held his wife in his arms and gave her a little wink, "No swooning until later Missus Lothario." Despite her best effort to be serious she couldn't' help but laugh.
Don and Cassandra stood under their trellis and smiled for picture after picture. A reporter was even there to take a snapshot for an article in the Daily Sunset Gazette. Pictures were taken with her parents, with her siblings. Someone took Cassandra's flowers and handed Betsy to her. Don and Sheldon stood in close and the four of them smiled together. It would be their first family photo. Photo after photo Cassandra lost track of time and lost track of herself. Just as she was feeling completely in the moment her heart dropped into her stomach. In the distance she saw a flash of strawberry-blonde duck into the backseat of a car. He was there and Cassandra came to the realization that he didn't stop the wedding. It didn't matter to her how long he had been watching; whether he was there from the beginning or came in at the end. He chose to say nothing and leave. Cassandra tried to catch her breath and kept smiling for the camera.
By all accounts the reception was an epic success. They danced and enjoyed dinner. The guests frequently interrupted their meal and the evening with the tinking of their glasses and Don leaned in for the kiss each and every time. As the night wore on his kisses became more passionate and more sloppy, much to the delight of their guests. Don was becoming slightly drunk and as the children and the older guest excused themselves the reception became more of a party. They cut the cake. Don very lovingly fed her a small bite of cake and Cassandra smashed his piece all over his face and quickly kissed his lips before disappearing onto the dance floor. Don wiped off and they danced into the night. As the party wound down Cassandra slipped away and walked out onto the hill overlooking the cemetery and her town. She couldn't see the Alto mansion in the distance but she wondered what Monte was up to at that very moment. Did he shed tears as she did? Did he find solace in the arms of another woman? Was he drowning his regret with a bottle of whiskey? She rubbed the stray tear away as she tried to figure out why he would have come if he wasn't going to stop the wedding.
Don watched his wife from a distance. It was obvious she need a couple minutes alone. The day was overwhelming for him and he didn't know most of the people at their wedding. The guest were acquaintances at best. He couldn't imagine what it must have felt like for her. Yet, Don still worried. Cassandra hadn't been herself. He was quite accustomed to her intense personality and reaction to everything but it wasn't normal for her to ebb and flow from one emotion to the other and Don wondered what had her so conflicted. Perhaps it was getting married. They had lived like they were married since almost the beginning so Don wasn't sure that actually getting married would be the cause, but people were known to question how marriage would change the status quo.Don excused himself from the remaining guests and slowly walked up behind Cassandra, careful to not be too quiet and startle his wife. He stood silently and waited to see if she wanted to say anything. Cassandra said nothing.
"Are you alright Cassandra," Don asked. Cassandra took a deep breath to steady herself."Yeah, I'm just taking a moment to myself out here. The party was getting a little crazy." There she was lying again. Cassandra chided herself, a mental slap in the face. She was going to have to make it work somehow.
"Is everyone getting to where they need to be?" Cassandra asked changing the subject.
"Yeah, Darryl and Zephy took Betsy home awhile ago. Sheldon went with Cyrique and Jada and your parents have already left for the beach house with Flora and Damen for a couple of days. You and I have the manor to ourselves Missus Lothario." Cassandra smiled at his insistence at calling her 'Missus Lothario', though Don couldn't see it because she still faced away from him,. It was endearing and it was growing on her even if she hadn't yet discussed actually changing her name.
Don reached around and turned his new bride to face him. She smiled for him but he could see the weariness in her eyes. Don pulled Cassandra close and silently held her beneath the stars. Her body was taught against his at first, but then he felt her begin to relax. Neither knew exactly how long they stood on the hill and it wasn't until Don could feel goosebumps on Cassandra's arms that he made a move to head inside. Cassandra grabbed Don before he ushered her to the manor. She looked into his eyes; searched for something, anything that said he knew."Thank you," Cassandra whispered.
Cassandra was so involved in her own thoughts that she didn't hear the bathroom door open and shut. She let out a yelp when Don began talking. She hadn't even noticed he had come in. Cassandra noticed he was standing in the buff and ready to join her in the shower. She wouldn't kid herself; Don was great to look at naked. He was manly in all the right places and it wasn't like she was not attracted to him. Cassandra scooted over to let Don in under the water. He made small talk while he poured the body wash onto her skin and began to rub it into a soupy lather. The combination of the steam and the way his fingers glided over her skin had her worked up again. She turned toward Don and lifted her chin to bring her lips to his.
~~~~~~~~~~
Cassandra and Don's life together as husband and wife settled back into the regular, every day hustle and bustle of normal. The biggest hurdle they faced as newlyweds was whether or not Cassandra was going to change her last name or not. Obviously, Don wanted her to but Cassandra didn't see why it was so necessary. They went rounds about it and got the opinions of other family members, welcomed or otherwise. Eventually Cassandra decided that she would change her name. It was common and expected for the woman to take her husband's name, but that would mean that a Goth would no longer be the heir of Goth Manor.
Cassandra was sure her father would not be thrilled by her decision but she got quite the surprise when he fully supported her decision. The last name didn't matter to Mortimer. The bloodline would continue whether the surname did or not. After all, Cassandra had a daughter and the last name would change again when Betsy was grown and married. The day Cassandra went to give up the last little bit of herself was like every other day. She saw Sheldon off to school. She pack his lunch and checked his backpack for his homework and then sent him out the door to the waiting school bus. After she watched the bus turn the corner Cassandra strapped Betsy into her car seat and she drove into town, like any other day, but first she stopped at City Hall to fill out the papers for a name change.
As soon as one hurdle was clear it seemed that another would pop up. This time it seemed to come out of left field. It was like any other night; they had eaten dinner and Cassandra and Don were doing the dishes when he decided to drop the bombshell."Hey, babe, what do you think about having a baby?"
Cassandra nearly dropped the plates she had in her hands, "What?"
"Think about it. Betsy is almost a child, she isn't our baby anymore. I'm going to miss that. And I want to have a baby with you. It would be sexy for you to be pregnant."
Cassandra quickly finished the dishes in silence. Yeah, I'd be a sexy whale maybe and sciatica is no where near sexy.
"Don't forget that the scout camp-out is this weekend and you are signed up to go with Sheldon," Cassandra reminded Don. "Also, you promised him a tree house If you don't want to build one, then I can take him and have him pick one out. The store delivers and assembles."
Don's phone rang before he could respond. Looking at the caller ID he saw the call was from the office.
"Honey, I have to take this. It seems that can't run one day without me," he mentioned without pause. "Hello? This is Don."Cassandra left him to take his call. Their professional responsibilities would also have to be taken into account before deciding to have a baby. She was hesitant. She had watched her own mother get set back in her career baby after baby. Sure, she made her dream but it didn't seem like she had the dream spot for very long. Cassandra wanted to enjoy many, many years as a power broker of the company. As CEO she had a couple more promotions and she was competing with Monte and Don to get there. One woman, two men... and she couldn't let something like a pregnancy get in the way. It would be the perfect opportunity for one, or both, of them to push her out of the front running if she wasn't there to keep her hold on things.
As the time passed on for the goth family another birthday was to be celebrated; it was a moment Floramaria had eagerly waited for for the past year. It was her birthday celebration into adulthood. She had been a great kid and even better teen, not wanting to rock the boat in the least. The party was the only smear on her record. But for one last hurrah Floramaria was setting a dye kit for the poor chap who would be taking a shower next. She hoped with all her heart Damen would be the victim of her prank since he deserved it the most, but she would also get a kick out of it if it were Cassandra or even Don. After the initial shock it would be something they could laugh about.
Floramaria heard her mother calling up the stairs and finished putting the faucet back together before someone busted her. Then she headed down to the kitchen where she found everyone waiting for her to blow out the candles. Floramaria had big plans for her life; she was going to find fame in become a world class angler and be the first woman to find prestige among the men, to boot. She could imagine her little house decorated with various fish tanks and fish bowls prominently displaying her perfectly caught fish. She would even travel to compete and catch the most exotic fish.
It wasn't often that Jada was around the house anymore. She lived out on her own, as a married woman. Their father got to see her the most as she took up work in the lab. She was a wonderful success story for the lab and they still were able to test her and see how things were going. Jada was fine with this and as a scientist herself she was interested in figuring out the mysteries of her condition. Though they both felt eternally grateful for the work of various lab employees, Floramaria did not feel as beholden as her sister. She may stop by to see her sister or her dad, but she wouldn't be going back to the lab anymore. Floramaria was finally becoming comfortable in her skin and people were going to have to take her as she came. However, that special bond between the adopted Goth daughters grew stronger as time went on and Floramaria was happy to be celebrating yet another birthday with the family that mattered.
Soon after Floramaria's cake was cut and served Bella brought another cake out of the fridge. It was little Miss Betsy's turn for a birthday party. Cassandra allowed her mom to play the role of the spoiling grandmother and took a backseat on the show. She swallowed back a little of her tears before anyone could see her getting too emotional. She just couldn't believe that her baby was going to be a child; ready for school, ready for after-school activities, ready for overnights at her father's house. Cassandra didn't know if she was going to be ready and briefly wished she hadn't spent so much of Betsy's younger years wrapped up in her own world.
Later that evening Cassandra and Don fell quietly into content routine. Cassandra scrubbed blue frosting out of Sheldon's shirt before it went in the washer. Standing next to her Don silently changed laundry loads. The running water and hum of the drier was the only sound in the room. Both were happy, but life was rather boring. Sure, they could have let the maid do the laundry but with the amount they had would almost require live in help or a hefty raise. They chose just to do it themselves and, therefore, spent their time in passing.
After the laundry was started it was time to put the children to bed. Cassandra had reports to compile for an early morning meeting so Don took care of getting Sheldon and Betsy in their pajamas and into bed. He got them settled and pulled out "Jimmy Sprocket and the Chalice of Lichens", the next book in the beloved children's series. It took an extra five minutes just to get them settled again after Don showed them the book. Sheldon and Betsy were held captive by the story, even though Don felt that Cassandra was much better than him at reading the characters.
It wasn't long before their eyelids began to droop and both kids settled into their pillows. Betsy fell asleep almost the same moment her head hit the pillow. However, Sheldon fought sleep with all he had, wanting to find out what happened to Jimmy Sprocket next. Every few paragraphs Don would check to see see if he was still awake until, at last, there was no answer. He quietly closed the book and put it in the draw of the night stand. Don gently pulled the covers to their chins and gave a each a kiss on the forehead before dimming the light and leaving them to their dreams.
It was late into the night when Don and Cassandra made it up to their bedroom. It was going to be an early morning, but at least they had gotten everything done for the day. Cassandra made small talk while she changed into her pajamas and they both crawled into bed much to tired to anything at all. They cuddled together and held hands until drifting off into their own dream worlds. Even in sleep Don only had Cassandra on his mind. His dreams revolved around her. On the contrary, Cassandra's dreams would wander into the realm of pregnancies and babies. In reality she wanted to hold off on having a baby, if she even decided she wanted to go that far. She couldn't get a reprieve in her dreams either. Much to Cassandra chagrin biology was not on her side. The more babies were mentioned the more the yearning in her belly pulled at her. She thought it would be good idea and a horrible idea at the same time and she didn't know which side was winning anymore.
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