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“Leia.”
“As in the princess from Star Wars? With the cinnamon bun hair?”
“She was General of the Resistance,” I remind her. “She was far more than a mere princess.”
“What a shame she wasn’t born on May the Fourth.”
The reference to Star Wars Day makes me laugh. “Maddie swears that when she starts Leia on solid food, she’s going to tell her to ‘use the forks.’” It’s a joke from The Simpsons.
Aroha grins. “So are you training her to be a Jedi?”
“I have been known to flash my lightsaber around at parties.”
She giggles, and Gaby rolls her eyes. “Are you two going to flirt like this all week?”
I give her a wry look. “I’m just glad she’s not sticking pins in a voodoo doll of me.”
“I only do that at night,” Aroha states, and I give a short laugh.
The seatbelt light comes on, and Andrea comes over to collect the plates and cups, then check that we’re all ready for landing. She returns to her seat, and I look out of the window, seeing the city nestled between the Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range.
As I settle back into my seat for the landing, I glance at Aroha, and catch her eye. Her lips curve up a little, and I give her a genuine smile. At least she’s talking to me. I can’t expect more than that.
The plane lands, and Aroha lets out a long breath she must have been holding. “You okay?” I ask her.
She nods, her cheeks flushed. “I was a bit nervous about the taking off and landing. I’m glad we got there in one piece.”
“Where are you staying?” I ask. “At the Magnolia?”
Most of the wedding will be held at Damon’s parents’ place, but even though the property is huge, they obviously have a limited number of bedrooms, so Damon has booked a couple of floors in the closest hotel.
Aroha nods, and Gaby says, “I think we all are, apart from Alex and Missie.” Alex is Damon’s best man, so it makes sense that he’s up at the house. “It’s a bit early to check in, though, so the van is taking us up to the house for lunch, and then we can call in to the hotel afterward to change ready for the hen party and stag night tonight.”
Sure enough, a minivan is waiting to collect us, and once all our luggage has been put in the back, the van threads through the busy Wellington streets. Brooklyn Heights is a mansion, really, perched high on a hill and divided into several levels, with a huge pool and three apartments at the base that belong to Saxon, Kip, and Damon.
We exit the minivan, and I put on my sunglasses as we all walk down to the top terrace. It’s a beautiful summer day, bright and hot. I’d been looking forward to the wedding, as I know it’s going to be a spectacle, with several hundred guests. Breaking up with Cassie, the mix up with Aroha, and then all the worry about Maddie, had dimmed my enthusiasm a little, but I feel better now I’ve seen Aroha and hopefully smoothed things over.
The terrace is busy with guests and waiters in black suits, handing out glasses of champagne. I refuse and take orange juice instead.
“Not drinking?” Aroha asks from beside me.
“No.” I watch her take the orange juice, too. “You neither?”
She shakes her head, and we exchange a mutual wry smile. “I might have a glass or two at the hen party,” she says, “but I’ve learned my lesson. Bad things happen when you overdo the alcohol.”
I study her mouth. She has an unusual Cupid’s bow, pointed rather than curved, and a bottom lip that is soft and kissable. “It wasn’t all bad, as I recall.”
“Can you remember any of it?” she asks, a tad tartly.
I open my mouth to reply, but Damon interrupts us to say hello, and the moment’s lost. He takes us all over to a table overlooking the beautiful view of Wellington and the harbor beyond. Here are the crowd I know from Auckland, as well as Damon’s brothers and their wives.
Not long afterward, we hear the sound of a helicopter landing on the pad behind the car park, and then five minutes later Alex and Missie join us on the terrace. There’s another round of introductions, hugs, and kisses.
Alex looks the happiest I’ve ever seen him, practically glowing with pleasure as he introduces his girl to his friends. I’m pleased for him—he’s been single a long time, and I know he’s been interested in Missie since she first came to the office back in March.
She’s currently shaking hands with Saxon, who’s teasing her, “You seem like a nice girl. So why are you with this miserable old fart, then?”
His wife scolds him, but Alex just says, “He’s got a point.”
