Kristen Ashley: Three Wishes

“Laura,” Lily breathed and surged out of her chair. Laura rose as well and they found themselves in each other’s arms and both hugged tight.

“Mr. McAllister,” they heard in respectful voice coming from behind the closed door, “I can assure you…”

The door flew open and Nathaniel stood there, his tall body tense, his eyes sweeping the room then they stopped on Laura and Lily.

“That’ll do.” Nathaniel’s deep voice rang with authority, his gaze still on Lily and Laura but he was speaking to the police officer at his side.

“What I was saying is, I can assure –” the police officer began but stopped when Nate’s angry eyes cut to him. “Of course,” the officer went on, “I’ll, erm, leave you to it.” Then the officer backed out of the room.

Everyone stayed still and silent, the women staring at Nathaniel, Nathaniel staring at Lily.

Finally Lily broke free, ran to him and threw her arms around him. His arms closed around Lily and, as she pressed her cheek against his chest, he rested his on top of her head.

“It’s okay,” Lily whispered her assurance, “it’s okay, we’ll wait. We’ve waited this long. We’ll just go have a party and then we’ll have another one when we –”

Nathaniel lifted his head and looked down at his bride. “We’re getting married today,” he declared, his voice implacable.

“But I thought –” Lily started, her head tilted back to look at her fiancé.

“Victor’s dealing with it,” Nathaniel cut her off and his eyes moved to Laura. “Mother, the limousine is waiting to take you and Maxine to the Registry Office.”

The room stilled yet again and Laura felt a tightening around her heart and a tremble move through her body.

“Wha… what did you just say?” she whispered as she felt her heart travel to her throat.

Nate’s carefully controlled face grew soft as he looked at Laura. “Please take our friend to the Registry Office,” he said quietly, then finished, “Mother.”

Laura stood rock solid at hearing her son call her “mother” for the second time in his life.

Then, shakily, her heart finally righting itself and feeling strangely, beautifully, buoyant, she nodded.

“I’ll take Lily,” he went on.

“Of course,” Laura replied quietly.

Maxine was standing and watching, fanning her face with her hand and swallowing convulsively to stop the tears.

Lily didn’t even try. She pressed her cheek against Nathaniel’s chest and stared at Laura, tears sliding down her cheeks.

“Lily, careful,” Maxine said, “you’ll ruin your makeup.”

“I’ll fix it in the car,” Lily assured her then she smiled. “Go,” she ordered gently.

On trembling legs Laura walked towards the door but as she would pass her son and his fiancée, Nathaniel’s hand came out to stop her. She looked up to him and he bent to kiss her cheek. When he straightened, she bit her lip, nodding as she touched his shoulder. Then Maxine’s hand slid through her arm and Maxine guided her through the door.

Lily and Nathaniel followed.

Jeffrey and Danielle were still sitting in the hall, Alistair had disappeared. Laura was pleased to note (she was, still , a mother), Danielle’s arms were covered in plasters.

“Nate!” Danielle jumped up out of her chair and Jeffrey followed her, grabbing on to his sister to hold her back. “Listen to me, you must –”

First Laura and Maxine then Nathaniel and Lily walked right by the two without a word.

As usual, Nathaniel showed no reaction to seeing his ne’er-do-well siblings. It took a mammoth effort of will for Laura to glide by she hoped serenely. She was helped by Maxine squeezing her arm and moving closer to her body in a show of support.

Then they were out the door and Laura realised she was holding her breath. She let it go in a whoosh.

Nathaniel saw them both safely into the waiting limousine and closed the door firmly behind them.

As the limousine smoothly slid away, Laura and Maxine watched out the window as Nathaniel walked Lily to his Aston Martin.

“Can I just say,” Maxine started, still looking out the window, “he’s the bomb .”

For the first time in hours Laura felt mirth burble up inside her chest and then she burst out laughing.

Nate

Nate was trying very hard not to lose his temper while he drove fast, but not too fast, to what he hoped would still be his wedding. He didn’t want them to crash in a ball of fiery flame in one last trial and tribulation to test their love before Lily’s wish was finally, solidly, irreversibly granted.

Lily was sitting beside him in the Aston Martin leaning towards the opened mirror on the sun visor, calmly applying mascara and babbling.

“ Then , Mrs. Gunderson jumped in, hissing and very, very angry and –”

“Lily,” Nate cut into her rambling story, a story that for some reason Lily found hilarious but Nate most definitely did not.

“What?” Lily asked, screwing the top back on her mascara.

“I don’t find this amusing,” Nate told her.

“Well, of course not, you weren’t there. You had to see it to believe it,” she explained on a giggle, underlining her words with verve as she had been doing for the last half an hour. “I was wrestling on the floor in my wedding dress, ” she reiterated a snippet of her infuriating story that she’d already told him, one of the many snippets Nate found he detested most of all.

“Even if I’d seen it, I wouldn’t find it amusing,” Nate replied.

“Well, I do,” she stated firmly and then she went on, saying words that shocked Nate even though he couldn’t imagine ever feeling shock again, he felt it at her words, “Nate, I don’t care what it says about me and I hope you don’t think less of me but here it is, I’m glad . I would have paid for that opportunity. I told you what she said, what they said, her and Jeffrey, about you and also about Victor . And then she slapped Laura. I was itching to get at her, slapping her mother! I just could not believe. What a bitch! ”

That snippet of the story, Danielle slapping Laura, was the one he detested most of all. He was pleased he’d not known that part when he’d been at the police station or, he had little doubt, he’d be the one in jail likely locked in a cell after committing double homicide.

“Do you think less of me?” Lily asked quietly, interrupting his thoughts.

“No,” Nate answered honestly.

“You’re sure?” she pressed.

“Absolutely.”

Silence, then in a bare whisper, she said, “I think I may have torn out some of her hair and I have to admit, I kind of feel badly about that.”

Finally, Nate laughed and after a few seconds, Lily joined him.

It took a moment but it registered on Nate that this was the first time they’d shared laughter. They’d shared many moments of amusement, smiles, grins, he’d made her laugh, she’d (far more often) made him laugh but never had they shared a moment like this.

And now he had a life before him that would be filled with these moments.

His laughter naturally died and once it did, he found her hand and brought it to his lips. He brushed them against her knuckles and then dropped their joined hands to his thigh but he didn’t let hers go.

“Do you think Victor arranged for a new time?” Lily asked, Nate glanced her way and saw that surprisingly she was relaxed, happy and not at all affected by her tumultuous day.

“Yes,” he replied, returning his eyes to the road.

“Well, if he hasn’t, please don’t be disappointed. We’ll reschedule and –”