My Sweet Charity

The Best Thing You Ever Met – Part 11

Jul 8, 2020 9:30 AM By Jeanne Prejean Leave a Comment

What had been the tennis court was now a ballroom with strings of fairy lights and chandeliers hovering above. At the far end of the court was a stage for musicians, a lot more than the usual Billy and The Boys operation. Floating on one side of the stage was a 72″ helium filled white balloon with the word “Shen” on it. Across the way was another similar balloon, but it read “Billy.”

Bars were set up on three sides of the court, which had been covered by a green carpeted wooden deck. Around the floor were large round tables covered with white tableclothes, white padded Chiavari chairs and mammoth floral centerpieces of white and red roses and pink peonies.

Billy escorted Shen onstage and with mic in hand told the crowd that, following custom, he and Shen would kick off the evening with the first dance. Out of the corner of his eye, Billy spied Shen starting to unbutton her coat. He stopped talking and all eyes were directed at the removal of the coat that revealed a beautiful dress with an off-the-shoulder, rose crystal-dipped bodice and pink tulle midi skirt with tiered handkerchief-hem. Reaching up with one hand, she pulled a comb from her hair freeing it to fall down to her shoulders.

“Shall we dance?” Shen asked.

Billy just stared. How could she be even more beautiful?

Over the PA a voice was heard. He sounded so familiar. Shen looked at Billy.

“Hey, Shen, it’s Tony Bennett here. Billy invited me to the wedding and I’m afraid that due to the virus restrictions here, I wasn’t able to make it. So, I hope you’ll accept this song for your first dance with your husband as my wedding gift.”

Over the system, Bennett sang “Time After Time.” In the distance, a fireworks display got underway. Like two swirling parallel universes coming together, Shen and Billy danced mesmerized in each other, oblivious of the crowd watching.

As others stood in awe of the magic on the stage, Hannah couldn’t help herself, asking Ham how Billy had made that happen. “Billy’s agent is friends with Tony’s agent.”

Upon finishing the song, Bennett said, “I hope you’ll have many years of happiness together, kids. Thank you for including me on your big day.”

Shen hugged Billy: “I can’t believe you made this happen!” She then looked over at Riley and winked. He nodded. Something was up that wasn’t part of Billy’s plans.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, the Boys found themselves being joined by some of the country’s leading musicians. Ham looked at Joey and Riley, messaging, “What’s the hell is up?”

Just then, from the back of the stage, Dolly Parton sauntered onstage with a mic in her hand.

Billy couldn’t believe what he was seeing. He’d only seen Dolly from a distance at concerts, and here she was on stage. How did it happen? He looked at Shen, who was smiling like a Cheshire cat. She pulled him close to her and whispered in his ear, “Surprise!”

It seems that it was Dolly whom Shen had texted the request to join the party. Riley had helped by flying Dolly and her crew with their equipment in, just minutes before the wedding began.

Addressing the bridegroom, Dolly said, “Billy, I understand that you’re quite a catch. But trust me — you’ve met your match with my pal Shen. When I heard how you’d swept Shen off her feet, I wanted to see you for myself and be part of your celebration. And I have to say that with all that’s going on in the world, it’s about time we had something to celebrate.”

She then told Billy she wanted to sing something tailor-made for him. With that, Shen unlocked her arms around Billy and gestured for him to go to Dolly, saying, “Dolly, he’s all yours. But I only hope you’ll give him back.”

Dolly had Billy sit on a stool so she could a better look at him. “My, but you are a tall drink of water. I think I picked the right song for you,” as she started singing, “Here You Come Again” to the still-in-shock bridegroom.

Dolly started laughing. “Billy, you look a little surprised. Son, you’d better get used to that with Shen in your life.”

Then she invited Billy and the Boys to join her crew to serenade Shen with “Islands in the Stream.”

While Billy got his guitar, Dolly motioned for Shen to take a seat on the stool.

Despite the shock of being on stage and performing with a legend, Billy couldn’t keep his eyes off Shen.

Then Dolly thanked the crowd and said, “I hate to sing and run, but I’m afraid it’s past my bedtime and don’t you know a girl needs her beauty sleep.”

As she walked past the newlyweds, Dolly said, “Shen, I think you’ve got yourself a real keeper.”

With that, she and her crew were headed back to Nashville, with Riley smiling all the way.

The local backup band took over so the Boys could party with the rest of the guests. Seeing Billy and Shen sneaking off, Jeff hollered, “Where are you going for your honeymoon?” Billy looked over his shoulder and shouted back: “Upstairs. See you in a week… no, make that a couple of weeks. And, Jeff, I got my birthday wish granted.”

Looking at thunder clouds forming in the west, Bertie shook her head. Hannah asked her what was wrong. Bertie smiled, “Nothing. I’m just a superstitious old fool. It’s nothing.”

… to be continued on Friday, July 10