‘It’s shit.’ His gaze moved to Aaron, Tilly and Carter standing just off to the side, giggling as they held the baskets of flowers her aunt had given them to circulate among the guests for throwing. ‘I don’t know how anyone could deny their children the thing that made them happiest.’
‘Neither do I.’
She turned in his arms and they shared a kiss and then laughed as petals rained down over them. They turned to see the kids rushing past them, throwing rose petals madly at everyone and on the path in front of Chandra and Vivaan as they made their way down the aisle to be congratulated by all the people who had come to wish them well and start their wedding dance.
‘Oh, I didn’t get to hug and congratulate them.’
‘You can do that later,’ Flynn said, his voice a deep murmur in her ear.
‘They look so happy.’
‘Not as happy as us.’
‘Nobody could be as happy as us.’ She pulled him to her and they kissed again, forgetting for a time where they were.
Flowers hit Flynn in the side of the head and he pulled away, turning to growl at Reid as he said, ‘Steady on, you two. You’d think you were newlyweds.’
‘Reid,’ Nat said, smacking his arm lightly as she walked up to join them. ‘They are newlyweds.’ She glowed, looking gorgeous in the turquoise blue sari with blue, gold and silver threading. ‘Leave them alone and come dance with me.’
Reid’s eyes glowed as he watched his wife walk in front of him, the sari swaying around her, and followed her like a besotted puppy to the dance floor. ‘They’ll be kissing soon too if I know Reid, so I don’t know what he was having a go about us for,’ Flynn said. ‘Mac doesn’t look happy. Should I go stop Mum?’
Barb was pulling Mac onto the dance floor beside the happy couple. He was still a little sluggish in his movements, his recovery from the head injury and subsequent surgery having taken longer than anyone liked, especially him. Mac had pulled away from all of them after his injury, especially Barb. But Barb hadn’t let him pull too far away, as evidenced by her determination to get him up and dancing now. ‘No, let her be. It’s good for Mac to get up and be involved. Dancing a bit won’t hurt him.’
The kids ran up just then and joined Barb and Mac, so he had no choice but to stay. He even smiled as Carter chatted to him, his little face so animated. That smile gave her hope that Mac was finally on the mend. You didn’t smile like that unless there was happiness somewhere inside. She’d just have to find a way to help him bring it out.
‘Do you want to dance?’ he asked, wrapping his arms around her from behind.
‘No. I just want to watch for a little while.’
‘Okay.’
She swayed in Flynn’s arms, her gaze darting from the happy couple to her aunt and uncle, then others as they joined in the dancing. Nat and her aunt looked like princesses in their saris.
She looked down at her own sari, the vibrant gold and spring green making her skin glow in a way she’d never noticed before, the exotic designs of the henna on her hands and feet, the tinkle of the jewellery she wore at her ears and throat and wrists. It was beautiful. She felt like a princess too.
‘Do you think it would be all right if we slipped away?’ Flynn said as his hands touched the bared skin under the gauzy material that was wrapped around her and draped over her shoulder. ‘We’ve barely had a moment alone this last week and while everyone’s occupied, it seems like as good a time as any.’
‘Where do you want to go?’ There were people everywhere, so a private place would be hard to find. Although, she’d still never had an interlude with him in the barn. Maybe …
‘The builders won’t be at the new house. We could sneak in there and have a few moments to ourselves.’
She nodded at him and they ran up the path and across the road towards the top paddock, overlooking the dam that had always been her favourite place to come. It was why Flynn decided to build their new house there. It was nestled on the lower slope closer to the bush so as to be protected from the wind and it was a little late getting finished because they prioritised rebuilding her clinic in Wilson’s Bend, making it bigger and better to include the yoga and massage studio that Vivaan and Chandra were running, not to mention the photography studio for Chandra. They were even living there and had started up a scotch club with the B&B boys down the road. They’d settled right in. She couldn’t wait to do the same in her own house. Barb was great as a housemate and all, but it would be lovely to finally have some space with the boys to themselves.
They ran up the front steps of their house—a mix of modern and traditional that suited them both—the scent of new wood and stone and plaster and paint surrounding her.
Flynn swung her into his arms making her shriek and laugh. ‘What are you doing, you big idiot?’
‘I’m carrying you over the threshold into our new home.’
‘But I’m too heavy.’
‘You’re perfect for me, Mrs Doctor Findlay Brennan.’ He pushed open the door and carried her inside then headed straight to the stairs.
‘Where are you going?’ she asked, knowing that there was nothing upstairs yet—their furniture wasn’t arriving until next week.
‘I have a surprise for you,’ he said as he carried her into the room that would be their bedroom, one that had floor to ceiling windows looking out over the paddock and the hills and the expanse of sky above.
She gasped. Inside there were lights strung around the room, twinkling in the twilit dark.
