“Welcome back,” I called to Rory through a forced smile.
Rory walked over to me and planted a salty kiss on my lips.
Bobby and Rory hugged.
“What have you been doing, Rory? You're sopping with sweat,” I asked.
His smiled grew as wide as his face could hold. “I have a surprise for you.”
“Oh?” I looked over at Bobby who shrugged.
“Come on!” Rory ordered us both to come outside.
The driver’s side door was open with the seat tilted forward. A large cardboard box was resting on the backseat just behind it. I scanned the writing to figure out what this was until I found my answer:
AIR CONDITIONING UNIT
My eyes widened. “An air conditioner?” I asked in disbelief. It was like asking a Quaker to murder, a monk to break his vow of silence. Rory had stood hard on this issue, and yet here he was, breaking his vow for me.
“Wow, thank you! What changed your mind?”
He wrapped his hand around my waist—it felt unnatural. “I just wanted to get you something. Can a man get his wife a gift?”
It was bizarre though. It wasn't just a gift. It was something we had bickered over and drew hard lines on. Suddenly, he was pretending as though it was never an issue.
“Now, the electric use on this thing is insane. So we should keep it on only if it gets above 85 and only when we get to bed.”
“I'll finally get some sleep.” Another lie to protect Rory. I now had new reasons for sleepless nights.
I looked over at Bobby, who had remained quiet, standing behind us as a spectator. “Awww, but you still have to sleep in the heat,” I added sympathetically.
Rory's face dropped when he realized he had forgotten his brother.
Bobby waved off the concern. “I don't mind the heat. And you guys don't worry about me. Really.”
The boys carried the AC into the house. I laughed to myself when I heard Rory cursing as he tinkered with installation.
“Yoohoo!” Barbie's voice called as she tapped the glass on the back door before letting herself in.
“Hi Barb.” She had been a great help with getting the cookout set up, spreading the word and contributing however she could. I'd called her almost daily and she was eager to help.
“Hey Lilly.” She stopped in her tracks. “Wow, you look good. Like really good.”
I shrugged. “I guess it was the fresh air.”
“Well, listen. I have some of those fold-out tables you need. They don't fit in the car. I was seeing if I could recruit Bobby for some assistance to get them over here.”
“Uh sure. I don't know where he is.” Bobby had gone absent since Rory returned. “He might be back with Rory putting in the new AC.”
“New AC?” she shouted.
I bunched up my shoulders. “Yeah, can you believe it?”
“No. I was convinced I'd find you two melted to death before that happened.”
I went to the bedroom. Rory didn't even notice me as he told the appliance to go to hell. Bobby wasn't with him. He wasn't anywhere in the house. Had he already left in search of a motel?
I went to the front door to check on his truck, and there he was, tossing a ball with the Anderson's kid.
“Oh, there you are,” I said.
“Looking for me?” he asked with a boyish grin.
I made an apologetic frown. “Barbie is requesting your services. She would like you to help her bring over the fold-out tables.”
“Oh, I see,” he said. He tossed the ball at Petey. “I gotta run kid. Just keep snapping at the wrist like I showed ya.”
The little boy smiled and scurried away.
I held the door open as Bobby walked by. Having his smell so close to me whenever I wanted was something I already missed. “Now be good,” I whispered to him playfully.
He crossed his heart at me and winked before turning.
“Barbie!” he called out. “Putting me to work on a holiday!”
They left together and I was alone in the stillness of my living room. Barbie didn't concern me. She was a silly woman. Bobby knew that. But it didn't stop me from feeling a little resentful towards her constant need to compete and seek out the attention of men. Especially when the man was my Bobby.
But we all had our issues. And beneath her silliness, Barbie was good to me. Always willing to lend an ear, or help out when I needed it. And to me, that's what mattered most.
Rory finally emerged from the bedroom, slapping his hands together. “Was Barbie just here?” he asked.
“Yes, why?”
“Did she tell you?”
“Tell me what?”
“Oh maybe she doesn't know. I called Stan at the office, and I made some plans for us all to go out to dinner this evening.”
What happened to Rory while he was gone? The AC and now this? I almost for a moment feared he might know and was trying to win me back. But if that was the case, his reaction would not be so kind. Was Rory finally turning over a new leaf?
“Oh that's great!” I said.
“Put on something nice.” He slapped my behind before heading to the kitchen to help himself to the warm lemonade iced tea I left on the table.
Seven Years Earlier
“My little girl looks so beautiful,” my dad whispered into my ear as he embraced me. The violinist changed her tune, indicating it was our turn to proceed down the aisle. The lace cape sleeves of my dress itched in the heat. The neckline felt like it was tightening on its own, threatening to wrap around my neck. I hoped it would so I could have an excuse to cry out.
I looped my arm around my father's, resisting the urge to rip off the collar of my dress, just so I could be free. I prayed. I begged for help. And it wasn't that my pleas were ignored, or that they floated unheard into the universe.
No. My prayers had been answered, and the answer was: it's too late.
I tried not to look at Bobby, the best man, but my eyes betrayed me for a fraction of a second. In that fragment of time, I saw a hollowness in his eyes. Like he was there physically, but found a way to escape the moment so he could survive it. Bobby had resigned himself to our fates. I looked back at Rory, who was smiling like a flappy-eared dog, and burst into tears. People smiled around me thinking I was overwhelmed with love, and I was, but not for the groom.
I felt dirty as the vows were recited, like I was rubbing my happiness in Bobby's face. But I wasn't happy. I hoped he understood this was all an act. That I had to pretend for my sanity.
And then when Rory took my hands, my heart skipped. Not because he had that effect, but because I still had the ring on. The one Bobby gave me, on the finger where Rory would be putting on my wedding band.
Rory’s vows to me were a blur as I tried to figure out a way to remove the ring before he might notice. I got my chance when he turned to grab his ring from Bobby. I slid it off my ring finger and in an attempt to transfer it to the other hand, I dropped it. As if my heart needed any more pain, I watched it roll towards Bobby's foot and stop at his shoe.
He looked at me, and saw the look of horror in my eyes. In that moment, he comforted me with a nod as he picked it up and inconspicuously slid it into his pocket.
So, I did what I was there to do. Vowed to love and honor, through sickness and health, 'till death do us part, the brother of the man I truly loved.
As the sun set, I finally had a moment to sit and breathe. Family, friends, strangers, they were all here, congratulating me on my new life. They didn't know they were smiling in my face on one of the saddest days of my life.
I hadn't seen Bobby since the ceremony. And I hoped he understood that losing the ring was an accident, and I intended to follow his wishes and hold on to it.