36. Monday, December 10, 2012
MONDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2012
T he next morning, when Julia’s eyes finally opened, she found William already awake and gazing at her.
“Good morning, wife,” he greeted her.
She reached between his legs. “Good morning, wood.”
After making up for last night’s missed shenanigans, they brought their coffee and breakfast to the front porch, where they could look out over the dormant winter vineyards. They wrapped themselves in blankets and ate the eggs William had scrambled.
After a long silence, Julia declared, rather optimistically, “I could see myself chucking it all and buying a place like this.”
William’s eyebrows lifted. “Et tu, Brute?”
She gave his arm a playful shove. “What do you mean, ‘et tu,’ and who’s this Brute guy?”
“It just seems like everyone and their dog is going off the grid or taking up urban farming.”
“Says the man who took over my mom’s garden and won’t let me set foot in it. Maybe Alison’s ‘Farmer William’ comment was on point, after all.”
“Farmer William?”
“Yeah, remember? The first time you came to dinner, in May, you and Mom geeked out o ver organic gardening. Alison dubbed you Farmer William.”
“Oh, yes,” he groaned. “How could I forget?”
“So how about it, then? Is farm livin’ the life for you? Could you picture yourself geeking out on our very own private Green Acres?”
“Mrs. Quinn, I can picture myself geeking out in Timbuktu, as long as it's where you are.”
Her heart fluttered, and she couldn’t suppress her giddy smile. He leaned across the table to plant a soft kiss on her lips. “But just for practice, why don’t you try cleaning out the chicken coops today?”
Julia considered this proposal for roughly two seconds. “On second thought, I think I’m Eva Gabor in this Green Acres reboot: ‘I get allergic smelling hay,’ ” she added in the speak-sing of the theme song.
“I don’t believe you. You said the same thing about cigarette smoke.”
Julia clapped her hands together and laughed so hard that she nearly fell out of her chair. He just sat there and watched her, a satisfied smile playing at his lips as he sipped his coffee.
“You know, there's something I’ve been saving for the right moment,” he murmured when she finally got a grip on herself.
“Oh?” Curiosity piqued, Julia sat up straighter. “I already have your love, your son, your mermaid necklace, and your ring. What more could I ask for?”
His smirk hinted not-so-subtly at what more she could ask for.
“Good point,” she deadpanned.
“But first, something a little more intangible.” He unwrapped himself from the blanket and retrieved his cell phone from the back pocket of his jeans. After unlocking it and tapping his phone screen, he surprised Julia by coming around to her side of the table. He knelt before her, as if he were about to propose again.
“Um... did you forget the part where I already have your ring?” teased Julia, stretching her left hand out for emphasis.
“Hey, sweetheart?”
“Yeah?”
With the most tender of smiles, he took her left hand in his right one. “Shut up, please. ”
Julia stifled a snort of laughter. “Aye aye, captain.”
With his free hand, he lifted his phone and fixed her with his earnest blue eyes. “I considered reading this at our wedding, but I decided to save it for the two of us. It’s called Home . I’ll leave the poet's identity to your imagination.”
Anticipation quickened Julia’s pulse, and deep love for her new husband flooded her cheeks with heat. He saw it happening and answered with a tiny smile – the kind she loved most on him. The shy kind that barely lifted the corners of his mouth. The kind that crinkled the corners of his eyes as they lingered a moment, then flitted to his phone screen.
In silence between breaths
There, in copper sanctuary
Seek asylum
Pure, strong, pliant
No alloy, you
In the shape of light
Yours
Ineffable radiance
Refuge with no quarter for shadow
I’ve charted the labyrinth outside
(Or tried)
A puzzle with no solution but one:
A river
Another labyrinth
Til then,
You
Fellow wayfarer
True north
Compass rose
*THE END*