Last Call (Cocktail 5)

“Hey, where have you—Hey. You look gorgeous,” he said, whistling. I stood before him in my white dress, thanked him for the compliment, took his hand, and walked with him down to the beach, leaving our friends behind.

“What’s going on? Aren’t we going to dinner with those guys?” he asked.

“Not just yet,” I answered, looking ahead to the beach, where I could see a few candles lit and a tiki torch or two. “I wanted to talk to you, before they join us.”

“What are you up to, Caroline?” he asked, looking carefully at me.

“I bought this dress a year ago in a little boutique in Mendocino, when I was visiting Viv. I was on my way out of town, and I was stopped at a light when I saw it in the window across the street. I couldn’t take my eyes off of it. And without having any reason to wear it, and not a clue why I was doing it, I bought it, straight off the mannequin. It didn’t even fit me. I had to take it to a tailor to have the hem lengthened; it was too short for me. The tailor told me it was vintage, probably from sometime in the 1930s.”

“It looks great on you,” he said, holding me at arm’s length to get a better look. “Go on, gimme a little twirl.”

I laughed, and then twirled. The dress was ivory, bedecked with old lace along the bodice, with a gauzy lace overlay along the skirt. An afternoon dress, it was made for lazy strolls in town, or a trip to the gardens. It was likely worn with stockings and lace-up shoes. I was rocking it barefoot. And in those bare feet, I tugged on his hand once more and continued on the path toward the beach.

“When Benjamin told me something had happened to you, I went into crisis-management mode. I didn’t think about anything other than getting to you. To have you that far away, and not be able to know exactly what was wrong or how to help you—I can’t think of the words to tell you how that felt. How it felt to have someone you love so much possibly taken away from you.” I stopped then, just before the pebbles gave way to sand. “But then, I don’t have to give you words. Because you already know what that’s like.”

A stormy expression stole across his face, and he grasped both of my hands in his. “Caroline, I’m so sorry that you had to go through all of that.”

“No no, it’s actually fine,” I said, stepping into his arms and bringing them around my waist. “Because here’s the thing. I had hours in an airplane, with nothing to do and no one to talk to, and the only thing I could think about was you. And us. And how much I love you.” I walked him, pushed him really, backward through the sand. “I also thought a lot about something else.”

“What’s that?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Garlic foam,” I answered, then spun him to face the beach.

I love me a speechless Wallbanger.

Hundreds of candles. Tiki torches dancing as far as the eye could see. Lanterns in shades of violet, indigo, emerald, and ruby bumping around on the breeze. The evening breakers splashing lazily against the beach. In the distance, an early moon lit up Ha Long Bay, with its ancient islands and peaks covered in mist and moss. And before us? An aisle lined with votives . . . with Jillian and Benjamin standing at the end of it. Along with them, the Vietnamese equivalent of a justice of the peace.

“Marry me, Simon. Marry me right here, right now, without any bullshit. Marry me, with just our two friends to see it happen. No parents, no work friends, no clients, no peppercorn-encrusted blah-blah, just you and me and the stars. I spent a night in a pod wondering if I was ever going to see your eyes staring back at me again, and I can’t manage that again unless I’m your fucking wife. And I don’t give one tiny shit about a big fancy wedding, especially without you getting to have your garlic foam. Which, I’d like to point out, is waiting for you back in the main house, for what I hope is our wedding dinner of giant prawns. I want you, only you, for the rest of my life,” I said, lips trembling but knees strong. “Marry me, Simon.”

He paused, the corner of his mouth lifting as he looked around at the fairy tale laid out in front of him. The fairy tale that was exactly right for us. On this very important day.

“One question,” he said, lifting our clasped hands to his lips and placing a kiss right below my engagement ring.

“Hit me.”

“What was that about spending a night in a pod?”

“Seriously? I ask you to marry me, and that’s the line you picked out?”

“Technically, I asked you to marry me first. Let us never forget this very important bit of information.”

“So noted.”

“Can I ask another question?”

“Just one more, and then I’ll need an answer.”

“Is this even legal?”

I laughed, then pulled him down to me for a soft kiss. “Not in the slightest. This is just for us.”

“You realize you own me, don’t you, Nightie Girl?”

“Is that a yes?”

“Hell yes it’s a yes, let’s get hitched,” he whispered, and I threw my arms around his neck. “Watch the rib, okay?”

“Shit!” I exclaimed, and then I heard Benjamin clearing his throat. “Dammit, I just swore at my own wedding. Dammit, I did it again.”

“That’s three times.”

“Can it, Wallbanger.”

And with those revered words, we walked ourselves down the aisle. Spoke the simplest of vows. Promised each other everything we could. Kissed under the stars. High-fived our witnesses on the way back down the aisle. Cut the strings on about fifty sky lanterns and set them loose towards the stars. Then headed inside for garlic foam.