Chapter 35
35
‘They’re waiting for you.’
At those words from Adelaide and with one last squeeze of her hand, Sophie left Lily with her mother and her bridesmaids and picked her way over the rocks to the clearing in front of the summit cross. Taking a moment to admire the decorative ironwork, she pressed her hand to the slender cross, rapidly drying in the sun. She drew in a deep breath of moist, pine-scented air, clear and cool at 1,000 metres above the lake.
It was a beautiful place for a wedding.
Turning to face the rest of the party, her eyes immediately settled on Andreas, standing back with his hands on his hips, returning her gaze with half a smile. Kira stood next to him, her arms crossed, her expression less than impressed as she took in the tableau of the giddy groom with his white rose buttonhole and the groomsmen, who’d hastily slung silver ties around their necks.
Roman even wore a blue silk pocket square in his grey collared shirt, embroidered with gold patterns as a nod to the wedding traditions of Lily’s Vietnamese heritage.
Ignoring Kira’s doubtful look, Sophie retrieved her tablet from her rucksack, already in its formal case for the ceremony, tucked the rings into the leather pocket designed for the purpose and straightened her shoulders. Andreas approached, giving Roman a pat on the shoulder as he did so, then drew Sophie aside for a light kiss.
‘I have lipstick on,’ she whispered, ‘and now is really not the time for us to draw attention to ourselves.’
‘I just wanted to say you look lovely as a marriage celebrant. Radiant, even.’
She scowled half-heartedly at him. ‘If you think you’re getting some credit for that?—’
He cut her off with another kiss. ‘I hope so. Making you look radiant is my new purpose in life.’
‘Go and stand at the back,’ she hissed, giving him a gentle push. ‘And remind Kira to smile.’
He grinned. ‘Kira doesn’t smile on demand. She’ll be a tougher nut to crack when it comes to weddings.’
She studied him. ‘You’ve cracked? You don’t mind weddings any more?’
‘As long as you’re in them,’ he quipped, giving her a wink as he made his way to the back of the group.
When Mrs Tran scrambled over the rocks a moment later, all of the groomsmen stood at attention. The photographer raised her camera. The wedding party held their breaths.
There was no wedding march played jauntily on the organ, no measured steps up the aisle or chaotic children throwing flower petals. But there was a grinning bride in a wreath of white flowers and a lace veil – and a pair of muddy hiking boots. She bounded over the rocks and came to a stop facing Roman.
‘I’m the luckiest man alive,’ Roman blurted out, sending titters of amusement through the wedding guests, with a distinct snort from up the back, which Sophie pointedly ignored.
‘Are those for me?’ Lily asked, gesturing to the simple bouquet of three pale pink lilies Roman was holding.
He thrust them at her with a shaking hand. ‘Yes. Three,’ he said softly. ‘I love you.’
Sophie pulled herself together to intervene before the tears got out of hand. ‘Are you ready?’ It wasn’t quite in the script, but after everything they’d been through that day, she thought it best to ditch the formal greeting.
‘Yes,’ they said at the same moment, shooting each other a grin.
‘Lily and Roman asked me to specifically thank all of you who have come to witness the beginning of their lives as a family,’ Sophie began, taking a moment to acknowledge the guests. ‘That you have all trekked up a mountain to support them shows the wonderful network they have to walk with them on the rest of their journey together, whatever may happen.’
Glancing down at her script, Sophie was haunted by the time she’d spent trying to write it, stuffing each sentence with symbolism and meaning, when the simple reality meant enough, just as it was. With one last, quick glance at Andreas, she squared her shoulders to continue.
‘We all know there are tall summits and deep valleys in our lives,’ she began. ‘Lily and Roman have already been together through both. Not only is their love for each other strong enough to weather the low times, it’s brave enough to grasp the good times. Lily and Roman dare to love each other with such acceptance and commitment, that they challenge all of us to discover our summits – to be brave.
‘Today, they will speak the promises of a lifetime, in the company of their dearest family and friends, in a place that inspires them. We are all privileged to share in the joy of their moment.’
This time when her eyes snagged on Andreas, his mouth was wobbling and she watched him dab at his eye with a huff of disbelief. Resisting a laugh, she turned to the bride.
‘Lily Binh Tran, do you promise to spend your life with Roman Anthony Welbon, through joy and sorrow and all of life’s challenges, with kindness, acceptance and respect?’
‘I do,’ Lily responded brightly.
Roman looked ready to pass out, so Sophie placed a steadying hand on his shoulder as she continued, ‘Roman Anthony Welbon, do you promise to spend your life with Lily Binh Tran, through joy and sorrow and all of life’s challenges, with kindness, acceptance and respect?’
‘I do,’ he managed.
She gave him a reassuring pat. ‘Lily and Roman have written their own vows and I invite Lily to make hers first.’
Lily squeezed his hands. ‘Roman, I promise to be your wife, to stay by your side whatever happens. I’ll be your yang, the chaos to your order and your confidence when you’re feeling down. I believe in you – always. I love you, from the depths of my heart, but also from my spirit. I choose you and I promise to choose you every day for the rest of our lives.’
Both of Lily’s parents were stifling sobs. Mrs Welbon passed Mrs Tran a tissue and one of the groomsmen gave the other one a shove to snap them both out of their sentimental reactions.
‘Now you, Roman,’ Sophie said gently. Her eyes were dry now. She was proud of herself, of Lily and Roman, as well as Andreas and Kira, standing at the back. Even Kira’s eye-roll was forgivable, because she was here and she’d helped make this happen. Sophie only hoped she wouldn’t struggle too much as more and more weddings featured in her future career.
Roman cleared his throat. When he started speaking, his voice was unexpectedly strong. ‘Lily, it will make me so proud to hold your hand through all the adventures that await us as a family. I promise to cherish you every day for the rest of our lives, to listen to you with my ears and my heart and love you in the ways you need to be loved. You are wonderful just as you are and it’s my honour to promise to be your husband.’
A grin broke out on his face as he completed his vow, which triggered a giggle from the bride.
‘I practised that until I was hoarse,’ he whispered to Lily.
‘You did amazingly,’ she gushed.
Sophie slipped the rings out and held them up on her palm. They were plain gold bands, engraved with their names – with the date to be added now that they could be certain of it – tied together with a white ribbon.
‘Lily and Roman have chosen to wear traditional rings as an outward sign of their commitment.’
Roman reached up to untie the ribbon and took the smaller of the two rings. ‘Lily, please accept this ring with all my love and respect.’ Holding her hand gently, he pushed the ring into place to an approving sigh from the guests.
‘I will be proud to wear it,’ Lily replied with the words they’d prepared with Sophie before their departure. Lily took the other ring and repeated the gesture with her husband. ‘Roman, please accept this ring with all my love and respect.’
‘I will be proud to wear it.’
They both looked down at their joined hands, the two rings visible between their entwined fingers, and for the first time, Sophie imagined her own hand and another familiar one curled around it.
There would be time for that later.
Lifting her chin, she said, ‘The vows you have made to each other today, as well as the legal marriage recorded in the Bath registry office, constitute an earnest and sincere pledge to each other for the rest of your lives. You have made solemn promises in the presence of your witnesses and it is now my great pleasure to declare you joined as a family and invite you to celebrate the beginning of the rest of your lives with a kiss.’
As the bride and groom shared a lingering kiss, the peaks and valleys around filled with whoops from the groomsmen and cheering from the rest of the wedding party. Andreas and Kira had delivered a strict warning against confetti, but there was no rule against clapping and shouting, the echoes returning to lift the mood even more.
‘Man, you guys did it!’
‘Oh my God, I ugly cried, sweetie!’
‘You’re hitched! You’ve got yourself a ball and chain!’
‘Why isn’t it her who’s got the ball and chain?’
Sophie tiptoed away, too exhausted to intervene in Lucia and Tom’s argument. She came to stand next to Andreas and Kira, taking deep breaths in and out through her mouth as the pressure sluiced off her.
‘Another one bites the dust,’ Andreas said.
Sophie laughed. ‘It’s not a victory in battle.’
‘They’re behaving like it is,’ he said drily, watching as the groomsmen threw their arms around Roman a little too wildly. ‘They look like they’ll need supervision at the reception.’
Sophie blinked, surprised when her brain interpreted that to mean he would come. She eyed him. Surely that’s not what he meant. He didn’t even have a suit and she wasn’t sure she wanted him to turn up in his rugged mountain guide gear, smelling like he’d just got back from an expedition.
He just smiled at her and she looked away, certain she was wrong.
‘Do you want a big, fancy wedding, then?’ he asked suddenly, his look wary.
His wording, again, put her off-balance. She thought they’d decided to be partners, to deal with the topic of marriage in time – or even never. Peering at him curiously, she said, ‘What about the summit of Everest?’
His laugh was full and deep and he paused to press a smacking kiss to the top of her head. ‘I’ve already been there.’
‘Well, good for you!’
‘But standing up in front of a bunch of strangers and saying something sentimental is… not one of my strengths.’
‘I know,’ she said mildly. ‘I need to get this wedding over and done with. Elena at the hotel might be panicking. I need to call her. I feel like today has taken a week, but there’s still the whole reception to go.’
Andreas’s hand brushing her shoulder and then the back of her neck made her want to purr like a contented cat. She wondered if he knew how powerfully his casual affection acted on her.
Giving her a quick hug, he said, ‘You’ve got it all under control. But we have to get them all down first.’
Ohhh, shit. She’d forgotten that part.