“I’m really sorry about everything,” he began.
Claire nodded, not turning to look at him, preferring instead to concentrate on a dog chasing a squirrel. She would not speak though. And she certainly wasn’t about to forgive him. Why should she? He was trying to ruin her life.
“And I really hope we can work through this and move on from this. I don’t want you or Miriam or even Jonah for that matter to hate me for the rest of your lives,” he continued.
Claire remained impassive, transfixed now by a toddler who was chasing the dog who was chasing the squirrel. He knew what he had to say next but was he really sure? It was going to change the landscape of his life forever. He took a deep breath and swallowed sharply, downing a gulp of tea for courage.
“I’ve been doing some thinking.”
His body was turned to Claire’s. He wanted to tell her to look at him and not the damn dog, so that she could see he was serious, but he wasn’t in a position to issue commands. He took a deep breath.
“I’m going to let you go to America,” he said.
Now she turned to him.
“Sorry?” she asked, as if she’d misheard.
“I want you to go to America and take Miriam with you, if that’s what you want. That’s not to say that I
want
you to go but I’ve come to the decision that it’s wrong of me to prevent you from leading your life, especially with your two little babies on the way.”
Claire leaned forward, fussing with her right arm, raising it a little. For a moment he thought she was going to hug him but in the end her hand found her ringlets instead, fingering them agitatedly. Her eyes glistened.
“If you really mean that,” she whispered, “then thank you. Thank you.”
For a second Anthony remembered why he’d wanted to marry Claire in the first place. She had such sensitivity and an allure which cut to his heart. He’d never met anyone like her before and probably wouldn’t again. Goddamn it, he never cried, but he felt on the edge.
“And I wanted to congratulate you on the twins,” he said.
There, was it really so hard to be nice? No, it felt good.
“Thank you again,” she said.
“I’ll get my lawyers to speak to your lawyers to decide how best to proceed.”
Claire held up a hand.
“No, no lawyers. Can’t we just arrange this between ourselves?”
Anthony smiled. Yes, that would be infinitely preferable. This was what he wanted, no animosity, just the two of them working it out between them, wanting the best for their daughter.
“Of course we can.”
Claire returned her fingers to her tea, strumming the cup nervously as she cradled it, as if it were a piano keyboard.
“Also,” she said. “I appreciate that the flights to America are expensive. I’ve come into some money recently and I’d like to use that to help you come out to the States as much as possible and to send Miriam back to the UK. I don’t know. We can work out the details. It’s just that I’d like to help. It’s not your fault that I’m choosing to live so far away. I’m sure, and hope, that we can find a way to make this work which will make everybody happy, even my mother who hates flying. The QE2 transatlantic voyage from Southampton to New York costs a bloody fortune.”
Claire smiled, her joke lightening what was a heavy conversation.
“Thank you,” he said, extending a hand. “I appreciate it.”
She took his hand in hers and they shook on it, firmly, decisively and gratefully.
ONE YEAR LATER
“Come back here you two,” called Claire as the girls scampered off. She’d successfully tied sashes round their waists but they each had a round floral headpiece which still needed to be attached. Miriam and Martha returned, rolling their eyes like prima donnas, hands on hips. “Aren’t we done yet?” asked Miriam. She was only feigning haughtiness. In truth, she couldn’t remember feeling so excited and was as uppity as a jumping jack. This was a big day. Lily Beach resembled a magnum of champagne about to be uncorked. Rooms were filled with people buzzing about in a hurry, constantly checking their watches. A dozen cooks had taken over the kitchen and – apart from entering or exiting via the front door – downstairs was now officially out of bounds.
“Right, you little monster,” Claire pulled a giggling Miriam into her arms and clipped the headpiece onto her hair. Martha was the next victim and thankfully was slightly less wriggly. Job done, Claire surveyed her two special girls. Martha referred to their identikit white outfits as ‘posh sundresses’, an apt description. They were thin and floating with spaghetti straps over the shoulders, waists accentuated with burgundy silk sashes. The most perfect pair of bridesmaids. Clearly they weren’t the only ones being admired.
“You look beautiful, Mummy,” Miriam cocked her head appreciatively.
“Not as gorgeous as you two,” Claire bent down, taking the girls in her arms and kissing them each delicately on their heads, anxious not to damage the positioning of their halos. As she stood, she checked her reflection one last time. What she was wearing could hardly be called a bridal gown, but then again, they hadn’t wanted a conventional wedding. She’d spotted an ivory, three-quarter length figure-hugging dress in a local shop window. When she tried it on, it was as if the simple but elegant robe had been waiting for this moment since its creation. Its plunging neckline complemented her décolletage and the V-neck back showed off her shoulders, drawing the eye away from her slight post-partum bulge. She’d have paid good money for it but it had been in the sale, reduced to $55. $55 for a wedding dress, she still couldn’t quite believe it! She’d left her fiery ringlets loose, just how Jonah liked them, with just one comb in the side to match the bridesmaids’ headdresses.
There was a sharp knock at the door.
“Come in,” said Claire.
Her voice was tight. She was getting jittery now, too. The door opened and it was her mother.
“It’s time,” said Dolores. “Everyone’s ready.”
Claire was so grateful that her mother was here and proud that she’d braved the journey. The fear-of-flying course appeared to have done the trick. It hadn’t quite taken away the fear but it
had
got her on the plane, minus the narcotics. She’d been in town for a while now, helping out with the babies. Claire would miss her when she was gone.
“Ok,” Claire took a deep breath and the girls’ hands. “Let’s go.”
Dolores followed them out of the bedroom and down the corridor towards the stairs.
“You’ve forgotten your shoes,” she cried.
“Mum,” Claire turned round smiling, observing her mother’s completely unsuitable high-heels, “the wedding’s on the beach. We’re going barefoot.”
Claire and the girls had enjoyed a pedicure the previous day, selecting a shade of varnish to match the bridesmaid’s sashes as well as other décor details. Claire hadn’t been to the beach since first thing this morning when Rosa, a Mexican caterer who was friendly with the complex’s caretaker, had been dressing the hundred or so chairs for guests in white linen covers with burgundy bows on the back. She then decorated a small gazebo where they would make their vows, twisting trails of white and red flowers along the poles holding the canopy. Rosa and half her extended family, so it felt, were now in the kitchen, preparing a feast of enchiladas, tacos, moles and sangria. So no, it wouldn’t be a conventional wedding but what Jonah and Claire wanted most was a great party. There was so much to celebrate.
---------------------
Claire began to walk down the aisle, with Miriam and Martha a couple of steps behind. Watching from under the gazebo was Jonah. Claire had known exactly what he was going to wear because he’d sought her advice but, seeing him standing there with his toes in the sand, dressed in smart black long shorts with a matching waistcoat and white shirt, made her heart melt. She smiled at him and, in return, the entire congregation smiled back. Their beams broadened when Snow Patrol’s
Just Say Yes
started booming through the speakers. Jonah had wanted this ceremony to take place a year earlier but Claire was pleased they’d waited. Now felt like just the right time.
Please take my hand
Please take my hand
Just say yes
People swivelled to admire the little procession as it went past. Richard from
Morning
Cuppa
had made the trip and was sitting next to Will Ryan from ABC. Gordon Ramsey was here with his wife and in front of him was Gwyneth Paltrow. After she’d made a guest appearance on
Taste of the Place
ten months ago, whisking up a Brussels sprouts recipe featured in one of her cookery books, she and Claire had become firm friends. Jonah’s two brothers had been given the task of ‘looking after her’ and they were revelling in the honour, one sitting on either side of her. Jonah’s parents were adjacent to her parents and her sister had made the trip from Hong Kong. Anthony and Ali had even come. Yes, who would have thought it possible? A lot of progress had been made in the last year. In the front row was Georgia’s husband with their baby Jack on his lap. Georgia herself had been given two other very important babies to look after, Jonah and Claire’s six-month old twins, dressed to match their father, looking cute as can be. Georgia was balancing a waist-coated baby on each of her legs, bouncing her thighs up and down, pulling funny faces at them as a distraction. Orlando Goodman had been spot on. It was two boys. Two beautiful sons with white blond hair and eyes the shade of today’s unblemished sky. Doctors claimed they weren’t identical but most people struggled to tell Toby and Eli apart. Framed and in pride of place on their bedroom wall was the post-it on which Orlando Goodman had scrawled his prediction. Claire felt sure that her favourite client was here in spirit, watching over them.
Claire joined Jonah under the canopy. He took her hand and she stood on her tip-toes, leaning her lips towards his ear, laughing. Nobody but him could hear. Snow patrol was still playing:
You’re the only way to me. The path is clear.
“We should have invited Kate Middleton,” she whispered.
“Sweetheart,” Jonah whispered back conspiratorially, “there’s only room for one Duchess at our wedding.”
Just say yes, coz I’m aching and I know you are too.
------------
Friends, family and loved ones
……..This wasn’t to be a religious ceremony or a long ceremony. The vows that they’d written for each other weren’t for anybody’s ears but their own. They both felt incredibly blessed to have found each other again and promised to treasure what they shared with every ounce of their being for the rest of their lives.
We are here today to join two souls that have already been united as one.
As the Officiator began, Toby and Eli started to protest, holding their arms out in vain towards their mother and father who were standing side-on in front of them. Out of the corner of her eye Claire caught Georgia struggling to hold the twins steady, performing a variety of facial acrobatics to keep them entertained. Miriam and Martha were starting to giggle.
This new journey will be at times both richly rewarding and extremely difficult, but, most importantly, it will be a journey you take together.
Having twins had been a real learning curve. It didn’t feel like double trouble - triple or quadruple trouble more like, compared to having a single baby. The most fascinating observation had been that if one twin was fussing, the other would usually keep quiet. It was rare for them both to complain simultaneously. Whether this was out of mutual respect or had some deeper significance related to survival, she didn’t know. All she
did
know was that today of all days, for whatever reason, Toby and Eli decided to fuss together. Toby was the first to begin exercising his vocal chords with Eli starting up a split second later. Claire turned to them and couldn’t help but smile at their outstretched arms, begging for her to pick them up.
Today Bride and Groom proclaim their love and commitment to the world-
Claire did what came naturally, wedding or not. The twins were clearly intent on being part of the action. She stepped towards them, scooping one into the crook of each arm, before heading back under the canopy, where Jonah took Eli off her.
“Shall we cut to the main event?” suggested the Officiator, with a twinkle in his eye.
Claire and Jonah nodded, smiling, and whilst the congregation laughed at what was turning into a particularly unique service, one of Jonah’s brothers delivered the rings. A wedding planner might have baulked at how the next five minutes panned out, at how choreography that had been planned for the ceremony was dismissed in a flash, but Claire thought the naturalness of what happened was absolutely perfect. Babies were balanced on knees as rings were slid awkwardly onto fingers. Jonah and Claire’s respective “I do’s” were drowned out by Toby and Eli gurgling enthusiastically. The only thing that went vaguely according to plan was the “you may now kiss the bride” instruction. That was carried out with such passion and tenderness that the two bridesmaids and twin page boys insisted on joining in. As waves gently chased each other to the shore, the newly formed Kennedy family became lost in a tight embrace and a shower of confetti.
THE END