Before You Say I Do

Chapter 24 Aurora

There was a distinct pleasant rush to the day of a wedding she’d planned, Ari had to admit. Before she even got into the business, Sebastian would tell her about the adrenaline surge he got from an efficient wedding ceremony, followed by a flawlessly well-oiled reception afterwards. Ari hadn’t understood and didn’t understand until the evening of her first wedding, when — after the bride and groom had departed and the guests had dispersed into hotel rooms — she’d sat in the middle of the confetti-covered dancefloor, her blood singing and skin tingling.

Sebastian had been right. It was a rush like no other.

Stella and Corentin’s wedding day, however, was somewhat different. Corentin had been adamant about being married in an Icelandic cave, and Stella, who had clearly photographed too many traditional white weddings, highly approved of his unusual choice.

“Iceland in February will be cold and unpleasant,” Ari warned them, having done her research, but their minds would not be turned.

“The cave we’ve chosen to be wed in is perfect. It’s only a fifteen-minute walk across sand dunes, so accessible to all our guests,” Stella had argued. “Not that there’ll be many of those. We want it to be intimate.”

“Intimate but also close to the bowels of Mother Earth,” Corentin had added.

Ari had glanced at Sebastian, who simply shrugged.

“I’m sure we will manage it,” Sebastian had replied. “We’ve done trickier venues. But, just FYI, it’s best not to use the word ‘bowels’ on a wedding invitation. I’m sure you understand.”

Stella and Corentin wanted their wedding to take place in a little town called Vík, in a cave near the black sand beach. By the time their flight landed, and they’d made the three-hour car journey to the small Icelandic town, Ari was wrecked. She’d hoped to hand Reine over to Tom for the night, so she could start work first thing in the morning, but he hadn’t been in his hotel room when she’d knocked on the door. Instead, Marnie had taken Reine’s hand.

“Where’s Tom?” Ari asked, immediately concerned, but also acutely disappointed. She’d wanted to see him and speak with him herself.

“He went for a walk,” Marnie replied easily, smiling at Reine. “Needed to clear his head, he said. He was in a bad mood all the way over here. I asked him why, and he said he didn’t get much sleep last night.”

Ari blushed bright red, but Marnie, whose eyes were only for Reine — and the little bag of make-up the child had brought — thankfully didn’t see.

“Well, when you see him, let him know that I—” Ari began, before chewing on her lip, falling into silence. Let him know what? she wondered. Let him know that I know he came back for me? Let him know that last night meant something to me too?

“Ari?” Marnie was suddenly all eyes and ears. Ari blushed again. She needed to talk to Tom, but not like this. Not through his mother, however well-meaning Marnie was.

Ari gave her a smile. “Let him know that, uh, I’ll be around to see Reine tomorrow.”

This wasn’t a big town, Ari reflected. If Tom was out walking, she would find him. She bent to give her daughter a kiss and a cuddle, before straightening and smiling once more at Marnie.

She took two steps towards her room, knowing she would need her winter coat to withstand the icy air outside, when Sebastian grabbed her arm.

“Where are you going?” he hissed, and Ari glanced up at him.

“To find Tom, to talk with him—”

“Not right now, we have a code red.”

Ari paused. “I don’t know what that means.”

Sebastian took a deep breath. “Name for me the three worst things that can happen the night before a wedding.”

“Groom takes off,” Ari replied, before she frowned, “but Corentin’s here. So, next is venue cancellation, but we’re here. So that only leaves...” Ari went pale. “No,” she whispered.

“Yes,” Sebastian nodded. “The airline lost Stella’s wedding dress.”

* * *

She would make the three-hour drive back to Keflavík with Corentin by her side. They decided not to tell Stella about her missing dress, but Corentin, who was sharing a connecting room with Tom, Reine and Marnie, overheard Ari’s whispered conversation with his mother about why she suddenly had to go back to the airport, and why she probably wouldn’t be back until the next day.

“I’m going to speak with Icelandair, see what they can do,” Ari had said hurriedly. “If worse comes to worst I’ll pick up an off-the-rack dress in Reykjavík tomorrow. Luis will do what he can with it.”

“If only he hadn’t blunted his fingers sewing last-minute fucking capes,” Sebastian had added, with a shake of his head. “I’ll be staying here to keep this end moving. Make sure the venue is ready for the dinner tomorrow night and that the cave is dressed for the ceremony.”

“Okay,” Marnie had nodded. “You’re going alone, Ari?”

“Yes, it’ll be fine,” Ari replied. “I’ve been here before.”

I met Tom here , she’d suddenly thought. Keflavík Airport was where we first met. The first place we kissed. Where we first fell in love.

She took a deep breath. “I’ll be fine.”

From the back of Marnie’s room, she saw Corentin push forward. “I’m coming with you,” he’d said.

“No, that won’t be necessary,” Ari argued.

“Ari’s right. You need your rest for the ceremony tomorrow,” Sebastian had added. “And you should enjoy your last night of freedom. From marriage.” He paused. “And Stella.”

Corentin was already pulling on his coat though. “I’m coming. Ari shouldn’t go alone.”

Ari nodded, suddenly exhausted, and in no mood for an argument. “Okay,” she’d agreed. “Let’s go.”

The sky was already aflame with the aurora when Ari and Corentin piled into her rental car. For a moment Ari paused, looking up in wonder.

“Ever seen the Northern Lights before?” Corentin asked her, and she shook her head.

“No. I came here once before to see them... but it didn’t work out.” Reminding herself of the task at hand, she took off her coat and started the engine. Next to her, Corentin nodded.

“I came once before too. Not to see the lights though. To find Tom.”

Ari made no reply, choosing instead to concentrate on navigating the unfamiliar vehicle away from the hotel and onto the main road.

“He’d already been and gone by the time I made it here,” Corentin continued. “Mom was frantic about him. Iceland was the first confirmed sighting we’d had of him in about a year. And with our dad as sick as he was... Anyway. I was too late. He’d headed off into mainland Europe by that point.”

“With me,” Ari filled in the blanks. “He was with me.”

“With you.” Corentin nodded. “I’m glad he was with you. You made him really happy.”

Ari squeezed the steering wheel beneath her hands. “I hope so.”

“You know, I didn’t catch Tom in time because of a volcano,” Corentin reminisced. “I would’ve been here to find him earlier, but my flight was delayed into Reykjavík because of an eruption.”

Ari nodded. “That’s why I didn’t see the lights when I was here, because of that volcano. The sky was thick with ash and dust. The volcano also grounded all the flights out of Iceland. I was stuck in the airport for two days.”

“Is that how you met Tom?” Corentin asked curiously.

“Yeah,” she nodded, “at the airport.”

They fell into silence for a few moments.

“Talk about the universe sending out a sign. If I’d managed to fly in, and you managed to fly out, well, both of our lives would be very different.” Corentin sounded thoughtful. “If that volcano hadn’t erupted when it did, you wouldn’t have met Tom, and then I would never have met Stella, and we wouldn’t be back here, where it all began, to get married.”

“You’d have still met Stella,” Ari replied. “Tom would still have been with Sasha.”

At that, Corentin snorted. “Sasha? No, that’s not true. He would never have gone back to Sasha if he hadn’t been so broken-hearted over you. I know Tom, and that’s the truth.”

Ari made no reply, keeping her eyes on the road ahead.

She heard Corentin sigh. “You know, I’m glad Stella and I decided to get married here. Mom wanted us to get married in the woods at home.”

“She wanted Tom and Sasha to get married there too.” Ari’s words came out sharper than she intended.

“Yeah,” Corentin mused, completely unbothered by her tone. “The woods are special to Mom. She married Dad there. I think getting married under this though,” he gestured to the sky above them, “is pretty special too. It’s going to be a wonderful handfasting. Normally I’m the one performing the ritual... it’ll be different being on the other side tomorrow night.”

Ari smiled. “I would never have put you and Stella together. I hope you don’t mind me saying that.”

She glanced over at Corentin briefly, who was grinning.

“No? That’s funny. She suits me, I think.”

“You seem happy together,” Ari remarked. “Really happy.”

“We are happy.” He paused, and she could feel his eyes upon her. “You know, I would put you and Tom together. You complement each other. No wonder the volcano erupted. The old ones wanted you together.”

Ari glanced at him again. “You believe that?”

Corentin relaxed back in his seat. “They say there are seven gifts to Druidry. You know what the last one is?”

Ari shook her head. “I’m afraid I’m not at all clued up where esoteric Druidry is concerned.”

Corentin laughed. “It’s magic.”

For a moment, Ari felt the air still in her lungs. A memory tugged at her. For a moment, she was in Keflavík Airport, looking down at Tom.

“Give me a chance,” he replies softly. “Just give me a chance, and I’ll show you magic is real.”

Bringing herself back to reality, Ari cleared her throat. “Magic?”

Corentin nodded. “The magic of being alive. The magic of our journey. The magic of wisdom and inspiration. The magic of healing.”

Ari made no reply, keeping her eyes ahead.

Now, Corentin cleared his throat. “Stella and I... our handfasting tomorrow... the ceremony... you know it’s all just for show, right? It’ll make Mom happy, but Stella and I made our commitment to each other months ago.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. We exchanged tokens.”

Ari glanced at him again. “Tokens?”

She felt rather than saw Corentin smile. “When we moved in together, she gave me a pendant that belonged to her mother. I gave her a brooch that belonged to Mom. We carry them with us everywhere.”

“Like wedding rings?”

“Yes, I suppose so. But these items were chosen by Stella and me. They mean something to us, and in our minds, we’re already... I guess married is the word you’d use. You know something? Before you say I do, the love and commitment should be there.”

“That’s sweet,” Ari replied.

“Isn’t it? You know something else? My brother, every day for the past nine years, has carried something of yours in his pocket.”

Ari felt herself go red. “Corentin—”

“A card,” Corentin continued. “Tom calls it the fool, but the Rouen card maker who painted him would’ve called him the page. Who is this page in service to, I’ve always wondered.”

“Look, I don’t think—”

“A queen, if I had to bet,” Corentin went on. “And I think you’re his queen, Ari. I really do. For all his faults, Tom loves you.”

Ari made no reply, and she heard Corentin sigh again.

“Don’t listen to me though, if you don’t want to. I’m just a fool in love who wants to spread a little magic around. Sharing my joy, if you will.”

Ari took a deep breath. “There’s, um, a queen of spades card. In my jacket pocket. I’ve... um... I’ve had her for a long time.”

She felt Corentin shift in his seat, and when she glanced at him, he was gazing at her with warm eyes.

“An exchange of tokens,” he said softly. “Well, well, well.”

“You think it means something?”

“Does it matter what I think? We’re all on our own journeys here, Ari. That’s part of the magic. So, if you want it to mean something, it means something. Let me tell you this though.” Corentin leaned forward, his words abruptly loaded. “It means something to Tom.”

* * *

Icelandair were firm. There was nothing to be done until the morning.

“Our first flight from the UK arrives at 7a.m.,” the representative said. “Most likely the dress got delayed in baggage control at Heathrow and will be on the next flight. There’s still a chance it may turn up in our own baggage hall here or come in on a UK cargo flight, but—”

“What time does the cargo flight land?” Ari asked fretfully.

“We have one from London landing at five past four,” the representative replied.

Ari swore quietly under breath, before turning to Corentin.

“I’ll wait here,” she offered. “You drive my rental car back to Vík and get some sleep before the ceremony tomorrow.”

“Ari—”

“I’ll be fine, honestly. If the dress isn’t here by 10a.m. tomorrow, I’ll get a taxi into Reykjavík and grab whatever I can off the rack.”

“It’s 11p.m.” Corentin frowned.

“I know.” Ari shook her head. “But I need to be here for the cargo flight landing. If I drive back to the hotel now, I won’t make it back in time. So, I’ll stay here.”

Corentin looked unconvinced. “You need to sleep too, though.”

“I’ve slept in airports before,” Ari replied, thinking once again of Tom. “Look, I’ll be fine. I’ve got my brother and your brother on speed dial these days.”

Corentin still looked sceptical, and Ari sighed.

“This is my business, Corentin,” she explained. “This is what I do. We’ve lost dresses before, and it’s awful. I’ve seen brides weep over lost dresses. I’ve seen brides have panic attacks over lost dresses. I don’t want that for Stella.”

Corentin frowned. “Stella’s made of stronger stuff than that.”

Ari shrugged. “Maybe. I don’t intend to find out. I’m her wedding planner. It’s my job to either find that dress or come up with a Plan B. You’re the groom. It’s your job to be there for your bride. Don’t make me call Sebastian to come and collect you. Because he will. And then you’ll have a three-hour drive back to Vík while he talks about the newest season of Bridgerton and the deposition he just gave his neighbour about her untrimmed bush.”

Corentin frowned again, and Ari offered him a confident smile.

“Corentin. Please go.”

* * *

The Icelandair desk closed at midnight, and Ari settled down in a plastic bucket seat by the window. She set her phone to low-power mode, wrapped her shoulders with a blanket — given to her by the sympathetic Icelandair representative — and tried to drowse for a couple of hours. It was hard to sleep when her mind was working overtime, and the hustle and bustle of the airport kept her alert. Outside, she could see the red and green lights of the runway blinking in the distance, as well as the bright lights of airplanes as they pulled up to the terminal. Passengers left the airport, but there were no departures until the early morning, and soon the building became quieter, more conducive to resting, if not sleeping.

The plastic bucket seat, however, did not become more comfortable. Wearily, Ari set her blanket on the floor, stretching her legs out and thinking about the last time she’d been in this airport.

Her thoughts always went back to Tom. He was ingrained in her being now, like a fingerprint on her soul. She would always think of Tom, she realised. For the rest of her life, every day, she would think of him, and not just because of Reine. Tom had given her a child, but he’d also given her memories, some tinged with love, others with heartbreak and grief.

The heartbreak and grief were fading now though. It would never completely leave her, but it was fading, and she felt — well, maybe healed wasn’t quite the right word, but renewed. Renewed, and refreshed.

He’d come for her. He’d kept his word and come back for her. Ari hadn’t known how important that promise had been until she’d learned Tom had kept it. He’d come back for her. He’d kept his promise to her. It had been real and wonderful, and he’d loved her as much as she loved him. Instinctively, she knew he hadn’t come for her just to claim her. She knew Tom now — knew how he thought and felt and worked. She knew he’d also come to make things right with her. To admit the truth about Tom Miller and introduce her to the wonderful man she knew Tom Somerset to be. He’d come for her. He’d wanted her.

With a sigh, Ari leaned against the wall, still staring out at the runway. She felt rather than saw someone drop to the floor next to her, and when she turned her head, she smiled to see Tom beside her, settling against the wall, stretching his long legs out over her blanket.

“Why am I getting a feeling of déjà vu?” she asked him softly, and he rubbed a hand over his face tiredly.

“Corentin messaged me when he left the airport,” Tom explained. “Couldn’t have you sitting here alone all night.”

“I’m fine,” Ari replied, and Tom shrugged.

“Yeah, but you know me, anything to speak with a pretty woman in a near-abandoned airport.”

She laughed at that, crossing her arms over her stomach. “There’s still at least two hours of waiting for a cargo plane to land for this pretty woman. You think your conversation can stretch to two hours?”

“For you? I’m willing to give it a shot,” Tom replied. Abruptly, his face changed. “Why did you leave this morning? I woke up, and you were gone.”

Ari paused, chewing on her lip. “I was scared,” she finally admitted. “Terrified, actually.”

Tom’s face blanched. “You were scared?”

“Not of you,” Ari was quick to reassure him. “I guess I was scared of being hurt again.”

“By me,” Tom replied, his face darkening. “You were scared of being hurt again by me.”

Ari sighed. “Yes. I suppose so.”

“I don’t want to hurt you, Ari. I never wanted to hurt you.”

“I know.”

Tom reached for her hand, and Ari let him take it. “I mean it,” he said emphatically. “I really do. Hurting you... it was the worst thing I ever did. I’ll never forgive myself for hurting someone so wonderful. So beautiful. So loving. So good.”

“I know,” Ari said again. “I do, Tom.”

Tom sighed, and Ari watched as he glanced around the airport.

“Never thought we’d end up back here again,” he reflected sadly. “If I could go back in time, and do it all over again...”

“What would you change?” Ari asked curiously.

Tom gave her a woebegone smile. “I’d be me. The real me.”

Ari sat back, gazing at him. “But you were the real you, Tom.”

“No.” Tom shook his head. “I lied to you. I have to believe I’m better than that now.”

Ari squeezed his hand. “And I have to believe that the man I fell in love with was real. So much of it...” She paused. “So much of it was you. Tom Miller was just a name. Your thoughts, feelings . . . how you loved me... that was real. That was you.”

Tom nodded, but he still looked unconvinced. “You told me you hated me,” he said. “You said you hated me but loved him. You have no idea how much that tortured me. How much it still tortures me.”

Ari winced. “I was angry.”

“You had every right to be.”

“Mostly I think I was angry because I thought you’d... I thought you’d abandoned me. Me, and Reine.”

Tom looked up, and there was real anguish in his eyes. “If I’d known for a minute that Reine was mine...”

Ari smiled. “I know. We’ve had this conversation. I know.”

“I never meant to abandon you. I really didn’t.”

“You said you would come for me,” Ari reminded him, squeezing his hand once more.

“Yeah, well.” Tom shifted, looking uncomfortable.

Ari gripped his hand harder. “And you did come for me, didn’t you Tom?”

The hand held in hers became like stone, and Tom turned to face her. “I... um...”

Ari smiled at him. It was warm and genuine. “Sebastian and Luis told me. Luis said that you came when Reine was about eighteen months old. You thought she was his.”

Abruptly, Tom looked flustered. He opened his mouth to speak before closing it again, looking out at the runway once more.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

Tom sighed. “I nearly did. But then, each time I went to tell you, I thought to myself ‘why am I doing this?’ and couldn’t do it.”

“Why not?” Ari asked gently.

Tom gave a half-shrug. “I couldn’t think of a way to phrase it that didn’t make it sound like some kind of pitiful excuse. I left you in Europe, pregnant and alone—”

“You didn’t know I was pregnant,” Ari reminded him.

“Doesn’t matter. I left you. And then, what? I come back two years later, like a fool, expecting you to just... take me back? Expecting you to have put your life on hold for me while I figured mine out?”

“Tom—”

“I was so selfish,” Tom carried on, shaking his head in disgust. “So unbelievably selfish to have done that to you. When I had to go back for... for my dad, I could’ve left you with a number that worked. An address. My real name. I was terrified that if I did, you’d figure everything out and walk away and then I would have lost you for good. So, I left you with nothing, or next to nothing. Just a promise to come back.”

“I lived on that promise,” Ari admitted. “It kept me going when things were at their bleakest.”

“Bleak because of me,” Tom said. “I haven’t forgotten that. I’ll never forget that. After my dad died, I sat at home, miserable and grieving and missing you, and by the time I was ready to find you, by the time I’d worked up the courage to face you and tell you everything, to admit the whole horrible truth, I’d half-convinced myself that you’d moved on.”

“Why would you think that?” Ari asked. “You know how I loved you.”

Tom looked at her, his eyes anguished. She watched as he took a deep breath. “I convinced myself that you’d probably have moved on because I was so terrified to be honest with you. So, when that door opened and there was a man with your child on the other side of it...” Tom trailed off. “I was ready to run.”

Ari rubbed his hand gently with her own. “Oh, Tom.”

“I’m sorry,” Tom told her. “You’ll never know how sorry I am.”

“I know you are. But I’ve told you already, I’m tired of that word. You don’t have to keep telling me how sorry you are.” Ari stopped, taking a deep breath of her own. “I was so mad at you for not coming for me, you know. When I first saw you again last year, I could forgive you for Sasha, and the lies, and for leaving me in Germany. But what I couldn’t forgive was your breaking that promise. I told you, I lived for that promise. I put my life on hold for that promise. Thinking that you’d broken it...”

“Ari,” Tom pleaded. “I’m—”

“Sorry, I know,” Ari carried on. “I’ve spent the last year thinking I could never forgive you for not coming back for me. I spent a whole year thinking we could move on as co-parents. Maybe even friends. And then yesterday, when Luis and Sebastian told me you had come for me. That you’d kept your word...” Ari trailed off. “I realised it didn’t matter. Not anymore.”

“Why?” Tom asked her.

She offered him a tremulous, almost hopeful smile. “Because I’d fallen in love with you all over again. I’d fallen in love with you, with Tom Somerset, and I’d forgiven you. And so it didn’t matter that you’d come for me. It didn’t matter, because I love you.”

“Ari,” Tom breathed out. “Ari, please don’t... don’t say these things if you can’t... if you don’t want to be with me...”

Ari stopped his words by kissing him softly. The airport was quiet, lights flashing somewhere in the distance, and Tom’s lips were soft, his exhalation of surprised relief warm against her cheek. When she pulled away again, she cupped his face in her hands. She could hear Corentin’s words from earlier echoing in her head.

Before you say I do, the love and commitment should be there.

“Tom, I can,” she told him, smiling widely. “And I do.”

Tom sat back, blinking in amazement. “Thank you,” he said earnestly. “Thank you for giving me another chance.”

“You’re a good man,” Ari replied. “I always knew it. And I love you for it.”

“I love you too. I’m always going to love you. You and Reine. It’s you, me and her now, right?”

“Right.”

Now he kissed her.

“You know,” he began when they parted, clearing his throat, “we still have a few more hours before the cargo flight lands. There’s an airport hotel...”

“I can’t leave this desk,” Ari replied, laughing. “Sebastian and then Stella would kill me. We’ll have to find something else to do to kill the time.”

Tom grinned at her. “Do you still not believe in magic? I have a pack of cards in my pocket. I’m missing a queen, but we can make do.”

Ari grinned back. “Missing a queen? Actually,” she reached into her pocket, pulling out the queen of spades, “you aren’t.”

Something in Tom’s face changed. “You kept it,” he whispered. “Ari, you have no idea what this means to me.”

“She’s been through the wars,” Ari apologised. “Luis did what he could, but she’s a little worn. I carried her in my pocket every day for years.”

“You did?”

“Yes,” Ari blushed. “I loved you, you see. Keeping her close... it kept you close.”

Tom kissed her again. “Give me a chance,” he whispered. “Give me a chance and I’ll prove to you magic is real.”

Ari kissed him back. “All right, magician man. I believe you. Show me.”

THE END