Chapter #7The Reception by: Aurthor   The food at the reception was wonderful, as can be expected when you only hire the best in catering.
There were speeches from the groom’s family, each of them wanting, with various degrees of success, to show off their recently learned toastmaster skills. There was the traditional toast from the best man, complete with the obligatory embarrassing stories about the man she had married. Secretly Angela knew she could have done the job way better as she knew far more embarrassing stories about Kevin that this guy did. But her job today was to be the beautiful bride for the handsome groom, so she just smiled and did her best to look shocked in all the right places.
And then there was Grandpa Richardson’s speech, welcoming Angela into the family. Thin and reedy, the old man’s voice still contained hints of the skills developed in countless board meetings. He kept the audience captivated as he thanked everyone involved, making sure they received their due recognition for their help. Then he reiterated his expressed hope that the newest member to their family would bring a calm and steadying influence on her new husband, settling him down into the respectable young man he’d hoped for in a grandson.
If you only knew, Angela thought.
The old man’s speech was precisely long enough to get all his points across, but not so long that the audience got restless.
“And in conclusion,” his thin voice rang over the speakers, “Tonight’s celebration is a party to welcome Angela into our family. And what is a party without a few drinks? Ladies and gentlemen, the bar is now open. The wine is on the tables, the beer is on the house, and the high balls, well those are on the Giraffe.”
Angela looked at Kevin in shock, unsure what to think. Did the old man just make an off colour joke? Tittering laughter came from the crowd as Kevin smiled and nodded.
Angela looked at Kevin’s grandfather in a whole new light. Who would have thought? As the old man settled back into his wheelchair he saw her looking and winked.
Finally the dance started. This too, like everything else that day, was orchestrated to perfection. There was a live band instead of some prerecorded DJ that Angela half expected to see. They were pretty good too, with a set list that included a lot of slow waltzes and fast dances, and a few of the novelty ones for kids and adults to get silly to.
The first dance was, of course, for the Bride and Groom. Angela and Kevin circled the floor, carefully following the dance moves that had been drilled into them by the lessons Kevin’s mother had insisted they take. Then the dance with the parents, limited to Kevin dancing with his mother while Angela danced with his father, which is something she never would have thought she would ever do. Then the floor was given over to the rest of the guests while the happy couple took a short break.
Angela wasn’t given much time to rest though. Every male member of Kevin’s family wanted a dance. And, of course, she had to dance with Grandpa Richardson, he was footing most of the bill for the event after all. That was more than a bit awkward. Grandpa Richardson’s legs were so weak that he could barely walk and he wasn’t able to stand for very long. But he was game to try, so she helped him up out of the wheelchair and helped steady him, supporting his frail frame as they took a turn around the floor. They had almost made a complete circuit and were returning to his chair when the his legs gave out and he collapsed against her with a cry of despair, burying his face in the generous cleavage her wedding gown presented. If that wasn’t embarrassing enough, he tried to stop himself from falling by trying to grab a hold of her waist, except that he missed and wound up clenching a double handful of firm bubble shaped buttock instead. All caught on video of course, as well as by the photographer and about a dozen other cameras.
Nothing is truly embarrassing unless it is caught on film.
Still, Angela took the situation in amazing good humor. It was just an accident, after all. Although the sly wink and happy grin on Grandpa Richardson’s face made her wonder.
More dancing and drinking followed, although Angela was kept so busy dancing she didn’t get much of a chance to imbibe. By the time the reception wound to a close Angela was exhausted, almost falling asleep during the limo ride to the airport, where another surprise from the old man waited.
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