CHAPTER 66
The tears followed once again, of course, but this time they weren’t entirely driven by grief. I switched sides on the bench seat so that I could hug her, and she could use my shirt to soak up her tears.

“Ey, you all right, love?”

It was one of those women Maz had described, who came down to walk laps of the park for their daily exercise, so many thousand steps app-based thing. Maz waved a hand at her.

“Fine, Miss. Better than that: just got engaged. Being a bit soppy as a result”

The office worker’s frown changed to a grin, and she looked straight at me.

“Good on yer, mate! Doing the King’s Park bit?”

I started to laugh, but could feel the moisture in my own eyes.

“Haven’t got a clue! Got to do the dissemination thing first. Loads of people to tell”

The woman grinned.

“Bit unplanned, then?”

I just nodded, and she laughed back.

“Best kind, I say. Need anything to clean your face, love?”

That was how things went in Perth, and one of the reasons I now couldn’t envisage living anywhere else. As she handed Maz some wipes, I quizzed her about ‘The King’s Park Bit’.

“Oh, sort of traditional here. Get some pics of the wedding party up by the war memorial. Big trees, views out over the Swan”

A memory surfaced with a snort.

“Overlooking the old brewery?”

“That’s it! What’s the joke?”

“Oh, a friend of ours. When he first moved out here he sent some pics back, and one of them was of the brewery. Given me some ideas about how we can give him the news”

“Great! I’m Leanne, by the way”

“Mike and Maryam. Maz”

“Then me and my fella will lift a glass to you both tonight. Magic way to lift an arvo! Don’t start the snogging till I’m well away, okay? See yez”

She was off, with a wink and a grin, and Maz was looking pensive again.

“What’s up, love?”

Once more, her gaze turned towards a flock of corellas as they cawed past the little island.

“Telling friends and family, love. You outweigh me a little in numbers”

“Your family?”

“Nope. Not a chance”

She straightened in her seat, starting to pack up her binoculars and bird book.

“When did we last do an online meeting with the Welsh lot, Mike?”

“Oh, right: ages ago”

“Well, Penny and Keith are the ones who knew Carolyn, am I right? I think they should be the first”

“Not the Butts?”

Suddenly, the laughter was back in her eyes.

“We invite them over for a barbie, set up the online stuff—no! We cadge a barbie at theirs. Dal’s better at setting up a big screen”

“And what excuse do we make?”

An eyebrow rose.

“Nobody ever needs an excuse for a barbie in this country”

Then that grin again.

“But this woman wants a ring. And that’s my plan in a nutshell. No need for bended knees, love. And we are going halves on the jewellery”

She told me the plan in bed that night, and I loved it, after I had stopped laughing.

Two weeks later, on a Saturday evening, and the barbie was heating at Chez Butt, Ronnie and Rufe there along with Chad and Vern, and Kul was wrapping up the little parcels of spiced feta I loved as sausages spat and lamb steaks fizzed. Dal had done his job with the big screen, and we settled down in a mixed collection of chairs, plates and glasses to hand, as the lad got us all connected and six people came into view. As I surreptitiously passed the little box to Maz, I waved with my other hand.

“Hiya Alys, Enfys”

They all waved back, and Penny lifted the collar of her fleece jacket.

“Fess up, Rhodes. It’s two degrees here, and it is hammering down. Go on and gloat”

Geeta laughed out that it was thirty degrees and had been sunny all day, and Vic muttered something in Welsh that sounded pithy, both little girls looking up at him open-mouthed. He chuckled, and we started the usual catching-up, which lasted right up until Maz raised her left hand to push her hair back. Penny, as always, was the sharp one.

“When did that happen, you two?”

All three of the Butts looked confused, but Ronnie was already laughing.

“You rotten, sneaky bastards! Sorry, girls. When did that happen, indeed?”

Maz held out her left hand, the ring shining, and looked puzzled.

“What, this?”

Everything got confused just then, as everyone, even Dal, rushed us both for hugs and handshakes. Kul found his voice first.

“This was a set-up, Rhodes. Am I right?”

“Yup. Blame Maz; it was her idea”

Maz was nodding, a grin splitting her face.

“Yeah! I didn’t want to flash my ring until we had everyone---what? Oh! I told you, I don’t mean to say those things!”

I did my best to hug her blushes away as I looked back at the screen, where Nansi Edwards was clearly explaining things to the children and Penny simply smiled in quiet satisfaction until the tumult died down.

“Mike?”

“Yes, Pen?”

“I’m, we’re, really sorry, but there’s no way we can afford to come out there. We’ll be with you on the day, though, in spirit. I am so proud of you. All of us are. So let us know if there is anything you need, anything we might get you as a wedding gift. Internet is great for that, so if it’s from a local shop, local to you, we can sort. Do you want us to pass the word back to our friends in That Place?”

Maz took the lead, after a quick look at me for confirmation.

“That would be great, Pen. We both understand how far it is and how expensive, but the invitation is still there for anyone who might want to make it part of a holiday”

She looked towards Geeta, who understood her so well, and that woman just nodded, as did Chad, before turning back to the screen.

“We have three houses with space, Pen”

Ronnie shouted “Four!” before settling back against her man, and Maz gave her a thumbs-up.

“Four houses, then, so let us know. Oh, and your other friends, the Woodruffs?”

Pen grinned.

“I was right about you, love, wasn’t I? Where are you doing the deed?”

“I don’t know, but my fiancé here and me, we met a woman in the park who gave us some ideas for the photo session”

Dal had his hand up for attention, and I just called his name as permission.

“Yeah, well, that’ll be up in King’s Park, same place we went when we first came. If I can set up a link, then you can be online for that bit at least. Don’t know if it would be allowed during the thing, the wedding, but we can ask. And I could record it, do some other filming, and then use the suite at college and mix, edit, stuff”

Thank god he seemed to have slipped out of his crush. He had one more question, though.

“Dad?”

“Yes, son?”

“Does this mean I should go and get whatever Maz and Mike have in that electric eskie they lugged in?”

Rufe stood up waving his wallet.

“If it’s what’s traditional, I’m off to the bottle shop to add some to the supply. It’s fizz, isn’t it?”

I was waving a hand at him as he started towards the door..

“No need, mate. Put your money away”

“Bollocks to that, mate. Who paid for my spot down by Maggie River? How many bottles in that eskie?”

“Three”

“Then Me and Ronz here can add the same. Call it an early wedding present, engagement gift, whatever. And Dal, yes, as long as Kul and Geeta agree”

Dal looked hopeful.

“Yes to what?”

Rufe grinned again.

“Yes to getting a bit wobbled with the rest of us. None of us are at work tomorrow, and this party is just getting started!”

As he left, I looked back at the screen, and each of the little girls was now holding a hastily scribbled ‘happy wedding’ card, while Vic was laughing while shaking his head.

“We are just starting our Saturday, Mike, so there is no way we are drinking a toast to you with anything other than tea, but here it is”

All of them were holding mugs or beakers, and they raised them together, calling out “Wishing you the very best! Mike and Maz, Maz and Mike!”

Yes, we all got squiffy, but that remains a fully traditional process when celebrating such an event. The problems, such as they were, came in the following weeks, as Maz and I, whether separately or together, revisited our regular clients. Bobby Nguyen had hinted that everybody knew everyone else in Perth, and while that small town vibe was an aspect of the city I loved, it clearly came with a very efficient grapevine. Thank god we worked in the daytime, so had a good excuse for turning down any number of offers of celebratory drinks. Neither of us objected to getting a little tipsy, but we both agreed that it was something best done at home, or with friends, and without the need to drive anywhere.

Meanwhile, both of us were doing a lot of reading to find out what the rules were, and with that my eyes were opening further each day.

This was absolutely the right thing, with the right person. Like most people, I had unconsciously swallowed the concept that we each had one person in our life, one soul mate, one other human whose presence beside us competed that life. I was now discovering, along with Maz, that some of us were blessed with two bites at that particular cherry. I know that Maz felt that way, because we spoke about our inner voices so, so often: true sharing. The only slight difference of opinion was in the choice of venue, for the date was an obvious one in being ‘as soon as possible’. Our child would enter this world legitimate in all ways, if we could help it.

In Australia, I discovered, it is the wedding celebrant who legitimises the marriage, rather than it happening in a particular place. We just needed to find somewhere congenial and photogenic, and we each had ideas ranging from sneaking into King’s Park to commandeering a stretch of beach. The deadlock was broken in a surprising way.

The two of us were in Soapy Joe’s, sampling yet another type of pie ‘floater’, catching up with Bobby and Colleen when there was a cough from a young man who’d entered the café and walked straight to our table.

“Excuse me, but are you Mister Rhodes and Miss Rahman?”

I nodded.

“Very formal, lad. What do you need?”

“Boss sent me with a letter for you”

Des shouted over.

“Asked me to let him know when you were next due in, mate!”

I started to reach for the letter, then thought again.

“Not a summons or something, is it?”

Both Des and the messenger burst out laughing, so I simply took the envelope and opened it. Maz was trying to read over my shoulder, which was difficult as she was sat beside me, and it was now my turn to tease.

“Hang on, and I will read it and summarise the important bits--- ah, it’s from Murdo. He’s congratulating us on our engagement, and he has an offer”

Maz snatched the letter from me, her eyes widening.

“Bloody hell!”

Bobby and Colleen exchanged puzzled looks, so Maz simply handed them a sheet of paper. Des called over from his counter.

“Yeah, I know what it’s about, mates. Bloody good kitchen in that hotel. Murdo’s asked me if I can help with some of the catering. Bring some proper Aussie tradition to eat”

Bobby laughed out loud.

“You don’t do tradition here, mate!”

“Hey, Aussies, we make our own bloody traditions. Anything you two don’t eat?”

Maz and I didn’t need to discuss the offer, so it seemed our wedding would take place on Rotto.