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They stood like that as the streetlights came on. She pulled back and said, “You’d better shower and get dressed. We’re going to be late, and I simply can’t wait to get there to tell my parents.”
“Well, your dad knows. I asked his permission to marry you.”
“Oh, wow.” She grimaced. “Okay, I bet he was surprised.”
“He was, but he gave me his blessing.”
Fifteen minutes later they walked into the restaurant. Their table was already full and when Kaiya slipped off her wrap, her mother’s eyes flashed, and she glanced at her husband. “You’re engaged?” Her father smiled as her mother grabbed her hand and inspected the diamond as cheers sounded around the table. “I approve, young man. It is nice to meet you.”
The introductions went around as they ordered their food and ate while Mickey told Kaiya he was going back to university to become a therapist. He wanted to counsel people, believing he could do well in the profession. Kaiya agreed. Kodiak fielded plenty of questions, but some he couldn’t answer since he and Kaiya hadn’t even discussed the wedding yet.
Before long they were in their seats and the curtain rose, the opera started, and Kodiak felt so much satisfaction at how transformed Archie was. He’d gained weight, the shadows in his eyes had diminished, and his playing…it was majestic.
The engagement wasn’t the only surprise he had for Kaiya. He insisted on seeing where her mother grew up. She had talked to her mom about how she was feeling and insisted she give Kaiya the gift of the other half of her heritage. Her mom agreed it was time.
They made the trip to Thursday Island and rented a car. He drove to a small, quaint house just at the outskirts of town. When he pulled up, a woman came to the door.
“Why are we here?” Kaiya said, then her breath caught in her throat. “Ohmigod, ohmigod, Eesha.” She got out of the car and ran for her. Her sister came out of the door, and they collided, hugging each other hard.
Now they both had closure, and Kaiya could connect with her sister now that she had found herself, her true self in all the omissions and silence.
They stayed with her sister for three days, and he even tried vegemite. Spreading it on sandwiches wasn’t going to be his thing, but when Kaiya added it to stew, it was delicious. By the time they got back home, they were exhausted. They went to the kitchen to cook some dinner but instead ordered pizza.
While they waited, she came to him and wrapped her arms around him. “Thank you,” she said, “for finding her. You are unbelievable.” The shimmer of her tears added a heart-wrenching vulnerability to her raw emotion, but he knew that she knew she was safe with him.
“I did it so we’d both get closure, Kaiya. I know you wanted to not only visit where your mother grew up but find your sister. It was the right time, and I wanted to do that for you, after what you had done for me and my sister.”
She abruptly turned her face against his neck, and he felt her chest expand unevenly against him. Cupping his hand under her jaw to nestle her head closer, he felt her swallow hard. Then she nodded. Affected by her emotional struggle, Kodiak drew her deeper into his embrace and rested his cheek against the top of her head. “I love you so much, Kaiya,” he said huskily. “And we’re going to spend the rest of our lives giving to each other and taking from each other until we’re old and gray.”
His throat tight, he bent his head and kissed her. She kissed him back, and when he broke the kiss, her gaze settled heavily on him. “I love you, too, Kodiak, and anything that I gave up for you is meaningless in the wake of what I’ve gained.”
He wiped away the tears and smiled softly, his throat cramping. “So, I’ve got a surprise for you.”
“Another one. I don’t think I can take it,” she whispered.
He walked over to one of the cupboards and opened it.
She gave a shaky laugh through her tears, and he smiled. The cupboard was full of vegemite. “There are just some things you shouldn’t be expected to live without,” he said gruffly.
“I take back every time I called you a coward,” she said.
“I wonder what it would taste like on pizza,” he said, then made a face.
She bent over and laughed so hard, he needed to get her a glass of water. Then they kissed, and content in his love for Kaiya, he knew, vegemite or not, they would weather any storm, because she was his port, and he was hers.
* * *
