‘We are.’ Jonah tore his gaze away from his wife. ‘But we had to get married very fast, and that meant hardly any of our favourite people got to be there. Auntie Chess wasn’t there. Mummy wasn’t there. Lex wasn’t there. And you know what we didn’t have any of?’
Rosie gasped. ‘Flower girls?’
‘Absolutely zero flower girls,’ Sadie said. ‘And is it even really a wedding if there are no flower girls?’
The high-pitched shriek both twins emitted was so loud that several other tables looked over. ‘Shhh, girly-pops,’ Fiona said. ‘I know you’re excited, but remember – elegant.’
She looked up at me.Sorry, she mouthed.
I shook my head.It’s fine.
She didn’t look away this time. Neither did I. I could feel the pulse of my heart in my ears. Pink roses started to bloom in her cheeks.
‘… our anniversary in February,’ Jonah was saying.
‘We were thinking maybe we could have the ceremony out at your vineyard, Satoshi,’ Sadie added. ‘If that’s okay with you and Isamu?’
‘I’ll have to check – the vineyard is his territory – but I’m sure that’ll be fine.’ Dragging my attention away from Fiona felt like dragging a ten-tonne plough. ‘Perhaps you could come intoTsundoku this week and we can sort out the details?’
‘I think we can manage that,’ Sadie said, but she wasn’t looking at me. She and Jonah were gazing at each other again, two human versions of the heart-eyes emoji.
Chess, leaning back in her chair, had an inscrutably neutral expression, but Fiona swallowed reflexively, then – in a move I recognised all too well – pasted a smile onto her face. ‘I’m so happy for you.’
‘Thanks, Fi.’ Jonah turned to hug her. ‘I want you to be my best man, by the way. Elias had his turn last time.’
Fiona’s laughter was forced. ‘I’ll do my best.’
‘And obviously I want you to be my maid of honour,’ Sadie said to Chess.
‘But we’re the flower girls?’ Rosie asked anxiously.
‘Yes, you’re the flower girls,’ Jonah reassured her. ‘Lex, how would you feel about being the ringbearer?’
Lex thought about it. ‘Okay,’ they said, and Jonah reached across the table so they could bump knuckles.
‘I think we’ll need another bottle of wine,’ Chess said to me, ‘so we can toast. Run me through your recommendations?’
‘Excuse me for a second,’ Fiona said quietly, getting up from the table. ‘I’ll be right back.’
Everything in me was screaming to sprint after her. I curled my toes inside my dress shoes, trying to keep myself rooted to the ground. ‘There are a few ways you could go. The next dish is roast chicken, so I’d suggest a medium-bodied white that’ll stand up to it without overpowering it. There’s a lovely 2021 Rhône Valley marsanne that would work well; or a 2022 Yarra Valley skin-contact pinot gris if you’re feeling a bit more adventurous; or you could even try—’ I tried to swallow the dryness in my throat down ‘—an arneis.’
Of course Chess picked the arneis.
Fiona still hadn’t returned to the table as I wheeled my guéridonaway. The twins were chaotically excited about the prospect of being flower girls, and the happy couple weren’t helping matters much by enthusiastically discussing it with them, so I reordered the mental drinks map I’d created for the kids in my mind. I’d been planning a series of different coloured lemonades, but maybe I’d switch to a flavoured mineral water for the next course. The family had come out to the vineyard in June for Sadie’s birthday, and I’d seen what the twins were like on a sugar high.
Abode’s wine cellar was around a corner at the end of a long corridor, past the doors to the bathrooms. I was halfway along it, trying to decide whether a citrus mineral water was the best bet or whether I should go for something with more tropical fruit flavours, when the door to the women’s bathroom swung open and I almost ran over Fiona’s toes.
‘I’m so sorry!’ she exclaimed. ‘Shit, shit, shit!’
‘Hey, hey, it’s fine.’ The ice buckets had wobbled, but the only damage was a few drops of water. ‘You’re fine. Everything’s fine – have you been crying?’
‘No.’ She sniffed.
‘Fiona.’
‘Not much.’ She sniffled again. ‘Is it that obvious?’
‘Your eyes are a bit pink. The lighting out there is dimmer, though, no one will be able to tell. What’s wrong?’
