As the gloaming softened the light in our little part of the world, the music ceased. “I don’t have a speech to say but I have a song,” Fiona said. “This is for Jo and Phillip and for all the best wishes for a happy life together.”
Couples drew close as Fiona sang the first notes of “Ave Maria.”
Phillip held me close as we danced. My chest ached at the sheer beauty of my sister’s voice and the poignant swells of sounds from Li’s violin. Mama and Papa danced in the middle of the floor. Addie and Delphia sat on the grass holding hands and watching Fiona with adoring eyes. Cymbeline, to my shock, had accepted a dance from Viktor. Given her smile, she seemed to have forgotten her pledge of eternal hatred at least for tonight. Flynn and Shannon took up one corner of the dance floor, seeming to be lost in each other’s gaze. Their eyes closed, listening intently to the music, Pastor Lind and Pamela sat together at a table holding hands. Theo and Poppy were dancing compatibly together like two friends who had known each other all their lives, as were Louisa and Isak. The Johnson sisters were dancing with their handsome husbands. Harley and Merry had their little boys between them as they danced. Even Lizzie had stopped fussing with the food long enough to fall into her Jasper’s arms. The others from those long-ago school days huddled together in groups on the grass, enjoying cake and punch, while the youngest of the children chased one another on the lawn.
My husband’s sure, strong arms wrapped around me. I nestled against him, giving him my full weight and resting my cheek upon his chest. His heart thumped against my cheek as if it were part of the music.
Fiona held the last note, and for a moment, time stood still. Yes, just a fleeting moment in time, but one that held all the beauty of the world. Like a droplet of dew on a summer rose or the scent of the first rain or the last perfect vibrato note of “Ave Maria,” it was too precious to last forever. Yet it was etched into our hearts just the same. What was to come, we couldn’t know. For now, however, we were all together, safe and joyful, basking in the glow of the setting sun and the love that flowed among us.
More Emerson Pass!
The first of the Emerson Pass Contemporaries , The Sugar Queen, featuring the descendants of the Barnes family is available at your favorite retailer. Grab it here: The Sugar Queen.
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