doors was the legend YE SHALL GO TWO BY TWO . . . Instead of depicting religious
images, the stained-glass windows were aglow with garishly rendered scenes from
famous love stories including Romeo and Juliet, Abelard and Heloise, Aucassin
and Nicolette, Gone with the Wind, Casablanca—and, unbelievably, I Love Lucy and
Ozzie & Harriet.
Curiously, the tackiness did not deflate their buoyant mood. Nothing could
diminish this day. Even the outrageous chapel was to be prized, remembered in
every gaudy detail to be vividly recalled over the years, and always to be
recalled fondly because it was their chapel on their day and therefore special
in its own strange way.
Dogs were not ordinarily admitted. But Travis had generously tipped the entire
staff in advance to insure that Einstein would not only be allowed inside but
would be made to feel as welcome as anyone.
The minister, the Reverend Dan Dupree—’ ‘Please call me Reverend Dan”— was a
florid-faced, potbellied fellow, a strenuous smiler and glad-hander who looked
like a stereotypical used-car salesman. He was flanked by two paid witnesses—his
wife and her sister—who were wearing bright summery dresses for the occasion.
Travis took his place at the front of the chapel.
The woman organist struck up “The Wedding March.”
Nora had expressed a deep desire to actually walk down the aisle and meet Travis
rather than just beginning the ceremony at the altar railing. Furthermore, she
wanted to be “given away,” as other brides were. That should have been her
father’s singular honor, of course, but she had no father. Nor was anyone else
at hand who would be a likely candidate for the job, and at first it seemed that
she would have to make the walk alone or on the arm of a stranger. But in the
pickup, on their way to the ceremony, she had realized that Einstein was
available, and she had decided that no one in the world was more suited to
accompany her down the aisle than the dog.
Now, as the organist played, Nora entered the back of the nave with the dog at
her side. Einstein was acutely aware of the great honor of escorting her, and he
walked with all the pride and dignity he could muster, his head held high, his
slow steps timed to hers.
No one seemed disturbed—or even surprised—that a dog was giving Nora away. This
was, after all, Las Vegas.
“She’s one of the loveliest brides I’ve ever seen,” Reverend Dan’s wife
whispered to Travis, and he sensed that she was sincere, that she did not
routinely bestow that compliment.
The photographer’s flash blinked repeatedly, but Travis was too involved with
the sight of Nora to be bothered by the strobe.
Vases full of roses and carnations filled the small nave with their perfume, and
a hundred candles flickered softly, some in clear glass votive cups and others
on brass candelabras. By the time Nora arrived at his side, Travis was oblivious
of the tacky decor. His love was an architect that entirely remade the reality
of the chapel, transforming it into a cathedral as grand as any in the world.
The ceremony was brief and unexpectedly dignified. Travis and Nora exchanged
vows, then rings. Tears full of reflected candlelight shimmered in her eyes, and
Travis wondered for a moment why her tears should blur his vision, then realized
that he, too, was on the verge of tears. A burst of dramatic organ music
accompanied their first kiss as man and wife, and it was the sweetest kiss he
had ever known.
Reverend Dan popped the Dom Perignon and, at Travis’s direction, poured a glass
for everyone, the organist included. A saucer was found for Einstein. Slurping
noisily, the retriever joined in their toast to life, happiness, and love
eternal.
Einstein spent the afternoon in the forward end of the trailer, in the living
room, reading.
Travis and Nora spent the afternoon at the other end of the trailer, in bed.
After closing the bedroom door, Travis put a second bottle of Dom Perignon in an
ice bucket and loaded a compact-disk player with four albums of George Winston’s
most mellow piano music.
Nora drew down the blind at the only window and switched on a small lamp with a