I thought I knew what I needed.
I was wrong.
Veronica struck a chord in me but Juliet was the one who promised a brighter future.
Veronica was young, on the brink of her career and life, the type to buck the trends and go against the status quo.
Juliet was the status quo.
Stable.
Safe.
Promising.
Everyone always said how easy it was to be dazzled by her, that I was so lucky to have her. She was stunning, there was no denying that. But I didn’t fall for Juliet because of her looks. I fell for the life she hinted at, the promises she never had to make.
I thought Juliet would make me a better man.
She only made me worse.
I made the wrong decision that day, and later, as our marriage began to fall apart, I would look back on that moment and wonder what the hell was wrong with me. Why did I pick what was safe when I should have chosen what was real?
It was something I lived with and was prepared to live with. I viewed Veronica through a distorted lens as her brother-in-law, keeping my distance and any thoughts at bay. I admired her from afar and did my best to never think of her in any way but innocent.
And it worked for the most part. I didn’t want to live out my marriage being attracted to someone else, let alone be in love with them. I didn’t want to give up on Juliet.
She gave up on me.
And then she died.
And I was broken. Yes, there was grief. Pure grief and loss. And there was regret, that things went this way, that she died with our marriage upside down, that we never addressed the elephant in the room, that things were left unsaid.
But more than any of that, I was drowning in hatred in the years after. Because of guilt. Because of thoughts of being free, thoughts that shamed me. I hated myself for it and I became a bitter, bitter man.
Then Veronica showed up at my door, at the place Juliet and I created, and I knew that everything was going to change. I can’t say I wanted it to—I was comfortable in my rage and bitterness. It fit me like a worn glove. I thought I was going to die with a thorn in my side.
But Veronica removed that thorn. Slowly at first. She jabbed me with the bloody thing a few times, kept me on my toes. She still does. But it was only through her that the light got in. She became more than I ever thought she would.
Today, I’m going to marry her.
With that thought in mind, I get up on the wave. I surf it into shore, feeling unstoppable. The sun rises above the palms, the rays hitting me on the back, and this is the start of the rest of my life.
I spend the next hour catching a few more waves, then it’s time to head back in. I’ve got a lot to do and I still haven’t prepared my speech. I’m going to wing it, which is probably a terrible idea, but I feel like I don’t have to worry about what I’ll say. Staring at Veronica will make the words flow straight from the heart.
She stayed the night at the St. Regis hotel in Princeville with her maid-of-honor Claire, as well as Kate and Nikki, her bridesmaids. I have no idea what they got up to, though Ron texted me late last night telling me she loved me and hated tequila and that we should get a chicken called HeiHei and let it be the ringbearer.
My best man is my brother Kit, who I flew out here from Darwin for the ceremony. I hadn’t seen him in seven years, so it was long overdue. My groomsmen are Warren, who was one of the hotel’s original investors, Johnny, Daniel, Jin, and yes, Charlie. It took a long time to come to terms with Charlie being a snitch of sorts, but in the end it was clear that he really didn’t know what he was doing.
It doesn’t matter now. What’s past is past and Veronica did get to punch him in the face anyway, saving me from obliterating him. We’re all a united front with the hotel, and the Lockes are no longer in the picture.
Which I know bothers Ron. She’s got a soft heart even when she tries to hide it. The moment we told them that we were getting married and that there was nothing they could say or do, was the moment they cut us out of their lives. I said that life is made of moments, and that was one in which Ron knew who her family was. It was me. It was everyone at Moonwater. Her real ohana.
Her father does reach out to her every now and then, trying to keep the peace. He’s not a bad man, he’s just a weak man, and as long as his wife has complete control, he’ll never be fully on Veronica’s side. But at least he tries.
Naturally, he’s not here. None of her family came. Not uncles or aunts or cousins. No one approves. The fact that I’m marrying Juliet’s sister is too much for them to take. Some families are built on appearances and politics, and we’re better off without that in our lives.
It sounds tired and cliché to say but honestly all we need is each other.
The wedding is held at Moonwater, in the same spot where we have the luau, so when I get out of the surf and cut through the hotel grounds, it’s already alive with people bustling about and getting things ready.