The organ was playing, and she was tearing up a bit. She put a hand through Hemi’s powerful arm in its sober black sleeve, and he turned to her.
“Look at Hugh,” she said quietly. “He’s over the moon.”
Hemi cast an eye over the tall, broad, bearded figure at the front of the church, standing rock-solid beside the shifting form of his little brother, his eyes steady on the back of the church. Watching for Josie.
“He is,” Hemi said. “And he’s terrified.”
She let out a shocked little puff of laughter, and he smiled, brought his hand up to squeeze hers. “As he should be,” he assured her. “He wants to do it right. Wants to be the man she needs. If he weren’t terrified, he wouldn’t care enough.”
“We don’t need you to be perfect,” she said. “We just need you to be there for us, to hold us and love us, and let us love you.”
“Yeh,” he said, his smile all for her now. “I know. But he’s just learning.”
The music swelled, and Hugh’s sister was walking towards him, her face intent, and Reka’s own heart turned over to see Hugh smile at her, make the effort to encourage her.
“He’s a good man,” she said under her breath.
A squeeze from Hemi’s hand was her reply, and the congregation was standing, because here came Josie.
She choked up a little more, because Hugh’s face…he looked like everything he needed in this world was walking towards him. And when Josie reached him, and he lifted her veil over her head and smiled down into her eyes, and she smiled back up at him…it was a very good moment.
The congregation took their seats again, and the service began. Just like Reka and Hemi’s own, of course, because every Church of England wedding service was exactly the same.
There was a reason you went to weddings, though. All that new young hope, that pledging of faith—it reminded you why you’d done it, and that you’d do it again. If you were one of the lucky ones, and she was. She could feel it in the press of Hemi’s arm against her hand, the suspicious sheen in his eye, and was filled with an uprush of gratitude for her good life, and her good man.
There were funny moments, too, which was good, or she’d have spent the entire brief service crying. When the priest asked Hugh the questions, and he answered, “I will,” and his voice rang out through the little building like he was on the rugby pitch. More than one person jumped, and a ripple of laughter swept through the congregation. Hugh laughed a little too, Josie smiled back at him, and Reka guessed that that had meant something, and was glad for them that it did.
And when it was time for Hugh to put the ring on Josie’s finger, and Charlie was meant to produce it—that was a moment and a half. Hugh turned to his brother with a nod, the boy pulled the band from the breast pocket to which his hand had strayed throughout the ceremony—and dropped it.
It rolled. Of course it rolled. The faint sound echoed through the church, then came to a stop when the ring did. Where, Reka couldn’t see.
“Sorry.” That was Charlie, his voice anguished. “I’m sorry.” He was on his knees, searching frantically.
“No worries,” Hugh said. He’d already crouched down beside his brother, was hunting at the edge of the altar, running a big hand along the floorboards.
He pounced, and in the next moment, was standing up, facing the congregation with a white grin splitting his darkly bearded face, holding the circle of gold aloft.
Some clapping and cheering broke out, and Hugh dropped a hand to Charlie’s head, tousled his brown hair, and then he was turning back to Josie, taking her left hand in his.
When he spoke, nobody was laughing anymore.
“Josie,” he told her, his voice ringing out once more, strong and sure, “I give you this ring as a sign of our marriage. With my body I honor you, all that I am I give to you, and all that I have I share with you.”
Reka didn’t think there was a dry eye in the house. Not Hemi’s, and certainly not hers.
“Great wedding,” Kate said a couple hours later, sitting back from the table and taking a final bite of cake. “Too bad Hannah’s missing it. She’s a sucker for this stuff.”
Koti laughed. “And you’re not, eh. Too tough. And yet I could swear I saw a tear or two there.”
“Could be,” she conceded.
“Reka went through an entire pack of tissues,” Hemi said with satisfaction.
“And handed you one,” she pointed out, which got a laugh from everybody.
“It was beautiful,” Kristen said. “They looked so happy.”
“They did. And I may have teared up a bit there too,” Koti admitted. “After yesterday…” He sighed. “I guess I’m still emotional. I’ve never played a test match as tough as that in my life, and I never will. And I’m not sure that I haven’t changed my mind about getting you pregnant again,” he told Kate.
“Too late,” she said. “I have a feeling you’ve done the damage.”
He stared at her. “You can’t know that yet.”
“No?” she said. “You wait and see.”
He looked stunned, and everybody else was smiling.
“We won’t ask when,” Hemi said. “We’ll show a bit of delicacy.”
“So many weddings,” Reka said. “It made me wonder, what happens to the Yaris now? I saw it behind Drew and Hannah’s garage the other day,” she told Kristen. “A bit small for mum and baby, you reckoned?”
“Yeh,” Liam said, his arm as usual around the back of Kristen’s chair. “Time to retire it.”
“It happens,” Reka said. “Though for me, it took three babies.” She looked at Hemi. “But I won’t hold that against you.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Kate was holding up a hand. “The Yaris was yours? But I got it from Hannah.”
Reka looked at Hemi, and they were both smiling.
“Because we weren’t allowed to say,” Hemi said. “Drew bought it from me to give Hannah when she moved to En Zed. Didn’t want her to know where it came from. Or, more likely, how much it cost him. She tended to get a bit stroppy about her independence in those days, eh.”
“Those Yank girls can be like that,” Koti said with a grin, which made Kate elbow him in the side.
“Rightly so,” she told him. “You’d have run right over me otherwise.”
“Never,” he pronounced. “Never, ever happen.”
“So you had it first, Reka,” Kate said. “And then Hannah, and then she loaned it to me, and then I got…done with it.”
“And then she loaned it to me,” Kristen said.
“And me,” Ally piped up from beyond Kristen. “I got a speeding ticket in that car. Probably the only one it’s ever seen.”
“Yeh,” Reka sighed with satisfaction. “That little car seems to be a bit of a charm, doesn’t it? Almost hate to see her sell it. It’s like…the Sisterhood of the Traveling Toyota. Makes you wonder where it’ll turn up next.”
“Because surely,” Hemi said, “there’s another pretty girl out there somewhere holding a boarding pass for New Zealand. And another All Black just waiting to take a fall.”
The End
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Turn the page for a Kiwi glossary.
A few notes about Maori pronunciation:
The accent is normally on the first syllable.
All vowels are pronounced separately.
All vowels except u have a short vowel sound.
“wh” is pronounced “f.”
“ng” is pronounced as in “singer,” not as in “anger.”
ABs: All Blacks
across the Ditch: in Australia (across the Tasman Sea). Or, if you’re in Australia, in New Zealand!
advert: commercial
agro: aggravation
air con: air conditioning
All Blacks: National rugby team. Members are selected for every series from amongst the five NZ Super 15 teams. The All Black
s play similarly selected teams from other nations.
ambo: paramedic
Aotearoa: New Zealand (the other official name, meaning “The Land of the Long White Cloud" in Maori)
arvo, this arvo: afternoon
Aussie, Oz: Australia. (An Australian is also an Aussie. Pronounced “Ozzie.”)
bach: holiday home (pronounced like “bachelor”)
backs: rugby players who aren’t in the scrum and do more running, kicking, and ball-carrying—though all players do all jobs and play both offense and defense. Backs tend to be faster and leaner than forwards.
bangers and mash: sausages and potatoes
barrack for: cheer for
bench: counter (kitchen bench)
berko: berserk
Big Smoke: the big city (usually Auckland)
bikkies: cookies
billy-o, like billy-o: like crazy. “I paddled like billy-o and just barely made it through that rapid.”
bin, rubbish bin: trash can
bit of a dag: a comedian, a funny guy
bits and bobs: stuff (“be sure you get all your bits and bobs”)
blood bin: players leaving field for injury
Blues: Auckland’s Super 15 team
bollocks: rubbish, nonsense
boofhead: fool, jerk
booking: reservation
boots and all: full tilt, no holding back
bot, the bot: flu, a bug
Boxing Day: December 26—a holiday
brekkie: breakfast
brilliant: fantastic
bub: baby, small child
buggered: messed up, exhausted
bull’s roar: close. “They never came within a bull’s roar of winning.”
bunk off: duck out, skip (bunk off school)
bust a gut: do your utmost, make a supreme effort
Cake Tin: Wellington’s rugby stadium (not the official name, but it looks exactly like a springform pan)
caravan: travel trailer
cardie: a cardigan sweater
CBD: Central Business District; downtown
chat up: flirt with
chilly bin: ice chest
chips: French fries. (potato chips are “crisps”)
chocolate bits: chocolate chips
chocolate fish: pink or white marshmallow coated with milk chocolate, in the shape of a fish. A common treat/reward for kids (and for adults. You often get a chocolate fish on the saucer when you order a mochaccino—a mocha).
choice: fantastic
chokka: full
chooks: chickens
Chrissy: Christmas
chuck out: throw away
chuffed: pleased
collywobbles: nervous tummy, upset stomach
come a greaser: take a bad fall
costume, cossie: swimsuit (female only)
cot: crib (for a baby)
crook: ill
cuddle: hug (give a cuddle)
cuppa: a cup of tea (the universal remedy)
CV: resumé
cyclone: hurricane (Southern Hemisphere)
dairy: corner shop (not just for milk!)
dead: very; e.g., “dead sexy.”
dill: fool
do your block: lose your temper
dob in: turn in; report to authorities. Frowned upon.
doco: documentary
doddle: easy. “That’ll be a doddle.”
dodgy: suspect, low-quality
dogbox: The doghouse—in trouble
dole: unemployment.
dole bludger: somebody who doesn’t try to get work and lives off unemployment (which doesn’t have a time limit in NZ)
Domain: a good-sized park; often the “official” park of the town.
dressing gown: bathrobe
drongo: fool (Australian, but used sometimes in NZ as well)
drop your gear: take off your clothes
duvet: comforter
earbashing: talking-to, one-sided chat
electric jug: electric teakettle to heat water. Every Kiwi kitchen has one.
En Zed: Pronunciation of NZ. (“Z” is pronounced “Zed.”)
ensuite: master bath (a bath in the bedroom).
eye fillet: premium steak (filet mignon)
fair go: a fair chance. Kiwi ideology: everyone deserves a fair go.
fair wound me up: Got me very upset
fantail: small, friendly native bird
farewelled, he’ll be farewelled: funeral; he’ll have his funeral.
feed, have a feed: meal
first five, first five-eighth: rugby back—does most of the big kicking jobs and is the main director of the backs. Also called the No. 10.
fixtures: playing schedule
fizz, fizzie: soft drink
fizzing: fired up
flaked out: tired
flash: fancy
flat to the boards: at top speed
flat white: most popular NZ coffee. An espresso with milk but no foam.
flattie: roommate
flicks: movies
flying fox: zipline
footpath: sidewalk
footy, football: rugby
forwards: rugby players who make up the scrum and do the most physical battling for position. Tend to be bigger and more heavily muscled than backs.
fossick about: hunt around for something
front up: face the music, show your mettle
garden: yard
get on the piss: get drunk
get stuck in: commit to something
give way: yield
giving him stick, give him some stick about it: teasing, needling
glowworms: larvae of a fly found only in NZ. They shine a light to attract insects. Found in caves or other dark, moist places.
go crook, be crook: go wrong, be ill
go on the turps: get drunk
gobsmacked: astounded
good hiding: beating (“They gave us a good hiding in Dunedin.”)
grotty: grungy, badly done up
ground floor: what we call the first floor. The “first floor” is one floor up.
gumboots, gummies: knee-high rubber boots. It rains a lot in New Zealand.
gutted: thoroughly upset
Haast’s Eagle: (extinct). Huge native NZ eagle. Ate moa.
haere mai: Maori greeting
haka: ceremonial Maori challenge—done before every All Blacks game
halfback: No. 9 in rugby. With the first-five (No. 10), directs the game. Also feeds the scrum and generally collects the ball from the ball carrier at the breakdown and distributes it.
hang on a tick: wait a minute
hard man: the tough guy, the enforcer
hard yakka: hard work (from Australian)
harden up: toughen up. Standard NZ (male) response to (male) complaints: “Harden the f*** up!”
have a bit on: I have placed a bet on [whatever]. Sports gambling and prostitution are both legal in New Zealand.
have a go: try
Have a nosy for…: look around for
head: principal (headmaster)
head down: or head down, bum up. Put your head down. Work hard.
heaps: lots. “Give it heaps.”
hei toki: pendant (Maori)
holiday: vacation
honesty box: a small stand put up just off the road with bags of fruit and vegetables and a cash box. Very common in New Zealand.
hooker: rugby position (forward)
hooning around: driving fast, wannabe tough-guy behavior (typically young men)
hoovering: vacuuming (after the brand of vacuum cleaner)
ice block: popsicle
I’ll see you right: I’ll help you out
in form: performing well (athletically)
it’s not on: It’s not all right
iwi: tribe (Maori)
jabs: immunizations, shots
jandals: flip-flops. (This word is only used in New Zealand. Jandals and gumboots are the iconic Kiwi footwear.)
jers
ey: a rugby shirt, or a pullover sweater
joker: a guy. “A good Kiwi joker”: a regular guy; a good guy.
journo: journalist
jumper: a heavy pullover sweater
ka pai: going smoothly (Maori).
kapa haka: school singing group (Maori songs/performances. Any student can join, not just Maori.)
karanga: Maori song of welcome (done by a woman)
keeping his/your head down: working hard
kia ora: welcome (Maori, but used commonly)
kilojoules: like calories—measure of food energy
kindy: kindergarten (this is 3- and 4-year-olds)
kit, get your kit off: clothes, take off your clothes
Kiwi: New Zealander OR the bird. If the person, it’s capitalized. Not the fruit.
kiwifruit: the fruit. (Never called simply a “kiwi.”)
knackered: exhausted
knockout rounds: playoff rounds (quarterfinals, semifinals, final)
koru: ubiquitous spiral Maori symbol of new beginnings, hope
kumara: Maori sweet potato.
ladder: standings (rugby)
littlies: young kids
lock: rugby position (forward)
lollies: candy
lolly: candy or money
lounge: living room
mad as a meat axe: crazy
maintenance: child support
major: “a major.” A big deal, a big event
mana: prestige, earned respect, spiritual power
Maori: native people of NZ—though even they arrived relatively recently from elsewhere in Polynesia
marae: Maori meeting house
Marmite: Savory Kiwi yeast-based spread for toast. An acquired taste. (Kiwis swear it tastes different from Vegemite, the Aussie version.)
mate: friend. And yes, fathers call their sons “mate.”
metal road: gravel road
Milo: cocoa substitute; hot drink mix
mind: take care of, babysit
moa: (extinct) Any of several species of huge flightless NZ birds. All eaten by the Maori before Europeans arrived.
moko: Maori tattoo
mokopuna: grandchildren
motorway: freeway
mozzie: mosquito; OR a Maori Australian (Maori + Aussie = Mozzie)
muesli: like granola, but unbaked
munted: broken
naff: stupid, unsuitable. “Did you get any naff Chrissy pressies this year?”
nappy: diaper
Just Once More (Escape to New Zealand Book 7) Page 15