by Kris Tualla
“I will,” she said, gazing onto George’s eyes.
Next, they made the actual pledge, repeating those promises and adding, “And thereto I plight thee my troth.”
After that came the rings, with an apology from the pastor. “In Jane Austin’s time the woman did not give the man a ring. This is an adjustment for our century.”
A prayer followed, then the declaration that, “Those whom God hath joined together let no man put asunder.”
Until today, Hollis hadn’t thought much about where the current traditional wedding ceremony came from. The Church of England, commonly called the Anglican Church, was scandalously founded in the sixteenth century by King Henry the Eighth. Even though he did it so he could divorce Queen Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn, it made sense that the Englishmen who formed America brought those traditions with them.
Hearing the words and promises whose origin extended back five hundred years made Hollis’s history-loving heart happy.
Hollis’s musing was brought back to the present by the words, “I pronounce that they be man and wife together, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.”
As the ceremony still continued with blessings and prayers, she slid her attention to Sveyn. He was staring at her with such blatant emotion that she felt her pulse surge.
I love you, he mouthed.
Hollis smiled at the tall Viking, resplendent in his Regency suit.
I love you, too.
Chapter Twenty-One
Tuesday
February 9
Sveyn wondered what flying would be like. He had ridden in planes during his last manifestation to the soldier, but without a body he could not feel the sensations of taking off and landing; all he knew was what he saw.
“Are you afraid of flying?” Hollis asked as they waited at the gate in Phoenix Sky Harbor’s terminal four.
He shook his head. “No. But I am curious.”
Hollis put him by the window in their upgraded seats so he could watch their take-off and landing and parts in between. Now as the plane rolled down the runway, increasing in speed, he was pressed backward into his seat. With a definite upward movement that pressed him down, the airplane left the ground.
“Is it what you expected?” Hollis asked.
Sveyn nodded. “Yes, it is.”
He almost wasn’t able to take this flight. Luckily, his new birth certificate arrived yesterday, so Hollis left work to take him to get a state identification card as well as his Social Security card. Last night, she emailed a photo of his Social Security card to Rochelle, and she responded this morning that Sveyn’s paperwork was now complete and the ten thousand dollars would be transferred back to Hollis’s account today.
He was beginning to feel like he truly existed here now.
Once the announcement was made that the crew would begin to serve beverages and snacks, Hollis asked for white wine.
“It’s free in first class,” she told him. “Would you like some?”
Sveyn addressed the smiling woman in a red, white, and blue uniform. “Yes. Red wine please.”
The woman returned with their wine and a little plate of cheese and crackers.
“I could make flying up front like this a habit.” Hollis put a slice of cheese in her mouth.
All Sveyn knew about flying was that the seats in back looked very cramped. Though the space up here wasn’t overly large, at least there was enough room that his knees weren’t banging against the seat in front of him.
“It is very comfortable,” he agreed. “And I do like the service.”
Hollis smiled and sipped her wine. “I do have the money for some indulgences now. This will probably be one of them.”
“What do you think will happen with the painting?”
Hollis’s glance bounced up to the compartment over their seats where the painting of Rachel Meyer was carefully stowed. “I honestly don’t know. I wish you were still invisible and could be in the interview. Then you could give me your opinion about who is telling the truth.”
“Perhaps they both are,” Sveyn posited.
Hollis looked at him like he just named her worst fear. “And then what? Cut it in half?”
“When Solomon suggested that very thing, the real mother said no. Her son’s life was more important to her than which woman raised him.”
Hollis rubbed her forehead. “I hope you’re right and someone gives it up.”
Sveyn finished his wine before he asked, “When will you talk to your parents about what you discovered about your birth?”
Judging by her expression, this fear weighed on her far more heavily than the first one. “Tonight.”
Though Sveyn agreed that was the wise thing to do, he still asked, “Are you certain?”
“Yes.” Hollis sighed. “I know that the minute I see them it’ll be the main thing on my mind.”
Sveyn kept his tone gentle. “What do you believe they will say?”
“That they love me. That I am their true daughter, in spite of not giving birth to me.” Hollis gave a little shrug. “Stuff like that.”
“Will you tell them that we are engaged?”
She winced as she looked at him. “I haven’t decided.”
Sveyn understood her hesitancy. To everyone around her, he entered her world only one month ago.
“It is one month today since you brought me back.”
“Is it?” Hollis looked surprised. “You’re right. We went to the Renaissance Faire on January ninth.”
He leaned across the wide armrests between them and kissed her. “I will be eternally grateful that you saved me from my fate,” he whispered.
Her eyes sparkled prettily. “As will I.”
*****
Hollis spied her mom and dad immediately, waiting just outside the baggage claim. And though their eyes were on her initially, they quickly shifted to the tall, long-haired blond walking beside her.
“Hi, Mom. Dad.” Hollis hugged her mom first. “This is Sveyn.”
Her dad stuck out his hand. “Good to meet you, Sveyn. Call me Ian.”
Sveyn clasped Ian’s hand and shook it. “It is good to meet you, Ian.”
“And I’m Brianne.” Hollis’s mom held out her hand but instead of shaking it, Sveyn kissed it.
“I am honored to meet the woman who raised such an amazing daughter.” Brianne blushed.
Hollis felt a stab of trepidation over the coming conversation and wondered if Sveyn chose those particular words intentionally.
Sveyn straightened. “Ian and Brianne?”
Ian laughed. “Yeah, I know. We had one of those celebrity mash-up names long before it was fashionable.”
Sveyn shot Hollis a look which she labeled as his tell me later directive.
“Ready to go?” Brianne asked.
Hollis’s mom and dad each grabbed the handle of a rolling suitcase while Hollis and Sveyn put on the warm coats they brought with them—hers from her previous life here, and his from Goodwill. February in Wisconsin was nothing to joke about.
Then Sveyn tucked the package holding the painting under the protection of his arm, while Hollis lifted her briefcase and purse.
Brianne’s expression dimmed when she saw the briefcase. “I thought this was your vacation.”
“I carry my laptop in it for one thing,” Hollis defended. “But I do have a very interesting task to perform while I’m here. I’ll tell you about it in the car.”
*****
Sveyn found Hollis’s parents’ home very spacious for the three people who lived in it. They lived in a town on the north side of Milwaukee called Whitefish Bay, and Hollis said the cozy home was built in the late nineteen-fifties.
“It’s called mid-century modern now and it’s all the rage,” Brianne told Sveyn as she showed him to a bedroom “Of course, we’ve updated the kitchen and bathrooms over the thirty years that we’ve lived here.”
“Almost thirty-one.” Hollis shot Sveyn a
significant glance. “They moved in right after I was born.”
“When is your birthday?” Sveyn asked.
Hollis looked embarrassed. “Um… Friday.”
“Friday the twelfth?”
Hollis blushed. “Yep. The same day as yours. I’ll be thirty-one the same day that you turn thirty-five.”
Sveyn snorted. “Why did you not tell me?”
“I don’t want people to make a big deal about it.”
“So I should cancel the party?” Brianne asked.
Hollis stared at her mother. “You didn’t!”
Brianne’s mouth curled at the corners. “No. Your father wouldn’t let me.”
Sveyn noticed Hollis’s eyes dim at the mention of Ian.
“That’s good,” she said. “I’d hate to disappoint by not showing up to my own party.”
“Come to the kitchen and help me with dinner,” Brianne said. “Let Sveyn get settled in.”
Sveyn didn’t know what settled in meant, but he knew enough about women to recognize that Brianne wanted some time alone with her daughter—the daughter she raised, that was.
He opened the suitcase and hung his shirts in the closet, then decided everything else could stay where it was. He stretched out diagonally on the full-sized bed and closed his eyes.
*****
Half-an-hour had passed since dinner was finished and Hollis’s belly threatened to expel every bite if she didn’t get to the point soon.
Okay. Here goes.
“I have something I want to talk to you guys about.”
Her father’s eyes immediately cut to Sveyn. “You want to get married.”
Hollis’s jaw dropped. “Why would you say that?”
“Holli-hon, we see the way you look at each other,” her mom said. “The attraction between you two is obvious.”
“We just think you’re rushing into things.” Her father leaned forward. “You only met a month ago.”
Hollis looked at Sveyn. He sat across the coffee table from her with an odd look on his face.
“We met before that,” he said, throwing the ball into her lap.
Oh crap.
“Really?” her mother looked relieved. “How long ago?”
Hollis glared at the Viking.
Yes—how long ago, exactly?
“I am a guard at the museum where Hollis works.”
Sveyn’s brilliant plan became immediately clear to Hollis. She wanted to kiss him it was so good. “Right! He is. He started there in September.”
“I was working at the museum the night it was broken into.” His gaze slid to hers. “The night of the security video.”
Hollis smiled at Sveyn, challenged by his careful choice of words. “That was the night that our relationship began to change.”
The Viking looked impressed. “Yes. And that change continued in part because Matt came to visit her a few weeks later.”
Ooh, good one.
“Matt Wallace?” Her father’s mood soured immediately. “What did he want?”
“He filed for divorce and wanted to begin our relationship again.” It was an easier story to tell if she flipped the timeline; the outcome was the same either way. “But the day I was injured I’d already told him to get lost.”
Her gaze shifted to Sveyn. “I told him that I chose Sveyn over him.”
Sveyn did something startling, then: he slid off the chair and onto his knees in front of her father.
“Ian McKenna, I am asking for your blessing. I wish to marry your daughter.”
“I don’t need his permission,” Hollis objected.
The stern look Sveyn threw at her stopped her from saying anything else.
“Blessing is not permission,” he said to her before returning his attention to her father. “And you should wait to know me better before you give it.”
“Then why ask now?” Hollis demanded.
She noticed that both her father and mother were watching the exchange in stunned silence.
“Because Ian and Brianne have correctly discerned our hearts, Hollis,” he answered tenderly. “Making my intentions clear is the respectful thing to do.”
Hollis moved her attention to her father. “Dad?”
He looked like he might laugh. “I will wait, Sveyn, because your counsel is wise. But I’ll tell you now, that I’ve never seen a man handle our fiery girl so gently.”
“Thank you.” Sveyn shook Ian’s hand and reclaimed his chair. He turned his intense gaze on Hollis. “And now I believe you have something to tell them as well, do you not?”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Sveyn was surprised by the sudden shift in this conversation to marriage with Hollis, but he took the opportunity to ask for a blessing when Ian brought the subject up. Now it was time for Hollis to say what she intended to say when the four adults sat down together.
She looked like a wild animal caught by a hunter; wanting desperately to escape but finding no way out.
“What is it, Holli-hon?” Brianne asked.
“Please don’t call me that,” she managed. “I’m not three anymore.”
Brianne shot an embarrassed glance at Sveyn. “Sorry. Old habits.”
Hollis looked at the carpet and drew a deep breath. “Remember that day I called you about the hospital wanting me to donate blood?”
“Yes. We were at the movies and I said your dad has O-positive blood as well.”
“It’s the most common blood type, so I’m always being asked to donate.” Ian frowned a little. “Are you afraid to donate, sweetie? You don’t have to do it, you know.”
“It’s not about being afraid.” Hollis’s voice was so soft it was hard for Sveyn to hear.
“What is it then?” Brianne asked.
Hollis lifted her head. Tears streamed down her cheeks. Sveyn fought the nearly irrepressible urge to leap over the low table and gather her in his arms.
“Are you sick?” Ian asked. “Do you need a blood marrow donor?”
“No, no.” Hollis wiped her cheeks. “It’s nothing like that. I’m physically fine.”
“Then what is it?” The fear in Brianne’s voice and the concern on her face tore at Sveyn. If Hollis didn’t say it, he would.
Hollis met his gaze with terrified eyes. She gave a little nod of her head.
Message received.
Sveyn took a deep breath to draw Ian and Brianne’s attention to him. “Hollis has O-negative blood.”
No one moved. No one breathed.
Ian and Brianne stared at each other. Ian’s face reddened violently while Brianne’s went white. Obviously they both understood the ramifications of the revelation.
Hollis’s voice sounded like a rusty spring. “Why didn’t you tell me I was adopted?”
Brianne began to cry. “We couldn’t.”
“Couldn’t?” Hollis cried. “The adoption laws were changed decades ago!”
“We didn’t become your parents through public adoption.” Ian’s voice was strained. “It was a private agreement between friends, and we only got you because we promised to keep their secret.”
“We couldn’t have children, Hollis, and we wanted you so desperately that we would’ve agreed to anything.”
“We even had to move away from Sparta, our hometown,” Brianne squeaked between sobs. “That’s why we moved to Milwaukee. It was part of the agreement.”
“Left family and friends behind… I had to transfer jobs.” Ian heaved a shaky breath that seemed to reach his toes.
“What about Grandma?” Hollis growled.
“She was my mother,” Brianne answered quickly. “And Grandma and Grandpa McKenna were your dad’s parents.”
Hollis jerked a thumb toward Ian. “This dad?”
“Hollis,” Sveyn interrupted, his voice low. “Remember what you told me at dinner in the turning restaurant.”
Hollis fell back in her seat and glared at him across the expanse of the little coffee table.
“This has been a long day,” Sve
yn offered. “Perhaps we should discuss this more fully tomorrow.”
Hollis drew a steadying breath and laid her hand over her chest, a sign that her injury still ached. “This discussion is not finished. Not by a long shot.”
“No, it is not.” Sveyn waved a hand toward the softly sobbing Brianne. “But you have had some time to think about this and your parents have not.”
Hollis looked at Brianne then and the hard edges of her expression eased. “You’re right.” Hollis moved to her mother’s side and hugged her. “I love you. Mom.”
Sveyn caught the hesitation and wondered if Brianne did. Hollis went to her father and hugged him as well.
“I love you, too, Dad.”
Good. No hesitation.
“See you in the morning, sweetie.”
Sveyn said his goodnights and followed a very subdued Hollis down the hall to their separate bedrooms.
*****
Hollis opened Sveyn’s door, slipped into the bedroom, and eased it closed again. She heard him roll over and saw the shape of him in the dim light as he sat up.
She crossed the room and climbed into the bed, forcing him to move over and make room for her. He didn’t ask why she was there, he just curved his body along hers.
“You were brilliant tonight,” she whispered.
“I was glad you understood what I was doing,” he replied in kind.
“We told the truth.”
“Only the truth,” Sveyn concurred.
Hollis tipped her head toward his. The streetlight’s glow edged around the curtains and she could see a faint reflection in his eyes. “You asked my father if you could marry me.”
Sveyn’s chest bounced with his soft chuckle. “He mentioned the idea. I only took the opportunity that was handed to me.”
“Everything you said tonight was perfect.”
“I cannot claim perfection,” Sveyn demurred. “But remember that I have spent nearly a thousand years watching countless men make repeated fools of themselves.”