Vivian Travels to Estonia Ch. 11

"I know what bothers me the most about Sam, was why did he need to steal in the first place. But even more importantly, why so much? Why couldn't he have stopped? Why did he continue stealing literally right up to the moment he was arrested? I believe that unless we could have gotten to the bottom of his motivation and gotten psychiatric help for him, our marriage could not have survived.

"I further have come to believe that to keep speculating on whether such resolution could have occurred was futile, and as a result I was ready to move on. Nothing good happens when one continues to delve in one's misery. At least there was a couple of silver linings; the birth of my beautiful daughter Maia; and the substantial amount of money left to me from Sam's ill-gotten gains.

"Now the contrast of my marriage to Eino to that of Sam, is akin to a contrast between night and day. Sam had a dark side to him, which I didn't know about until I married him. On the other hand, Eino Tarvas has a brighter side to him, I did not know about when he proposed to me. It turns out that Eino is more than a mere dairy farmer, but a leading spokesman to champion the cause of farmers in Estonia, and to promote modern advances in agriculture. Thus, he is well-known and well-regarded amongst business and political circles in Estonia.

"That's why we scheduled the wedding here in the capital city as the majority of the proposed guests reside here. Some of the guests happened to be very important citizens in Estonia. I daresay Angela that this wedding will compare favorably in prestige and social importance to your Connecticut wedding."

Angela quipped, "At least at this wedding, I'll get to drink as much as I wish, and try and see if I can score some strange Estonian nookie. I trust a lot of the available gentlemen speak enough English to give me a chance to succeed. Then again, I guess we can't all be lucky like you were at my wedding."

The last reference related to the fact that Vivian as Angela's maid of honor was able to enjoy a one night stand with Jed Baxter who was the closest male living relative to give Angela way. In this case Erica was the only one suitable to do this tradition, which was per force added to her matron of honor duties. Accordingly, Vivian mischievously retorted, "Wait a minute, Angela. You've already had sex, just like me at your wedding, with the person assigned to give away the bride!"

All Angela could say to that, "Touché!"

In this vein the three ladies continued their conversation while continuously drinking away. Remarkably each woman polished off 750 ml bottles of hard liquor. Vivian favored gin and tonic; Erica imbibed screwdrivers (Russian vodka and orange juice) while Angela settled for the manly drink of scotch (Glenlivet) but on the rocks rather than neat. It was a testament to their tolerance of alcohol consumption, that none of them betrayed any sign of drunkenness in their demeanor, although it was clearly noticeable that they had been consuming liquor.

Amongst the many topics of their conversations, by far the most compelling one was children as they were each mothers. They traded anecdotes of their children and opined on methods of discipline and over all strategies to promote proper growth in the upbringing of their children. Naturally, with only a seven month old child to her name, although about to become a stepmother to a nearly four year old, Vivian was less loquacious on the subject than the others. In contributing to the discussion, Vivian informed that she and Eino had agreed that bringing the farm up to the standard which they would mutually like to achieve, would take at least two years of hard and diligent work. Therefore, they wouldn't try for children until Vivian would be thirty-four years old.

Vivian summed it up, "I'm cool with the plan, since at least I'll still be less than thirty-five years old. My understanding is that the biological clock starts to begin a nasty turn at age thirty-five, not dire of course. Still when you're in your late thirties, pregnancies are no longer 'a walk in the park' like while you're younger."

Angela, who was a year younger than Vivian said, "Yes I'm kind of bummed that my last pregnancy produced a girl. Of course, I love Nancy (Angela's baby) to pieces, and she is precious, still I have two other girls and one son. If I would have had a boy, then everyone of my children would have had at least one brother and one sister. When I was growing up, I sure pined to have had a brother in addition to the two sisters I do have."

Both Laaning sisters reacted together, "You're not missing much in not having a brother, Angela. Having a brother can sure be a pain in the ass most of the time."

Angela disagreed, "You two don't seem to think disparagingly of your brother. In fact, your only bone of contention of him seems to be his wife, and that only because she has not accepted Erica's black husband and shuns their biracial children. In any case I would like to try for another child hoping for a boy to fulfill my peculiar caprice However, Ralph is not enthusiastic. The organized chaos that is part and parcel in raising four children sure is a challenge and a fifth child just might become an unmitigated disaster. So, I think I'll be getting my tubes tied."

Erica contributed, "Well Anna is our first girl to go with my two sons. Rod and I are thinking of one more to even things out with perhaps another girl. I hadn't thought of everyone having a brother and sister angle before. In any case, since I'm the only one here in the second half of my thirties, I guess I better not hesitate any longer. A case of poop or get off the pot."

And so, our ladies passed the night in delightful conversation, and even more delightful evening sipping spirits. Assuming that drinking heavily is not the thing that ladies of the stature of our heroines do, at least they didn't commit any further sin as they fell asleep almost simultaneously. When they woke up, their spirits were high in anticipation of Vivian's exciting day. One thing which buoyed their spirits was the near certainty that this time around Vivian's groom won't he arrested by the police.

They first partook in another sauna bathing, which rendered them pleasantly refreshed to tackle this busy day. Then they arranged with the hotel staff to move Angela's and Erica's luggage to the new rooms for the next two nights. Vivian's wedding dress was moved to Angela and Erica's room as she would dress there, but the rest of Vivian's possessions were moved by the hotel staff to Eino's room. That way they avoided the bad karma wherein Eino did not see his bride and her dress before the ceremony.

After a sumptuous breakfast, it was off to a highly recommended beauty spa and salon, which offered full service of beauty treatments. The ladies underwent relaxing and invigorating services which included a manicure, a pedicure and the appropriate hair treatment. Vivian also opted for a wax job. Up to now, in the sex with Eino, she displayed a fiery red bush matching the vibrant color of her hair. This change she felt was a natural incidental to the decision to adhere to the agreed one month celibacy to make the wedding night consummation of the marriage truly special.

Vivian had been in a quandary as to whether or not `to wear her TLR body chain belts and or the sexual commemorative ankle bracelets. She was ever mindful of Erica's warning against such body display of her past lewd behavior and wantonness. However, again up to now Eino did not seem to be bothered by her past sexual history. He had intimated that a man wants a sexy wife, not one that reacts woodenly to sex. Vivian had to admit that the sole reason she had an affair with Jed Baxter, the fabulously wealthy billionaire, was because of the fact that he was saddled with a wife who was frigid.

Despite producing two children in their marriage, their sex life was devoid of any joy. Thus, Jed had sex with other women, and she was merely one of them. For her own self-esteem, Vivian liked to think she was special to him considering the length of time that their affair lasted, and it was she who broke up the relationship after all. Still intellectually, Vivian realized it was delusional thinking on her part to believe he had been devastated by the loss of her charms. She knew full well that there were a plethora of beautiful women he could have simply by snapping his fingers, and they would come running and ultimately cum.

After extensive deliberations, Vivian finally decided to adorn herself with the belt and ankle bracelets after all. She reasoned that it was too late to alter her tattoos in any case. Mainly though, she was of the view that not to wear these sexual adornments, the significance of which Eino had already been privy to, would send a clear message that she was ashamed of her sexual past. But she was not ashamed. Yes, she was very cognizant that others who had any inkling of her promiscuity would view her as a slut and a whore plus, a myriad of other pejorative adjectives. She was certainly unmercifully bullied in high school and to a lesser extent at college to reinforce that reality. In her mind was the belief that if she personally enjoyed the sex she indulged in, then she sure as hell was not going to be deterred by the opinions of others, especially those who have no significance in her life.

The other factor in arriving at the decision to retain her body jewelry, which she otherwise routinely wore, was the fact that none of these symbolized any sex she had or the love she experienced with her two most and only significant lovers: Jed Baxter and Sam Crawford. Thus, in wearing the jewelry and for that matter the display of her tattoos did not signify she was flaunting reminiscence of a past lover which might provoke pangs of jealousy in Eino's mind. In actuality, the men, and in some cases women, who are represented, and in most cases anonymously if at all, in her tattoos and body jewelry as persons who had carnal knowledge of her, in the main were ephemeral in her life. The circumstances of how they had become her sexual partners was really the only thing noteworthy of the sex involved. The only exception in that regard was Ralph Peterson, but that was only because she was instrumental in introducing him to Angela and they subsequently married as a result.

The only real symbol in her possession of her past serious love affairs, was the engagement ring Sam Crawford had acquired for their marriage a year previously. However, as Vivian had explained to Eino, that considering the amounts of monies Sam had embezzled from Baxter & Sons the price of this ring was insignificant to the amounts of money he had on hand. Thus, in purchasing the ring he did not undergo any sacrifice to the wealth he had accumulated and could not really signify his ultimate devotion to her. Vivian had a personal comparable example to consider. Ralph Peterson had presented an equally expensive engagement ring to Angela, but it comprised virtually of all the money he had earned and saved while working for his father's real-estate company. The fact remains then, that he certainly could have acquired a less expensive ring to attain the same objective: i.e. to marry Angela.

By this example, that is not to say that Vivian was mercenary or even avaricious. But as she saw it, had Angela lost Ralph to death, the ring he had given her represented proof positive of the ultimate love he had for her, and accordingly, she would cherish and treasure it forever no matter how her subsequent life would unfold. But in her case Sam did die, and she just could not overcome the impression that given the circumstances, he had acquired the engagement ring simply as something which one does when one enters into an engagement to marry. It was similar to the obligation that one has to purchase a Christmas gift or a birthday present to an appropriate person one has in one's life. More germane to the point though, is the fact that Sam could afford this ring mainly because he had stolen monies, so that with such excess income it was no sacrifice on his part to acquire this bauble.

With such thoughts in her mind, Vivian just could not value this ring as a symbol of Sam's love. Sam's real significance in her life, apart from being the father of Maia, was that without him she would not have met Eino Tarvas. In such circuitous rationale she felt justified in wearing this ring as an authenticate engagement ring. All these speculative thoughts running through Vivian's mind put her in a most positive frame of mind in approaching a wedding to a man whose existence had been unknown to her a mere two months prior.

When the visit to the beauty spa and salon was completed, there was just sufficient time to return to the hotel to prepare for the wedding ceremony which was scheduled for four o'clock in the afternoon. To the surprise of Angela and Erica, they were privy to the sight of Vivian inserting a pair of Ben Wa Balls into her vagina having lubricated them with her saliva prior to insertion. In addition, they also noted she refrained from donning any panties or any underwear whatsoever covering her vulva. That she was free buffing for her wedding seemed a little too outré, even for Angela's sensibilities. In answer to their questioning glances, Vivian declared, "I expect this wedding to start with a bang quite literally and figuratively, so I'd like to be adequately prepared."

To that audacious statement, Erica and Angela had no answer. They simply shook their heads as they rolled their eyes. Angela did say, "I knew right from the first time I met you, that you were something else. But what that something else was I could never yet fathom."

Vivian had arranged with the car rental agency to pick up the rental at the hotel. They also then provided a limousine with a driver for the trip to the church. The driver would also drive then from the church to the reception and later back to the hotel. Finally, the limousine would be available for the drive to the airport the next morning. As Estonia was a very secular country, there was only about a quarter of the number of guests for the wedding reception who attended the wedding ceremony.

As a bride, Vivian was radiant, and she had no trepidation of her appearance. She was constantly smiling as in her bones she felt she had truly found her shining knight in armor. As she remarked to Erica, in a private moment, "All the sex I've had before was just a rehearsal for the real thing. Eino Tarvas is the real deal."

Not wishing to rain on her parade, Erica simply replied, "That being the case, I'm happy for you."

Vivian was married by the Archbishop of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church in a very simple rather short ceremony. The good bishop's affability was sorely tested for one moment, but he passed with flying colors. After the exchange of vows. the wedding party which included Maarja holding onto baby Maia, had gathered in the church office for the signing and witnessing of the official wedding documents. Just as Vivian was about to sign the document proffered to her, baby Maia started crying vehemently and wouldn't shut up. Vivian excused herself as she asked the archbishop if there was a small room nearby, which she could use to feed her baby. The same was available and when she returned to complete the legal ritual of the wedding, the good archbishop led the crowd in applauding the blushing bride and mother.

After the necessities of the church wedding had been completed, the next order of business was the taking of the official wedding pictures. Vivian mused that Estonia might be a foreign country to her, but the wedding ceremony was remarkably similar to weddings conducted in the United States. At least hers certainly was. Then it was on to the wedding reception with the starting time listed as 05:30 PM for pre-prandial cocktails. Dinner would be served at 07:00 PM and dancing to follow afterwards.

As already noted, due to Eino's prominence, the guest list of friends and relatives included some very noteworthy citizens. One of the guests was Kaja Kallas, an attorney who was a member of the Riigikogu, the Estonian Parliament. With Eino's position as advocating for agricultural causes, he had frequent contacts with Ms Kallas, and as a result they had mutual respect for each other. Ms Kallas was later to become Estonia's first female Prime Minister.

Also in attendance, was Anett Kontaveit with her mother who were Eino's relatives from his father's side of the family. Although Anett was only thirteen years old at the time, already her prowess as a tennis player was well known in Estonia. She was subsequently to become Estonia's greatest female professional tennis player, reaching the Number 2 ranking in the world.

Another prominent guest was Carmen Kass related to Maarja's family. Carmen was an international celebrity as a model for brands such as Versace, Yves Saint Laurent, Gucci, Valentino, Chanel, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Christian Dior, Givenchy and Michael Kors. The American edition of Vogue declared her and Gisele Bündchen (the ex wife of NFL superstar Tom Brady) the two supermodels of the era in its January 2000 cover. Carmen also with her mother was part owner of her mother's agency, Baltic Models, plus she was owner of some other private companies, including two real estate companies. Not only that but she was a keen chess player and was at this time the president of the Estonian Chess Federation.

With such an impressive guest list, the wedding turned out to be the highlight social event of the year in Estonia. It was no wonder that in Vivian's mind her wedding compared favorably in prestige to Angela's extravagant wedding in Connecticut.

The dinner boasted a supreme cuisine. It was a feast of ham, chicken and lobster. When it was time for toasts, Erica addressed the crowd and said after introducing herself, "My sister has always disparaged her beauty compared to my own so-called beauty. However, as you can see for yourself Vivian is easy on the eyes and as beautiful a bride as one can imagine."

Everyone cheered and applauded confirming Erica's assessment. She continued, "We grew up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin, the state in the United States, most noted for its dairy farming industry. As a girl growing up, my sole ambition was to become a farmer's wife, most likely a dairy farmer. Whereas Vivian would have none of that, and instead opted to become an attorney and live in Chicago. And guess what? I did marry a dairy farmer, and Vivian did become a lawyer and lived in Chicago.

"However, life sure takes some strange turns. My first marriage did not work out, and so I moved to Chicago where I now own a popular restaurant. So, I am a businesswoman no longer a farmer's wife. Misfortune fell upon Vivian, and she lost her position in one of the top law firms in Chicago. So, she took a vacation to Estonia to track down some of our relatives, and lo and behold she met a wonderful man. As all of you know, Eino is a dairy farmer and she married him a couple of hours ago! Talk about role reversals!"

After suitable laughter dies down, Erica concluded, "Vivian tells me, that Eino's ambition is to make the Tarvas farm in Valgamaa the most prominent and profitable farm in Estonia if not in all of Europe. With my sister's help I am confident that they will succeed in that endeavor. So, let's raise a glass to toast this newly married couple. Here's best wishes to Eino and my very lovely sister Vivian."