by J. E. Chaney
“Do you, Sasha, accept Jackson at his word to honor and love you unconditionally?” the minister asks.
“I do.” I speak staring into Jack’s eyes. “In you I have found my best friend. You show me unconditional love, hold me close to your heart, and always know how to care for my every need. In you I have found my everything, and until I take my last breath, I promise to give you the best of myself unconditionally.” I slide the ring to his finger. “Wear this ring knowing my heart lies only in your hands, and as long as you wear it, my heart will only beat for you.”
“And do you, Jackson, take this beautiful bride at her word and promise to honor, cherish, and love her from this day forward?” the minister asks.
“I do.”
The minister faces the audience. “If anyone sees a fit reason that these two shall not spend their lives together in marital bliss, speak only now or forever more hold your peace.”
Jack catches my gaze in the moment of silence. Both of us smile.
“No greater gift from God has there ever been, but love, the act of two hearts beating together as one. Share your lives together, forsake each other not, and let no man break the bonds you’ve made on this day, go forth and enjoy your lives together. By the power invested in me, by the great state of North Carolina and God, with all surrounding as witnesses, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Jackson, you may now kiss your bride.”
Jack steps toward me, lifting the veil away from my face. He whispers, “I love you,” before kissing me.
“I introduce to you for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Jackson Thomas.”
All in attendance stand, clapping as we stride down the aisle toward the doors.
There comes the same familiar change of air and we arrive a few miles from the church in a horse-drawn carriage outside the historical Duke Mansion.
I smile thoughtfully knowing he remembered my love for historical homes.
“This can’t possibly get any better.”
“Oh, just wait. The ladies have worked harder than ever to make this the most perfect evening of your life. Shall we?”
“Of our lives.” I kiss him. “Husband.”
He lifts me into his arms, carrying me up the walk and through the threshold.
Just inside the door, the caretaker greets us. “Congratulations, you are a handsome couple. Would you care to look around before the guests arrive?”
I shake my head no. “I’d like to change before they arrive.”
“Very well. I’ll show you to your room.” The lady smiles politely.
Jack carries me with my arms secure around his neck. The door is open, giving the fresh scent of gardenia.
The room is large, manicured beautifully with white flowers. A couple of chairs sit by the double doors leading to a patio, a king size bed with a bench at the foot sits near another set of glass doors. My suitcase rests next to floral embellished Victorian dresser.
Hanging from a hook on the closet door is a white knee-length dress with a thin blue sash matching my wedding jewels.
“Aimee?” I suspect.
“Annie. This is right up her ally.”
“I love her already.” I smile. “I’ll be sure to thank her.”
“Aimee and Annie have been here all day working on the flowers.” Jack begins unbuttoning my dress. “How am I to be expected to greet our guests with you looking this sexy?” he asks, kissing between my shoulders as he opens the back of my dress.
“We have a few minutes.” I smile. We both look to the bedroom door from where we hear the sound of our guests entering in the front doors. “Or not.” I smirk, stepping from my dress.
After changing, we follow the short hall toward the sound of music until we reach what looks like a ballroom full of tables. Every one of our friends is taking their seat as each hostess walks around pouring beverages.
The room looks as though a royal ball could be held, decorated with candles, and fine crystal and china dishes. Arrangements of all white orchids, freesia, gardenia, and peonies fill the room with a delightful fragrance.
***
“Sasha, wake up, baby, wake up. It’s raining in here.”
“Jack.” I moaned, opening my eyes.
“Who’s Jack?” Matt asked confused. “It’s raining in our room.”
“I… I was just dreaming. It’s what?” I felt a trickle of water run down my neck. My thoughts of Jack washed away, focusing on the warm sensation touching my skin.
He looked at me with uncertainty then at the ceiling. “You need to hurry and get up. It’s raining in here!”
“It’s what?” I asked, sitting up. “Ouch!” I could feel the blazing heat of my skin.
“Here, take my hand.” Matt helped me to my feet.
I felt a little dizzy from standing too quickly, and then water tapping my head. “It’s raining? Seriously?” I could hear the pouring of rain beating against the hut.
“It’s more like a monsoon out there,” he said, pulling back a curtain. “I guess it’s not uncommon this time of year, it should blow over soon if the roof doesn’t cave first.”
We both looked at the ceiling above the bed hearing a cracking sound.
“Here.” He handed me a sundress. “You’ll need to dress quickly. We need to get out of here.”
“And go where… outside? I think not!” I said, yawning as I stepped into the dress.
“We need a new room before this one floods.”
We both stared at the now wet bed.
“As soon as it passes, we’ll head back to the main building for a new room. Let’s get our stuff packed before it gets wet.”
I hurriedly stuffed my suitcase and the carry-on bag with my belongings as Matt packed his.
We heard a loud cracking sound and glanced at each other, looked up at the now bowing bamboo structure, holding the roof together.
We grabbed our luggage and quickly crossed the room.
A loud crack followed by an enormous gush of water and natural debris came crashing down, covering the bed.
We shared a wide-eyed stare.
“Skylight?” he said, trying to make light of the situation. “We can watch the stars at night.”
I had hardly blinked when reaching in my bag for my cellphone, handing it to Matt. “Call now.”
It only took a few minutes before hearing a heavy knock on the door. A tall skinny man with dark skin and dreadlocks hurried inside, forcing the door closed behind him. His white uniform was soaked, with mud down the bottom of his pants.
“No, mon, we be outta here before dis caves.” The man took my bags. “You just gonna stand there?” He laughed, rushing out the door. His little cart was parked on the boardwalk just outside the door.
I hurried to the cart and we quickly drove to the main lodge with Matt driving our cart behind us.
The three of us along with the luggage were drenched when we made it inside the main building.
“Not another hut, please,” I said to the wide-eyed woman at the front desk.
After generously being compensated for our stay and given free laundry service, we were placed in the main lodge that night in a much cozier and dry room. All I wanted was to sleep and to not feel like my skin was in flames.
***
“What now?” I stand at Jack’s feet. “I’m trying to replace a pipe,” he says with a loud grunt, as he pushes himself out from under the kitchen sink. “It was leaking again.”
“Ah. Would you like some tea?”
He wipes the sweat from his brow shaking his head.
“Please. One more time, why on earth did you buy this place?”
I remove the jug of sweet ice tea from the refrigerator. “It had an irresistible charm.” I pour us each a glass. “Here, this will cool you down.” I look around the kitchen, realizing I’m dreaming, seeing an impending glimpse of what could possibly be our future. I smile satisfied with the surroundings, realizing I’m standing in the same plantation I had been interested in buying for years.
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Jack wipes the tea from his lips after drinking half the glass. “That’s the next thing we need to talk about. This place needs a new air unit. It feels like swamp air in here.”
“It’s a bit stagnant,” I admit.
Jack sets his glass on the counter his arms extend to hug me.
“Eww. No!” I squirm away looking at his damp chest.
“Come here.” He laughs, grabbing at my T-shirt embracing me in a huge sticky hug. “I hope you appreciate how much I love you. I’ve had moments in thought of torching this place to the ground.”
“You wouldn’t dare.” I bat at his arm. “It’ll all be worth it someday when we can sit back feeling rewarded at all our hard work.”
“Huh, someday is a ways out. Vance called. They’re coming over tomorrow to help with the back patio. The stones should be delivered before this evening.” He eases his hold, allowing me to walk to the back door. “Just another project.” I look at the dirt and broken wood slats that once formed a patio.
“I think after this bill, you’ve officially invested more into restoration than the purchasing cost of the house.”
“What good is fine wine if it can’t be drunk?”
“As is money should be well spent.” He returns to the sink, clearing the mess of old piping and tools. “I’ll be back. I’m going to run these out to the tool shed and toss the pipes.”
“I’ll be here.” I take a deep breath, wishing for fresh air. I hold up my left hand, seeing a wedding band secured to my engagement ring. I smile, realizing we’re already married, meaning, Jack is living here, with me, that he must have willingly given up his home to live here.
“Sasha, come outside. I want you to see something,” Jack hollers from the front door.
“Coming.” I refill our tea and head outside, taking in my surrounding fortress on the way out.
I find him stooping over something in the yard. “Check this out.”
I approach his side looking to where his finger points.
“What is that?” I lean in for a look, not seeing anything.
He glances at the drinks in my hands and carefully takes them from me and sets them down.
“What am I looking for?” I lean in further seeing only dirt and dry crabgrass.
“The perfect place to lay down.” He playfully takes me with ease to the ground, cradling my head.
I smile accepting his kiss. “I thought you found something you liar.”
“I did.” He laughs. “There was a huge snake in the yard but it headed into the bush.”
“Ewwwwww. What is wrong with you?” I push myself to my feet, and try swatting at him before running to the front patio. “Grab my tea before the snake drinks it!”
“They don’t drink sweet tea, babe.” He runs after me, catching me from behind. His arms wrap playfully around me. “I was just messing with you. I found this.” He reaches in his pocket and pulls out a ring. “See if it fits.”
“Where was this?” I hold it, looking at the intricate patterns of rose gold Victorian lace. “It’s beautiful.”
“I found it right where I was standing when you came outside. It looks really old.”
“It’s got to be. No one has lived here in ages.”
I slide the ring on my middle finger. “It fits.”
“Nice. Maybe it’s the plantation’s way of repaying you for all your hard work.”
I smile at his thoughtful words. “Thank you. And thank you for getting my clothes all dirty.”
Jack’s gets a mischievous look on his face. “I’ll show you dirty!” He laughs tackling me in the yard landing a kiss to my throat. “Mmm salty.”
“Well, what do you expect, it’s hotter than heck outside.” We lay silently in the yard for a few minutes, enjoying each other’s company. “Jack, do you really want to burn this place down?”
“No, I was just giving you a hard time. I knew the day I proposed to you, I was accepting everything about you and knew this was a place you would never want to live without.” He brushed a grass from my hair.
I give careful consideration to my thoughts before speaking. If this were our future, I want certainty knowing everything about it will appeal to both of our desires. “You don’t resent me for having to move here?”
“Not at all. Where is all the uncertainty coming from? You know I love it here. I’m sorry if I hit a soft spot teasing you.”
I shrug a little, not responding at first. “I guess I’m not sure you see through all the broken wood to the beauty I find hiding within.”
“Ah, well, beauty is subjective to the eye of the beholder. Come here.” He stands taking my hand and leads us across the front yard until we’re far enough from the house for a good look. “When I stand here, looking at this house, I see a broken fortress. However, I find a deeply regarded admiration knowing you once stood here alone staring at this home with the dedication to do what many would fear impossible. Do I at times think it was a horrible idea?” He shrugged a little. “Maybe, but I have never once regretted a moment spent here building this into our home.”
“This must be why I married you.”
“Because I believe such a thing as happy wife happy life?” He smiled reassuringly.
“No, because your insanity harmonizes with mine!”
***
I opened my eyes, but didn’t move. I heard Matt walking around the room. Jack had returned to my dreams again and I wanted to savor it for a moment.
“What’s the plan, man? Matt asked in a beyond chipper mood when he realized I was awake.
“Staying away from the sun.” I yawned. “What time is it?”
“Seven-fifteen. Should I order breakfast or we could go downstairs and see what they have?”
I moaned, pulling the sheet over my head. “I’m not hungry. You don’t vacation well. We should still be sleeping.”
“I can wait a while.”
“No, you don’t have to do that.”
“I’ll just go downstairs and get something to eat. Want me to bring you up some fruit maybe a bagel?”
His efforts to care for me emitted guilt while having Jack recently in my thoughts. What was I going to do? “No. I’ll come down in a bit.”
“I’ll just wait for you.”
“I’m going to shower,” I mumbled.
“I’ll shower with you.”
“Do you honestly want to stand in cold water?”
He leaned over and kissed my forehead. “See you in a few.”
“Uh-huh.”
After hearing the door close, I climbed from the bed and walked into the bathroom. I was pink from head to toe. “Lovely.” I turned on the shower then sat on the toilet in dreadful debate whether or not the cold water was a good idea.
I showered fast enough to clean my body, wrapped in a towel, and hurried back to the bedroom looking for the aloe gel. I remembered Matt mentioned something about Lidocaine and dug through his bag looking for it.
Crap, he’s got more stuff… my thought abruptly froze. “Holy Lord!” I stared at a small black velvet box. I glanced at the bedroom door, and then quickly stuffed everything back in the bag. “Crap.” Curiosity quickly won as I dug in the bag for the box, and opened it. “Oh man.” I looked at his grandmother’s wedding ring forgetting to blink. Holy cow, oh crap. I snapped the box closed and shoved it back into Matt’s bag.
I sat on the bed, holding my towel, forgetting what I was searching for. I felt nauseated realizing at any moment, Matt was planning on asking me to marry him. I panicked, and ran around the room, looking for my phone. I wanted to call Aimee, and panic her, but I heard the door handle turn, and quickly sprang onto the bed.
Matt entered the room holding two plates. “Are you naked?” he asked, I heard the smile in his voice, and then he noticed me sitting on the bed. “Are you okay?” He surmised something wasn’t right.
I nodded my head, feeing too shocked to answer him.
“What’s going on?”
“I don’t f
eel good.”
He set the plates on a desk. “I picked up some Lidocaine lotion last night. I’ll rub it on you.”
I nodded my head.
Matt grabbed a plastic sack off the dresser. “Here’re your chips.” He tried handing me the bag, but I held my hand up in distaste.
Matt sat down next to me and rubbed the cream on my back.
I instantly began shivering at the icy feeling on my skin.
“I feel so bad. I wish I could make you feel better.”
“Thanks. I just need to rest. It will go away soon enough.”
“Maybe after we eat, we can find you a nice place to sit in the shade before it gets too warm out. I want to snorkel, see if I can find you a few shells.”
“Sure.” My lips twitched, trying to smile.
***
I found a cozy spot under a palm tree in the sand and spread out a towel. A ways down the beach a few tables were set up in the shade with vendors selling souvenirs. As much as I wanted to browse, the idea of walking any further in the sun took the appeal away.
Laying on my front, I dug through my bag for my sunglasses and book. It was nice to just sprawl out basking in the morning breeze that cooled my skin. I gazed out over the limpid water remembering my dream of Greece and the Aegean Sea. Thoughts of Jack surfaced but faded as Matt hovered near me with his flipper on.
“I wish you could swim with me. I feel bad leaving you here.”
“I’m fine. I’m enjoying the shade.” My voice tight with anxiety.
“Are you sure you’re okay? You seem a bit on edge today.”
“Matt, I’m fine. I just want to relax.” My tone shared annoyance.
He waddled away pulling on his mask.
I stared after him until he disappeared into the water.
What the heck was wrong with me? Matt used to be the man of my dreams. Now, I couldn’t carry on a civil conversation or dredge up desire for him or, heaven forbid, feel any real guilt over wishing I was on vacation with Jack. What kind of person did that make me?
I wasn’t sure, but I needed to figure this out before I truly hurt Matt.
I tried feeling guilty. I wondered if maybe Matt’s desire for marriage, all the extras, was a fear that would squander away in time.