Chapter 97. The Wedding (4).
Chapter 97: 97. The Wedding (4).
Hearing this, Austin simply smiled back in response.
"I’m honoured." He said, and Clara immediately turned to Rowena and took both her hands.
"My dear, you look absolutely stunning. I told Edmund on the way here, I said Edmund, that countess is going to be the most beautiful woman at her own wedding, and I was right."
"You were right." Edmund agreed.
Rowena smiled genuinely. "Thank you both for coming. It means a great deal."
Time passed and food arrived at the tables in steady waves, dish after dish coming out of the kitchen under the supervision of the mansion’s head chef, who had been working since before dawn and was currently running entirely on determination and professional pride.
Austin had designed the menu himself.
The menu was a combination of this world’s traditional wedding feast dishes and several of his own creations, including multiple preparations of both potatoes and the new fruits, which had been incorporated into everything from side dishes to desserts.
The reaction from the guests was sublime as well.
Within twenty minutes of the first dishes arriving, the noise level across the reception had risen considerably as people forgot about their careful noble manners and simply started eating with genuine enthusiasm.
Harvey Briggs had already cleared his plate once and was now eyeing the serving dishes.
At the far end of the table, Tatiana had been served a portion that was approximately three times the size of everyone else’s.
Seeing how much she ate really took them by surprise, but Tatiana kept eating, not minding how others around her viewed her.
Meanwhile, Ophelia had recovered from her earlier emotional state with remarkable speed and was now firmly in her element.
She was currently moving between tables with a glass in hand, charming every guest she spoke to and collecting information where necessary.
At one point she stopped beside Austin and leaned close.
"Having fun, my son-in-law?" She asked happily with a huge grin on her face.
"A son-in-law, huh. I like it. But is it son-in-law or nephew-in-law?"
"Who cares if it’s son or nephew. What really matters is today, and my main question was whether you’re having fun. So, as long as you’re having fun, then it’s all good."
"Yeah, I guess you’re right."
Hearing his words, Ophelia smiled and excused herself, and Austin simply watched her go with a faint smile of his own.
As the evening stretched on and the sky above the garden deepened from gold into a rich dark blue, the celebrations showed no signs of slowing down.
Someone had produced a fiddle from somewhere, joined shortly after by a hand drum, and a small open space near the edge of the garden had quietly become a dancing area without anyone officially deciding it would be.
Cedric, to the visible astonishment of several of Rowena’s younger staff members, turned out to be an exceptionally good dancer, and was currently leading one of the older elf maids through a sequence of steps.
Meanwhile, Nora had pulled Austin onto the makeshift dance floor early in the evening and refused to let him claim he didn’t know how to dance.
They had both danced and played in the rain before in the past, so doing it again here shouldn’t be too difficult.
By the time the third song was being played, the newly wed husband and wife were already laughing and dancing together.
Of course, Rowena was watching them from the table she sat at, and right now her chin was resting lightly on her hand as she smiled at the two of them, imagining how their three lives were going to be from now on.
However, whilst her mind had drifted far and wide, Ophelia suddenly appeared beside her without any warning and sat close to her niece.
"Your husband is dancing in front of you and you’re just sitting here."
"I’m still a countess, Aunt Ophelia. I can’t be seen..."
"Who cares. Today is a very important day for you, so you better go dance with your man before you regret not doing so for years to come."
Rowena stayed silent as she realised the truth in the words her aunt had just said.
But whilst she was still pondering on whether to dance with Austin and Nora or not, Rowena suddenly noticed Austin gesturing toward her to come join him and Nora.
And so, with a beautiful smile on her face, Rowena accepted the offer, and all three of them could now be seen dancing and laughing together.
Ophelia watched them move toward the dancing area together, Rowena’s silver dress catching the lantern light as she went, and took a long and satisfied sip of her wine.
***
Time flew by, and now the reception had finally begun to wind down.
Guests made their way gradually toward the guest wing.
The musicians packed away their instruments.
The kitchen staff began their quiet work of clearing the tables, and the lanterns in the garden burned low.
Austin stood in the entrance hall of the new mansion with Nora on one side and Rowena on the other, saying the last of their goodnights to the departing guests.
The moment the final guest had gone through, the entrance hall went quiet.
Now, the three of them stood there for a moment in the comfortable silence, taking in all that had happened today.
Then Nora looked across at Austin and Rowena.
With a smile on her face, it was clear to everyone what was next on the agenda for the three of them.
Since the wedding was done, the next thing was clearly for the trio to consummate their marriage, but since Austin and Nora had done it countless times already, Nora thought it would be better for Rowena to have a little privacy with Austin since it would be her first time.
"I’ll head over to see how Luna is doing in her room." Nora whispered in Austin’s ear before planting a kiss on his cheek and saying goodnight.
Understanding the gesture, Austin smiled and watched his beautiful wife sashay elegantly as she left the hall, leaving him and Rowena alone.
"Shall we?" Austin asked as he turned around to face the beautiful countess.