Page 132 of Merrily Ever After
‘Now, ladies and gentlemen, we come to my favourite part in the service: the wedding vows.’ Barbara beamed at her audience. ‘I’m going to invite … Oh, hello there.’
I felt a hand on my arm and turned to see my dad standing beside me.
‘Hi, Dad,’ I said softly, covering his hand with mine. ‘I think you’re supposed to be sitting down for this bit.’
‘Yes but—’ Dad scratched his head. ‘I’ve got something for you. But I’ve lost it.’
‘Thank goodness for that, Ray,’ said Cole, his lips twitching. ‘I thought you were about to object.’
‘Dad, please sit down.’ Emily’s face was scarlet. She put her hand to his elbow. ‘I’m so sorry, everyone. He was up and out of his chair before I could stop him.’
‘Take your time, Ray,’ said Barbara kindly. ‘What is it that you’ve got?’
Dad stared at her curiously; the tips of her ears were poking out from her hair, and I prayed he didn’t say anything rude.
‘It’s fine, Emily,’ I said, trying to put my poor sister at ease. ‘Honestly. Having a parent at my wedding is something I never thought possible.’
‘A wedding?’ Dad gave a laugh of surprise, looking from Cole to me and then to Barbara. ‘Oh yes!’ He remembered suddenly.
‘Oh God,’ Emily muttered under her breath.
‘I asked Sammy to marry me once,’ Dad said, rubbing his fingers along his jaw. He’d had a proper shave, he looked quite different without his silver chin tufts.
‘Did you?’ My heart thudded.
‘At first, she said yes, but then she changed her mind. Don’t blame her.’ His eyes misted over.
Imagine if she’d said yes. An entirely different life flashed in cinematic detail through my brain. If Mum hadn’t been alone, if she’d had someone to support her when she felt low, maybe she would still have been here now …
I squeezed my eyes shut for a fraction of a second and felt the comfort of Cole’s arm around me. And then I stood up tall and took a deep breath.
The past had gone and there was nothing we could do about it now. But we had today, I thought, looking at the people I loved gathered around me, and we had tomorrow and really that was all that mattered.
‘Bought her a ring and everything,’ Dad said, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a silver wishbone ring.
I stared at the small band nestled in the palm of his hand as if it might disappear if I stopped looking at it for even a second. Her fingers must have been tiny. I had nothing of my mother’s, not one single item. ‘That was Mum’s?’
Dad nodded. ‘It was until she gave it back to me. I hung on to it just in case. It’s yours now.’
‘I …’ I tried to speak, but the words wouldn’t come.
Cole took the ring from Dad for me and slipped it on to my little finger.
‘Thank you, Dad. I’ll treasure it.’
Dad gave a firm nod and shuffled back to his seat, Emily beside him.
‘She’s here,’ I whispered to Cole, looking down at my little finger. ‘My mum’s here with me.’
Cole peeled back the cuff of his shirt to reveal a fine gold bracelet. ‘I wasn’t going to tell anyone about this, but my mum is here too.’
Barbara dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief. ‘So it seems I can still be surprised. Now where was I …?’
There were no further interruptions; and the first part of the formal stuff was over in a flash.
Harley stepped up officiously with the rings and handed them over, and Cole took hold of my hand.
‘Merry, I give you this ring as a sign of my love.’ His voice was clear and strong, and although I knew that everyone around us could hear, it felt as if there was just two of us in the room. ‘From the moment I met you, my life has been an adventure and I never want that to change. I love you with all my heart and I apologise now, because I’m never leaving your side. I’ll be there when your feet are cold at night and you need to warm them on me, I’ll be there to fetch milk when we’ve run out before you’ve had your first caffeine hit of the day. I’ll be there when you’re feeling sad and need a hug. I’ll be there to order a dessert with two spoons in a restaurant so you can eat most of it, and I’ll be there to paint your toenails when you’re too old and creaky to reach them. But mostly I’ll be there to remind you each day how much you are loved.’
