Saturday, 14th April
‘If any persons present know of just cause why they may not lawfully be married, speak now: or else for ever hold your peace.’
Esmé stared at the wooden crucifix as the vicar’s words rang about the church of St Paul’s on a clear and beautiful spring day.
She felt Andrew’s shoulders tense as the silence lengthened and the vicar looked intently around the wedding guests seated in wooden pews.
The vicar gave a little cough before he continued.
‘I require…’
Esmé sighed and Andrew relaxed.
‘Stop!’ a breathless voice rang out from the back of the church. ‘Esmé! Listen to me.’
Everyone turned in unison to stare at the interruption – a man who was bent double like a marathon runner was positioned in the middle of the aisle, panting and holding aloft a small piece of paper in his right hand. His face was tattooed along one side.
Esmé stared. Her hands fell to her tulle skirts and hastily fingered the delicate fabric.
This was real. This was actually happening to her, it wasn’t one of the nervous dreams she’d been having for the last two weeks. The nightmares that her mother had said were stress related. This wasn’t a Friday night chick flick. This was her wedding day… and she was standing at the altar, in her dream dress, about to make her vows and now, everyone was staring at a guy who’d called out her name at the most inappropriate moment of her life. Feck!
‘Carry on,’ said Andrew, turning back to the vicar on seeing who had interrupted.
The vicar raised his hand to dismiss the instruction.
‘I’m sorry, is there something you wish to say, young man?’
‘Yes, I need a minute… to speak to Esmé. Sorry, please… Esmé?’ said Asa, as he stumbled the length of the aisle. All eyes in the church watched his every move as he stood waving his piece of paper.
‘Esmé, ignore him, turn round,’ said Andrew, his brow furrowed in anger, as he reached for her shaking hand.
She snatched her hand away and turned to face Asa. This wedding was everything she’d ever wanted and yet… her breath snagged in her throat, eager to hear his reasons.
‘Young man, what is it you wish to say?’ asked the vicar, stepping forward between the couple to address the newcomer.
‘Esmé… I found this.’ Asa held aloft the paper which the guests could see had a small amount of writing on it. ‘You left in such a hurry, you didn’t say goodbye to any of us and I found this in your room… alongside the torn calendar… but it’s important Esmé, so please, hear me out and then… then if you still want to marry him… then go ahead and do it.’
Esmé was frozen to the spot, her painted eyes wide and staring at the emerald and navy ink swirled about the strong features of another man.
Asa began to read aloud.
‘One, to fall in love again. Two, to get married. Three, to plan a family. You wrote this, Esmé, and dated it March of this year. Esmé, you titled it “my dreams” and… I’ve figured out that these were written to complete a task from the calendar your friend bought for you. The Single Girl’s Calendar that was supposed to help you overcome a broken heart. The broken heart that he caused! Remember?’
Esmé nodded, her lips had gone dry and her fingers twitched uncontrollably upon her tulle skirt.
‘I found all your tasks lined up on your mantelpiece… the haircut, the make, bake or create, your donation, the clear your conscience task… it suddenly made sense to me, Esmé. Why you did all those random and erratic things… you were simply following the instructions in the calendar and trying to find the real you. And this piece of paper, Esmé, I truly believe is the real you!’
Esmé looked towards the front pew where both her parents stood in shock alongside Kane and his son Toby. Carys’s mouth was wide open, her eyes stared.
Asa continued. ‘Esmé… these dreams are what you truly want in life. But Andrew is never going to be able to deliver them to you, ever. He’ll say his vows, he’ll declare he loves you and yeah, in the future he might even father your children but Esmé, he ruined it. Ruined it before he even started by breaking the foundation on which your dreams are built. Will you be happy hearing his vows knowing that he can cheat behind your back? Can you place a ring on his finger knowing that he can take it off whenever he chooses for a night with another Sadie? And can you honestly say that he’ll never disrespect his children in the same deceitful way he disrespected you?’
The guests were on the edge of their pews now, silent and listening.
Esmé glanced at Andrew, who was shaking his head.
‘Esmé, listen to me when I tell you… you marry him and you’ll never know peace, there will always be a doubt in your heart, a deep-seated niggle in your mind because he’s done it once before. He hurt you, Esmé. He knew it would but he still did it.’
Esmé moved a step away from Andrew.
Asa stepped forward and offered her the piece of paper, her eyes glanced at her own handwriting and she gently took it from his grasp.
‘You didn’t write his name beside any of your dreams, Esmé. So, I’m begging you, please don’t do this… leave now, with me and I’ll make all three dreams come true! Me and you, Esmé… could live a little dream – together. So please, I’m begging you… let it be me.’
A hushed murmur ran through the church pews.
Esmé scanned Asa’s upturned face, his deep dark eyes and the surrounding ink of peacock feathers.
‘Esmé?’ said the vicar, ‘have you anything you’d like to say?’
‘I’m sorry,’ came her hushed voice.
*
Asa drove the one hundred and eighty-five miles on the A74 as fast as he could. One thought raced and repeated through his head for every moment of every mile.
She chose me!
Beside him, Esmé sat quietly watching the miles glide by. In the passenger seat, her tulle skirts billowed about her knees. She wasn’t quite sure how she’d left St Paul’s church without signing the register as Mrs Nixon, but she had. Was Carys still holding her fresh bouquet of orange blossom and lily of the valley? Had smelling salts brought her fainting mother round?
It took over three hours to drive from England to Gretna Green on that bright April day, but drive they did in order to book a wedding, a much smaller wedding but one where the marriage certificate would be successfully signed by both bride and groom.