There were a few artists that recorded 'I Knew the Bride (When She Used to Rock and Roll)', but our favorite is by the man who wrote it, Nick Lowe. It has a certain charm, hard to explain, but for us it paints an image of a woman who is a pleasure to know and watch as she dances through life - bringing joy to those around her.
Everyone portrayed in the story below is over eighteen. This is fiction; as always, all characters and events, etc. are figments of our imagination and have no connection to any living or dead persons, real places, or true events.
I Knew the Bride
My face broke out in a grin as I watched Lisa Casey walk up the aisle on her father's arm. I almost said out loud what I was thinking, "My god, she is a beautiful bride." Lisa caught my eye, and in that way she has, gave me a secret smile in return. The wedding photographer, who was doing her best to be non-intrusive, took the bride's photo just at that moment, capturing it for posterity.
Lisa continued up the aisle. I looked up to her destination, the glassy-eyed groom standing near the altar, a giant grin on his face. Why not? He was about to exchange vows with the 'it-girl' of Liberty County, Texas - the female that almost every red-blooded heterosexual wanted to date, and/or fuck.
I probably wouldn't have been invited to this shindig; but was currently dating Lisa's cousin Dana. I later learned that Francis Casey, Lisa's mother, asked her what the hell she was thinking, Francis considered it bad manners for Dana to ask me to be her escort, given my past relationship with Lisa. Lisa laughed when Dana teasingly told her Aunt Francis, "I get horny at weddings and who better to relieve the itch than Nick?" Dana said Lisa agreed with her and shut down the entire controversy by giving Dana a hug and telling her I was welcome. That's why I'm here, standing next to Dana and watching Lisa as she glides down the aisle in her classic wedding dress, approaching her intended, Trey Chase.
The reception, limited to one-hundred-fifty guests only because Lisa sternly told her father, "This is MY wedding and not some damn political-business payback convention" was held at the town's country club. The number of guests may have been fewer than whatever her mom and dad wanted, but her father, who happens to be the town's mayor and owner/president of our local bank, still insisted on hosting a blow-out affair.
I watched as Lisa finished the traditional father-daughter and bride-groom dances before she cut loose, dancing to a fast number with her two bridesmaids. I've been to many weddings in my life, but don't remember any bride being able to move with such grace and passion. The woman loved to dance. Dana leaned over and whispered in my ear as we watched the dancers. "I hope like hell the dress doesn't fall apart. It was her mother's wedding dress and they had a seamstress in last night making a few last minute adjustments."
Of course, Dana and I both knew that there were a few score of men, young and old, hoping those seams did fall apart. But the dress held up and Lisa danced most of the night. At one point during a slow number, Lisa was dancing with Trey and I had Dana in my arms; there may have been a signal I didn't see because without a word, Lisa and Dana switched partners.
Lisa took the opportunity to talk. "Thanks, Nick. You've always been a great friend and a wonderful gentleman. Thanks for staying true to our agreement by keeping our arrangement secret."
"You're the one who spilled the beans. I knew you told Dana, but Dana said your mom knew too."
"I did tell Dana; it just came out one night when we were drinking at home. She promised to keep our secret and I trust her. And you're the lucky recipient of my indiscretion; Dana couldn't wait to jump your bones after I got engaged to Trey."
That made me smile, but I had to ask. "What about your mom; how did she find out?"
Lisa leaned back and looked at me with those beautiful blue eyes. "She caught me sneaking in one morning. I couldn't lie to her. Her lips are sealed."
I had to ask, "Trey doesn't know?"
"We haven't shared our pasts; neither of us want to know. It's funny; I think he's afraid I have a dirty past because of the way I flirt and he's not willing to know about it. He'd probably be surprised to find out I've been to bed with three men in my life, including him. Luckily, one of those men was you and you showed me how good sex could be. Trey's the lucky recipient of your training."
I looked over at the head table to find Lisa's mom giving me the evil eye. I smiled at her and made up my mind to ask Francis Casey to dance later just to let her know I didn't have any evil intentions. The song was about to end and Lisa had one last thing to say.
"I'm going to ask a favor of you, Nick. Trey grew up in a sheltered environment and I know he feels like a fish out of water in our small country town. He needs a friend like you. I know he's dying to go fishing, but he's embarrassed by his lack of knowledge. Think about it." And she squeezed my hand and walked toward the lucky groom. Dana came back and we walked back to our table with her arm in mine.
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My friendship with Lisa began three years before her wedding day, soon after my return from a four year stint in the Marines. I won't bore you with the details of my time as a Marine. I did come back in one piece, satisfied I'd served with honor and glad to be home with my family and good friends. The welcome I received in my hometown was almost overwhelming, I expected my parents and siblings to be there, but as I walked off the commuter jet at our local airport, I had to hide the tears when so many people showed up to welcome me home.
The second night home, Tom and Bill showed up at my folks' place. "C'mon, we're headed to The Barn for drinks and dancing." Tom and Bill accepted my mother's hugs and her threat. "Don't you two get my boy into trouble."
"Ma, you know better than that." Tom answered. My two best friends always called my mother 'Ma' and she loved it.
We walked into The Barn and it didn't take me thirty seconds before my eyes latched on to the spinning girl on the dance floor. Her dance partner was barely keeping up, although trying desperately. The song ended, the girl got on her toes to give him a quick kiss on the cheek before skipping back to the table where her girlfriends sat laughing and clapping. The man she left behind did his best to retain some dignity, walking back to his friends at the bar and taking a drink from his longneck.
"So, who is that?" I asked Bill, gesturing with my head toward the girl. She was one of the prettiest girls I'd seen in a long time, even before your eyes moved down to the body poured into those tight blue jeans.
Bill wasn't surprised by my interest. "Remember Dwight Casey's little sister?"
I had to do a double take. "The one that was always trying to hang out with us and made a pest of herself? Dwight would always call his folks to get them to pick her up. She was what - four years younger than us?"
Bill smiled. "The age difference is huge between fourteen and eighteen, then shrinks to nothing between twenty-one and twenty-five."
The three of us sat at one of the tables and ordered a pitcher of beer. Bill continued to fill me in. "Lisa Casey returned to town earlier this year after graduating from some community college in Florida. She's in here at least two nights a week. She dances and drinks, but never gets out of control. Lisa's earning a reputation as a tease, but even still, guys never stop asking her to dance. If you watch, she'll turn down most of the guys."
Tom added, almost to himself as he looked out at the dance floor, getting his courage up, "Dancing with the boys, treating them all like toys."
