Liam's List (29 page)

“
Nope.” I sighed. “Not
yet. And the wedding’s in three months.”

“
Three months?” She gaped
at me for a few seconds before recovering her poise. “Then what the
hell are we doing at Whole Foods? Let’s get out of here and go
dress shopping!”

Before I could even form a reply, Chelsea was
already jogging toward the front of the store and swerving her cart
into the checkout lane.

Chapter
Thirty-Five

Liam

Ever since I’d returned from Iraq, I never
set foot in a place without instantly, subconsciously, and
sometimes even consciously mapping out escape routes.

Any room, any home, any shop, any
building—you name it—I knew windows, doors, and hallways to get
out.

But at this moment, in this lush garden of
paradise, as I stood watching Vivian walk down the long aisle, arm
in arm with Julian, I didn’t need escape routes.

I didn’t need escape routes because this was
exactly where I wanted to be.

The
only
place I wanted to
be.

Vivian had always been my gravity, grounding
me when I wanted to run away from my problems, my fears. And right
now she was my gravity, grounding me to this moment, keeping me
tethered to this reality.

The sun was breaking through the clouds, and
as I kept my eyes fixed on Viv, the rest of the world faded away,
leaving only her. Only me. Only us

Vivian took slow steps toward me to the tune
of “Come To Me.” It wasn’t a traditional song, but then again, Viv
wasn’t a traditional sort of girl.

Her silky hair was unbound, lying past her
shoulders in thick, heavy waves. And her sweet smile, meant for me
alone, took my breath away.

My gaze was unwavering and my chest swelled
with the love I saw in her eyes. She loved me unerringly,
unconditionally, and unreservedly.

And that perseverance, that endurance of her
love made me strong.

I felt that tightness in my throat, a
meteor-sized lump, and I didn’t try to fight the tears that welled
up in my eyes.

Even Julian was teary-eyed as he gave her
away before stepping off to the side.

Under a weeping birch, surrounded by an oasis
of trees, flower borders, and pastoral lawns, Vivian stood facing
me and I took her hands in mine.

Merrick cleared his
throat, squared his shoulders, and began officiating the ceremony.
“Vivian and Liam, today you came as individuals, but you will leave
here as husband and wife, blending your lives, expanding your
family ties, and embarking upon a grand adventure. The story of
your life together is still yours to write. All those present have
come to witness and celebrate your love and commitment this day,
eager to be a part of the story not yet told.” He paused and smiled
at both of us before continuing. “Now, coming from someone
who
has
had his
story partially told, I can tell you this… when you love someone,
you do not love them all the time, in exactly the same way, from
moment to moment. That is impossible. And yet that is exactly what
most of us demand. We have so little faith in the ebb and flow of
life, of love, of relationships. We leap at the flow of the tide
and resist in terror its ebb. We are afraid it will never return.
We insist on permanency, duration, continuity when the only
continuity possible in life as in love is in growth, in fluidity—in
freedom, in the sense that the dancers are free, barely touching as
they pass, but partners in the same pattern.”

Merrick turned in his wheelchair to face me.
“Liam, will you dance freely as you pass through life at Vivian’s
side—to be her second self and best earthly companion?”

Gazing into her eyes… eyes so blue it seemed
the sky had given birth to them, I squeezed her fingers and said
without hesitation, “I will.”

Then Merrick turned to face Vivian and
repeated the same vows. “Vivian, will you dance freely as you pass
through life at Liam’s side—to be his second self and best earthly
companion?”

My chest moved in a silent
chuckle when she mouthed the words
of
course
right before saying, “I will.” The
affection on her face made me feel like the luckiest man in the
world.

Merrick raised his voice several octaves.
“Vivian and Liam, I give you this Apache blessing: Now you will
feel no rain, for each of you will be shelter for the other. Now
you will feel no cold, for each of you will be warmth to the other.
Now there will be no loneliness, for each of you will be companion
to the other. Now you are two persons, but there is only one life
before you.” After a short pause, he said, “The couple will now
recite the vows they wrote themselves.”

This I took as my cue. I
drew a deep breath and exhaled until my lungs were empty. As I
stared into her eyes, my heartbeat steadied. “Viv, you’re
beautiful, loving, funny, smart, and
so
strong
… stronger than you know.” A hint of
pride seeped into my voice. “You have always fought for me, and you
have always fought for
us
. And I promise you to always do
the same. I’ll fight for our future together, no matter what
challenges we face. I’ll fight for your dreams even when you think
you can’t anymore. I’ll fight for our love, to keep it strong, even
when life tests our resolve. And when we’re on the couch watching
TV, I’ll fight for the remote because I pick better
shows.”

Quiet laughter greeted my
last vows, and Vivian’s eyes crinkled at the corners.
“Sorry,
ma puce
,”
I added. “But I can’t watch the CW channel, TLC, and Bravo
twenty-four-seven.”

When the laughter had died
down, Vivian pulled in a shaky breath. “Liam…” She began. “I love
you because you join me in my weirdness. With you I can wholly,
completely, and utterly be myself. You’ve inspired me to restore
myself, to become fully
me
. You give me the freedom to be
silly, and you never judge me for the dorky things I say. I love
that I can pepper my speech with near nonsense words and you still
know exactly what I’m trying to say.”

A smile titled her lips and I gave her nod,
one full of love and understanding.

“
Liam… I promise to be
your loving wife and your partner in adventure
and
misadventure. I promise
to
cherish your love, to support you in any quest, to challenge you to
grow, and conspire with you in mischief. I promise to always be
your sounding board, your confidant, your friend, and most
importantly, your family. I promise to entangle my identity with
yours while sustaining our independence. I promise to laugh with
you and be silly with you and keep the kid in you alive. Together,
we will go on many more road trips, and we’ll have lots more ping
pong matches.” The look she gave me was long and indulgent.
“
Loads
more ping
pong matches.”

Try as I might, I couldn’t stop grinning, for
even though the word “topless” was never mentioned, it was clearly
implied. At least to me it was.

“
And together”—she went
on—“we will create a home and a family filled with fun, laughter,
and chaos. My love was yours yesterday, and it is yours today,
tomorrow, and for all the days before us.” Her eyes were glistening
and her words made me feel like I was standing taller. “And know
this—my love for you will never come at a cost. I will stay with
you, share your germs, and take turns being sick until we can’t
tell better from worse.”

Her expression was so adorably earnest that I
had to laugh.

Viv smiled at me, and I wanted so much to
kiss that precious smile on her lips. But we weren’t at that point
in the ceremony just yet.

Merrick turned in his
wheelchair to face the wedding guests. “I guess this is the point
in the ceremony when I can talk about how the wedding bands are
perfect circles… with no beginning and no end.” He shrugged. “You
know the trope, but you know what? That’s not what I’m going to
do.” After a pause, he said, “These rings
do
have a beginning. Platinum ore
was mined from the earth and then sent off to a refinery where it
was liquefied, molded, cooled, and then painstakingly
polished.”

Merrick dropped his gaze,
staring at the rings in the palm of his hand. “These rings were
extracted out of raw elements from the ground and sent to a
refinery,” he repeated. “
A processing
plant
.” He paused again. “Imagine that.”
He lifted his gaze and looked out at the crowd. “Now I know this
version sounds methodical, pragmatic, and not very romantic. But
that’s love. It’s sensible and it’s a process. It’s hot and
sometimes it’s cold. It’s real and it’s dirty work. Like these
wedding bands, love comes from humble beginnings, made by imperfect
beings. It’s the process of making something beautiful where there
was once nothing at all.” He took a moment to let those words sink
in before rolling up to me in his wheelchair.

I smiled my thanks as he handed me the
wedding band. Then I turned to face Viv.

My heart ached with so much happiness as I
slipped the band onto her delicate finger. Gazing into her eyes, I
said, “Viv, I give you this ring, as I give to you all that I am,
and accept from you all that you are.”

“
I will wear it forever.”
She spoke the words through misty eyes. “And when I look at it,
I’ll remember today and the vows that we made.”

Next, Merrick handed her the wedding band.
Viv held my gaze as she slid it onto my finger. “Through this ring,
I accept you as my husband, now and for all the days of our
lives.”

“
For all eternity,” I
added. “And infinity.”

“
For all eternity and
infinity,” she repeated. “I love it when you’re corny.” Amusement
glimmered in her eyes. “Mr. Cornball… my husband.”

“
Mrs. Cornball… my wife.”
I drew her into my arms and kissed her full on the lips, so deeply,
so ardently, so passionately that I felt the heat of her blush
scorch my cheeks.

“
Ladies and gentlemen.”
Merrick raised his voice. “For the first time… Liam and Vivian
Sykes, as husband and wife.”

Over two hundred guests rose to their feet
and thunderous applause erupted in the garden of the gods.

My mom had flown all the way from Melbourne
to be here on this special day. Even my dad, whom I’d been
estranged from, was here. Vivian welcomed both my parents with love
and open arms. Her warmth came so easily and without thought,
whereas my desire to accept and to move on from the past came with
more difficulty.

But I was learning.

And even though Vivian’s parents weren’t
here, we wanted to honor them in some special way. I caught her
hand in mine and together we strolled down a gravel path.

We didn’t light unity candles, we didn’t
break bread, and we didn’t have a salt or sand ceremony. But we
each took turns tapping the sail of a wind chime that dangled from
a low-hanging branch of an old birch tree.

“
This is for you, Mom and
Dad,” Viv said softly as the tranquil, tinkling tones of the silver
chimes filled the air and our hearts.

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Also by Haleigh Lovell:

Vivian’s List

The prequel to Liam’s List. A New York Times
& USA Today Bestseller

available at:

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“
Vivian’s List is probably
one of my best reads of 2013.”

~ Inside The Pages of a Book

“
A great love story. I'm a
sucker for true love and a strong believer in love turning great
sex into fantastic sexual pleasure. Vivian’s List gives validation
to my belief."

~ VO POV

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Holy Hotness!
A steamy, enjoyable read!”

~ A Bookish Escape

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