Jay stood there; drink in hand smiling broadly at all the faces turned towards him. “Just between us and not a word to anyone else but I am so glad that Anastasia is our only child!” He felt his left hand grasped by his daughter’s and her cheek pressed to his knuckles as a polite ripple of laughter ran through the assembled wedding guests.
“So am I, Daddy, so am I” whispered Anastasia.
He beamed down at his daughter as he stood behind her looking into her dark brown eyes. They shone with gratitude; still speaking to all in the room but with his eyes never leaving Anastasia’s he continued, “So I had to use my last favour with Mad Pete Trullo to get hold of the limousines, but it was worth it!” The two of them beamed at each other sharing the quote; this time the laughter was mingled from the crowd. In his mind, the polite laughter all the more annoying compared to the five or six who ‘got’ the joke and laughed loudly or clapped.
“I guess there’s only one thing left to do,” he said turning back to the crowd raising his glass; “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls raise your glasses; I give you the Bride and Groom!”
Jay sipped the glass of champagne that he didn’t care for while looking at the lavish spread before him. Only the tiniest morsel of regret registered in his mind at the thousands and thousands of pounds that were, almost literally as in the champagne fountain, evaporating before him. His smile broadened as he considered his attitude of just a fortnight previously.
****
“Christ!” he muttered as he sat at the desk in his study and perused the bills, quotes, and estimates for the upcoming festivities. His mood seemed to be darkening inversely to that of the two women in his life. It was a close thing whether Anastasia, whose nuptials were fast approaching or his ex-wife, Sue, was the more enthusiastic. He looked at the ‘approximate’ figure glowing malevolently on the calculator.
He sighed as he leant back in his chair and even though the wedding wouldn’t break the bank it would be as if their accounts had been ram-raided at the very least. He absent-mindedly scratched the scar behind his right ear as he shifted four sheets of paper in front of him; “Two bands and a disco?” he puzzled trying to figure out where they all could play. He got up and walked over to the French windows and stepped outside onto the decking.
Even though he owned a building firm, a reasonably successful one at that it had been over a decade since he had been ‘on the tools’ for any length of time. Yet whenever he had a problem or an issue he had found a day working with his hands at least alleviated and sometimes led to a solution he hadn’t been able to see. He looked about the house he had literally built and the gardens that he now rattled about within and without, trying to find some project he could turn his stressed mind to.
It was over an hour later, Jay, stripped down to his Cargo shorts and tool belt was working in front of the double-garage when he heard his daughter arrive. He winced slightly as he heard her over-rev the engine as she pulled up around the corner; a frown then appearing as he wondered if the Mini convertible he had bought her for an engagement present would actually make it past the wedding. At least half of his frown was because he knew he spoiled his only daughter and yet judging by Rob, her fiancé, she wasn’t completely vacuous. The frown turned into a grin as he knew full well that Anastasia was anything but vacuous even if she sometimes played it to the fore.
He placed the furniture vice across the wood he had just assembled and glued as he heard his daughter walking down the slope beside the house towards him. “Hey Pater,” she called as she rounded the corner.
“Hey Daughter,” he replied with their standard greeting.
She wandered over examining the construction he was working on, after a moment she asked: “What’ye doing?”
“Working,” he replied and looked up finally. Anastasia stood with her arms folded, all her weight on her left leg as she looked quizzically at the wooden framework before her. Jay was grateful that even though it was a sweltering day, he was working up a sweat. That his daughter for once was wearing shorts that actually qualified as shorts and a T-shirt (even though he was sure whatever was written beneath her folded arms was probably, at the very least disingenuous) was more material than holes for a change. He smiled a little as even the belly button piercing wasn’t even visible.
“Hate to tell you this, Dad, but you got the seats the wrong way round!” she stated as she lifted a green painted fingernail to her lips.
“Damn, you’re right…” he grinned as he stood up and scratched his head; “Ahhh… I guess I’ll just make a ‘love-seat’ then instead of a bench.”
Anastasia looked again at the construction, “Ohh… a love-seat… the two seats are opposite so lovers can snog?” her arms unfolded and she inter-twined her little fingers in demonstration. “Okay, I see it now!”
Jay gulped as he kept his eyes on his daughter’s, his peripheral vision already establishing the two wide cartoon eyes placed squarely on his daughter's breasts and the caption beneath saying something along the lines of “Eyes up here!” He shook his head and returned his focus to the work before him. She must get changed he thought as he considered the blossoming career of ‘Life-Coach’ she’d taken up; whatever a ‘Life-Coach’ was in the real world.
“So what’s wrong, Jay?” Anastasia asked using his first name as they had done through the years whenever something was serious.
He paused as he winded the vice to hold the joints in place. “The wedding, Anna” he stated simply.
****
He couldn’t believe just how good the Mariachi band was as he danced with Robert’s mother who was gushing about the extravagance of the entire event. “You’ve set the bar high, Jay; people will be talking about it for years to come!”
“What’s a fella to do?” he replied as the song came to an end, and he bowed courteously with the intention of getting to the bar and imbibing something more satisfying than champagne.
“A dance?” offered a voice from beside him.
For a moment he considered declining till he turned and saw Anastasia smiling up at him. “And what sort of gentleman would I be to turn down such a delightful creature?” he answered.
“Smooth!” she answered with a trace of sarcasm but with a genuine smile, “Does that work with all the girls?”
Jay raised his eyebrow quizzically, “For the life of me, I have no idea, must be going on three decades since I last had any practice!”
“You are NOT past it, Daddy!” she stated as they waltzed around the dance floor; “If you set your mind to it, I bet you could have anyone here… well, maybe mom would be a challenge?”
Jay laughed as he glanced across at his ex-wife; apart from the grey hair, which she had oddly allowed to flourish since they separated, the young woman in his arms and Sue were almost identical. Nobody would mistake them for sisters, but figure-wise it was difficult to tell them apart. He glanced down between them and was treated to the full décolletage that the figure-hugging, strapless wedding dress encouraged.
He felt himself blush slightly as he looked back up into his daughter’s eyes; “Yeah, I don’t think I would even try to go there!”
“Not even for old times’ sake?” Anastasia suggested raising a perfectly sculpted eyebrow; “As far as I can tell the bedroom was never where your problems lay…or didn’t?” she giggled.
“Anastasia!!!” Jay reprimanded his daughter although the colour was definitely rising within his cheeks now as his mind wandered back to his wife’s incredibly supple body and the various positions they enjoyed. The song ended, and he stepped back bowing to his daughter who curtsied.
“Just a thought, Daddy” Anastasia whispered conspiratorially, “but doesn’t Meaghan look quite yummy in her bridesmaid dress?” he glanced across at his daughter’s best friend who had just finished dancing with the groom’s father.
“Err…” he began as he turned back to Anastasia who just winked and moved away. “I definitely need a drink!” he muttered and turned in the opposite direction; his eyes drawn towards Meaghan as he wound his way through the gathering. The bridesmaid had definitely been a distraction down through the years.
****
Jay led Anastasia into his study and picked up a random selection of invoices and quotes, “Exactly what are you and your mother trying to organise here; a D-Day re-enactment?”
His daughter nibbled on her bottom lip, but as she watched her father cross his arms, she figured the ‘little-girl’ look wasn’t going to cut it. “I know… but’s it’s going to be wonderful, really wonderful!” She made a decision pulling the paperwork from his hand, dropping them onto the desk and then grabbing his hand pulling him out of the office and through to the dining room which at present was ‘Wedding Central.’
She released his hand and spread the various pamphlets and brochures she and her mom had accumulated; she opened the one showing the horse-drawn carriage, “Tell me that isn’t perfect?”
Grudgingly he admitted, “It is, but wouldn’t a Rolls Royce be perfect too? He offered knowing that’d save him over four-hundred pounds. Even as he said it he couldn’t help feeling like a miserly heel; it had seemed so much more straightforward when he had been alone in his study earlier.
“I guess,” she agreed with a low, disappointed voice which pulled viciously at her father’s heartstrings. “The linen napkins would be just so adorable,” she murmured.
He stepped up behind his daughter laying a hand on her shoulder, “I’m sure we can work it out.”
“Oh yes, Daddy,” she almost shouted with glee and turned and hugged him hard; “You’ve got to see the wedding dress,” she gushed as she turned away and skipped to the large dress holder hanging from the picture rail.
Jay shook his head running the words back over in his head sure that his meaning of making savings had been clear.
****
He finally managed to get to the bar and nodded to the barman. Once he’d finished serving some of Robert’s friends who nodded their thanks for the free bar, stooped down and lifted the luxury that Jay himself had made sure was there. “Thank you,” he said gratefully as he turned and face the throng rolling the 18-year-old Macallan around in the heavy tumbler.
“Thanks, Jay!” came the gruff voice of the groom's father, “Bethany’s eyes are out on stalks; I almost wished she was a lesbian but it seems they can get married too these days!”
“Sorry about that Martin…” he turned and nodded to the barman again indicating the same for the man beside him. “In my defence I was outnumbered!”
“Hell of a do… but the string quartet for the ceremony?” he asked.
“God knows, but the Mariachi boys are rather good… seems an allowance made for our generation and our funny dances!” Jay replied before handing the man a tumbler of whisky; “Between you and me only, my own little perk!”
“Sláinte Jay!”
“Cheers Martin.”
“Damn that’s good. Honestly, I’m not much of a whisky drinker, but that’s a cut above! That’s a hundred percent!” he stated after taking a sip.
Jay glanced across the room and saw Meaghan chatting with his daughter and Bethany. He idly wondered if Anastasia had concealed an ulterior motive when he had sent him to check on her before the wedding. He let his eyes linger and couldn’t help but blush a little when his daughter caught him watching and pulled the other woman into a one-armed hug; her slender fingers dancing a soft, subtle tattoo just above the bridesmaid’s hip.
“Must be coming up to Robert and Anastasia leaving?” inquired Martin, “I suppose we should attend to our duties although…” he swilled the amber liquid around in his glass.
“Indeed I guess we should” Jay reluctantly agreed.
****
Anastasia carefully reached up and unzipped the dress bag to reveal her wedding dress before slipping it out and laying it gingerly on the table. “It is beautiful,” Jay admitted truthfully.
“You have to see it on!” she stated and crossed her arms grabbing the bottom edge of her T-shirt and lifted it up.
Jay spun about as the last image in his eyes were his daughters’ bare breasts being revealed, “Christ!” he exclaimed.
“Oh don’t be a silly Daddy, they’re just tits!” she laughed from behind him, “It’s not like you didn’t see them when we were in St. Lucia?”
“I saw nothing,” he grunted in reply, “I seem to remember St Lucia had beautiful skies and mountains and sea and that’s all!” He felt himself blush hard as he did indeed remember his daughter five years previously on the Caribbean island and the number of times he avoided looking in her direction when they were on the beach.
It even put him off Sue’s boobs a little bit as the two pairs were as close to identical as possible; the two women were forever hopping in and out of each other’s clothes. He gulped as he remembered coming up behind Sue wrapping his arms around her to discover it was his daughter. Anastasia hadn’t been bothered in the slightest saying how she had missed being hugged by a ‘man’ in quite some time and they all had to come up to ‘his par’ anyway.
As he stood in the dining room his eyes wandered over the painting in front of him, a minor work of some minor Renaissance painter that was reasonably valuable but that he didn’t actually care for all that much. He started to think that he should get it valued and allay some of the cost of the upcoming nuptials. It took him a moment to realise he could see his daughter now bending over in the reflection of the protective glass as she dropped her shorts and stepped out of them. A huge surge of guilt ran through him as he found himself studying the lacy and brief pair of red panties covering Anastasia’s ass.
“Oh fuck” he mumbled as his cock betrayed him and swelled within his shorts.
“Meaghan will be sick with envy when she sees this!” his daughter remarked as she straightened up and carefully lifted the wedding dress and stepped into it; “You remember Meaghan don’t you Daddy?”
“Meaghan… scrawny little tyke, wasn’t she?” He joked picturing his daughter’s best friend which he mustn’t have seen in over three years. His mind flicked back to the summer after he’d put the pool in and the two nineteen-year-olds spending so much time pool-side rather than in the pool. Meaghan’s larger boobs beneath tiny bikini tops and a couple of times he’d seen them bare as she rose from the sun loungers seemingly etched permanently within his memory.
“I’ll tell her you said that!” Anastasia replied as she threaded her arms into the sleeves of the dress. “Okay I’m as decent as I will ever get Daddy; zip me up please.”
Jay turned about and walked around the table as his daughter moved in front of the full-length mirror that had been brought down from her long since vacated bedroom. She stared at her reflection, stretching out her arms and splaying her fingers, eyes focused on the diamond engagement ring. Jay stepped up behind his daughter and caught hold of the zip, his eyes wandering down her back noting absolutely no tan lines at all the way down to the hint of red lace. His eyes lingered far longer on the underwear; “Be careful Daddy, don’t want to ruin it now!” his daughter offered breaking the spell.
He looked up at his daughter’s face, her eyes seemed to be focused on her own reflection, but he wondered had they just moved away. He eased the zipper up carefully closing the back of the dress tightening it around the young woman’s body. It was tailored perfectly for her figure accentuating her hips and ass even with the flowing length and the neckline dipped down considerably which lifted and squeezed the young woman’s breasts. The zip clicked into place creating a deep décolletage. Jay pulled his eyes away again rapidly.
The dress was far more provocative than the one Sue had worn even though in its day it was considered raunchy with the corset style bodice it evoked. Yet all he could imagine was their wedding night as they had stood in precisely the same position in front of a mirror and he had undone the laced fastenings on his new wife’s dress. His cock twitched again as he remembered Sue on all fours in the middle of the four-poster still in her pure white suspenders, stockings and heels looking back playing the nervous virgin bride begging him to, “Please be gentle, Sir,” when it was the very last thing she wanted.
“Penny for your thoughts, Daddy?” asked Anastasia bringing him back to the present.
He looked into his daughter's eyes and answered truthfully, “I was just remembering your mother on our wedding day.” He smiled ruefully, and wedding night he added within his own head.
Anastasia smiled back, her eyes sparkling; “It was a beautiful dress, I was very tempted to go with something similar, truth be told, her ass looked fantastic in the pictures!” She stated as Jay stood back and surveyed the dress in its entirety. She slowly spun around twice for his inspection before facing him. “Would you have liked to have seen Mom in this dress?” She asked.
