Page 79 of Death

“Thank you.”

“Dina, you look amazing!” Tannis says.

“Oh, shut up,” Dina says, pulling back to glare at Tannis. “I look old. You, on the other hand…” She gives Riley a wicked side-eye. “See? I told you we should have moved to Greece with them. There’s magic in that water, I tell ya.”

Riley laughs. “Maybe we should have.”

Tannis clears her throat. “So, how’s she doing back there?” she asks, a quick change of subject. “Is she nervous?”

Dina nods. “Last I checked, she was at the blowing into a paper sack phase of her wedding day, so she should be screaming into a pillow as we speak.”

Tannis laughs. “Well, I’m happy for her.” She glances over Dina’s shoulder toward the altar and blinks twice at the groom standing by, waiting for his bride. “Very happy for her.”

“Right?” Dina squints. “Isn’t he handsome? My kid found a winner.”

“Yes, she did.”

Riley checks his watch. “I should get back there,” he says. “Almost showtime.”

Dina kisses his cheek. “Try not to cry too hysterically, honey,” she says with a wink.

He leaves and I offer a supportive pat on his back as he passes.

Dina sighs. “I was talking to myself, of course,” she says, her eyes starting to shimmer. “My baby is getting married. Tannis, hold me.”

She collapses into Tannis’ arms, nearly toppling them over. Tannis quickly adjusts and manages to hold them both upright as she gives her old friend words of encouragement.

I take my seat in the pew next to Owen and Moira while a ten-year-old girl asks me why she can’t go home again.

Tannis joins us shortly after. I retrieve a handkerchief from my pocket and hand it to her to blot the tears on her cheeks. By now, I’ve gotten to know Tannis’ various tears. From sadness to bliss, they’re never quite the same. Today, she’s happy for her old friends but bittersweet for herself over the lies she must tell.

She takes my hand again and smiles, content with the choice she made.

* * *

Asong echoes through the speakers of the reception hall. It’s a slow, calming melody meant to soothe after a long afternoon of speeches and booze. Soon, the music will pick up again and the party will go on into the night but until then, I wrap an arm around my queen’s waist and hold her against me beneath the deep blue lights.

I sway with her, admiring her bright eyes as she looks up at me. Occasionally, her gaze will drift around the room. She’ll smile at her parents. She’ll chuckle softly at her friends. She’ll twinge in ways that only I would recognize.

“What are you thinking about?” I ask her.

Tannis shakes her head once. “Just wondering what else will be different the next time we come here,” she answers. “Who else will be all grown up and getting married? Or who…” She shrugs. “Things like that.”

I nod, silently noticing the sadness building behind her lashes.

“Thirty years since you came for me,” she says, swallowing hard. “Another thirty and some of these people…” Her eyes linger on her parents again. “Might be gone.”

“Tannis,” I whisper.

“But I’ll still be here.”

I lightly pinch her chin to draw her eyes to mine. “And so will I,” I say. “I know what you’re feeling. There’s a loneliness that comes with this life but I will never leave you. You have my word.”

Tannis takes a deep breath and releases it slowly. She gives a light smile as she holds my hand a little tighter.

“Thank you,” she says.

I smirk. “In exchange, will you do me one thing?”