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“Aw,” he says, “I love it.”
“It’s not much…”
He turns me in his arms and kisses me. “I love it,” he repeats. “Nobody else could have bought that for me. Thank you.” He kisses me again, but for once I don’t close my eyes—instead I look at the bracelet over his shoulder, feeling a similar spangle and sparkle deep inside my heart.
*
Charlie wanted to come up for the wedding, and Kip kindly offered to fly her up on his plane, so we all go and pick her up mid-morning. She’s super excited to be here, and she loved the plane flight, and took full advantage of Immi’s offer of a glass of champagne and chocolate cake on the way. She’s thrilled to see Kip, and when I show her my bracelet, she gives me a big hug and whispers, “I love it. You’re so lucky.”
The weather does indeed clear up by midday, and we all arrive for the wedding just before one-thirty. Gina has chosen to get married at a church in the small village where her Maori fiancé is from, about ten minutes north of Gisborne. Kip parks the car and retrieves the wheelchair, and I help Mum into it. He locks the car, and I push Mum up the slope toward the church.
She was too excited to nap at lunchtime, and as a result I can see she’s a little tired, but she pins a bright smile on her face that lasts until we get to the church entrance. My uncle, Don, is there to greet us. He gives us an apologetic smile. “I’m really sorry,” he says, “there’s no room for the wheelchair in the aisles because of all the flowers. We’ll have to put you at the back.”
Mum reddens, but says, “That’s fine, Don, don’t worry about it.”
I introduce him to Kip, and then we go into the cool interior. Don indicates a space right at the back of the pews. “I’m so sorry,” he says again. “June’s really cross because the wedding organizer let the florist set up without her, and she didn’t remind her about the access.” Sure enough, there are elaborate displays on stands at the end of each pew. It looks beautiful, but there’s no way we could get the wheelchair down there, even if we were to remove it after Mum was seated.
“I’ll be fine here,” Mum says, embarrassed by all the fuss.
Kip looks at the front of the church. Then he looks back at Mum. “Come on, Penny. You’re not sitting at the back.”
She looks up at him, her blush deepening. “I’m fine here.”
“Nah,” he says, “you’re not hiding in the corner.” He bends and rests his hands on the arms of the wheelchair. “Put your arms around my neck.”
My eyes widen, and I bite my lip. Mum is incredibly shy and self-conscious, and she hates it when people try to help her by moving chairs and tables for her wheelchair, or making any kind of fuss that draws attention to her.
To my surprise though, her lips curve up and, with a delightful, girlish laugh, she puts her arms around his neck. He lifts her easily, slides a hand beneath her to catch her skirt so it doesn’t drape and reveal her legs, adjusts her in his arms so she’s comfortable, then, murmuring something to her that makes her laugh again, he carries her down the aisle to one of the empty pews close to the front.
I look at Charlie, who’s as startled as I am, and at Don, who knows what she’s like about accepting help. He glances at me, and he grins. “That’s some fella you’ve got there.”
I sigh. “Tell me about it.” Leaving the wheelchair tucked in the corner, I go down the aisle and sit between Kip and my mum.
“Thank you,” I murmur, kissing his shoulder. He’s wearing a smart navy suit, Italian cut, I know now, with a white shirt and a light-blue paisley tie, and he looks good enough to eat. In fact, I might do that later, I think mischievously, as a reward for being the best boyfriend in the world.
*
We watch the service, and while we sing the hymns, I imagine the music spiraling up and dancing like dust motes in the light streaming through the stained-glass windows. And then I watch Gina and her fiancé exchange their vows, promising to love each other before God and their family. Kip’s hand tightens on mine, and I wonder whether he’s thinking about Christian, but when I glance up at him, I discover him smiling at me, and it strikes me that he might be thinking about saying his own vows to someone one day. To me? I blink, watching him look back as the groom places the ring on Gina’s finger, wondering if I’ll ever be the one in the white dress, promising to love and honor the man by my side. It’s not a future I ever thought I’d have. Is it a possibility now?
*
After the service, Kip carries Mum back to her chair, and then we make our way to the hall for the reception. They’re holding it in his parents’ paddock, in a large marquee, with a wonderful self-serve banquet with lots of fresh fish and seafood, salads, sliced meats, and freshly baked bread.
Kip comes with me to meet June, Gina, and the rest of my family. It’s the first time, of course, that I’ve ever done this, and we’re greeted with smiles and teasing comments that make me blush and him grin. I introduce him as my friend, because he seems too old to be called a boyfriend, and I’m not comfortable yet referring to him as my partner. But he holds my hand the entire time, so I think it’s quite obvious what our relationship is.
After we’ve done the rounds, he fetches Mum a plate of food and a drink before we help ourselves, and then he sits beside me with his arm around the back of my chair, and makes me try bits and pieces from his plate while we talk to June and Don and various guests who come up to chat.
After the dinner and the speeches, the tables are cleared and the band begins playing. The bride and groom start the dancing toYou To Me Are Everythingby the Real Thing, and then when the singer encourages everyone else to take to the floor, Kip gets to his feet and holds out his hand to me.
I glance at Mum, but she winks at me and says, “Go for it.”
Unable to resist, and anyway Charlie is with her, I take his hand and let him pull me up and take me onto the dance floor. He turns me into his arms, and we begin to move to the music.
“I asked your mum if she minded us dancing, and she said not at all,” he says.
“She wouldn’t have said no to you,” I point out, “not after the way you carried her in the church.”
“Ah, I know that embarrassed her a little, but it seemed wrong for her to be seated at the back.”
