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Back Walking on Sunshine Save as PDF
Chapters (46)
  1. Cover
  2. About the Author
  3. By the same author
  4. Dedication
  5. 1
  6. 2
  7. 3
  8. 4
  9. 5
  10. 6
  11. 7
  12. 8
  13. 9
  14. 10
  15. 11
  16. 12
  17. 13
  18. 14
  19. Three Months Later
  20. 15
  21. 16
  22. 17
  23. 18
  24. 19
  25. 20
  26. 21
  27. 22
  28. 23
  29. 24
  30. 25
  31. 26
  32. 27
  33. 28
  34. 29
  35. 30
  36. 31
  37. 32
  38. 33
  39. 34
  40. 35
  41. 36
  42. 37
  43. Epilogue – Five Years Later
  44. Acknowledgements
  45. An extra note from me …
  46. THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING

‘Jeez,’ says Liam into my ear, his arms wrapped around me as we take in the bright flashing lights in the sky above, the final flourish of wedding magic before we wave off the newlyweds for the night. ‘This must’ve cost a fortune!’

‘Did you expect anything less from your brother who has a different sports car every time he comes down to see us?’ I say, craning my neck to whisper in his ear.

‘Fair point,’ he nods. ‘Don’t get any ideas though. We might be able to stretch to a few bangers, but this is just –’

‘We don’t need them,’ I interrupt, turning to loop my arms around his neck.

‘No?’

‘Not even a sparkler,’ I smile, kissing his lips.

‘You might regret saying that,’ he manages, in between the kisses.

‘We don’t need any of it. Well, obviously I want a mind-blowing dress that’s going to show me to be the queen that I am, and the shoes are also very important but …’

‘But …’

‘The other stuff can be left at the door,’ I say, the crowd around us cheering as another explosion erupts. ‘It’s not about how loud your fireworks can bang or how many courses you can dish out at the reception.’

‘There were a lot of courses,’ agrees Liam, conspiratorially. ‘The caviar was a bit much.’

‘What makes the day special is watching the love between two people being declared.’

‘And the dress?’ he checks.

‘You’ve got it,’ I laugh, realizing that as much as my Peru trip has left me looking forward to stocking up on magazines and compiling a mood board for a dream wedding, the excesses are not really what I’m interested in now. I think back to the kids I met just before we set foot on the Lares Trek, and the delight they visibly felt over a chocolate eclair – a single sweet. The little things, the unexpected melt-in-your mouth moments, they are what make life memorable, enjoyable and worthwhile. I’ve bought into the man standing in front of me, who already loves me for better or worse, I just want to lose myself in the gooeyness of that.

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35

Vicky

‘Daaaaaddy! Daaaaaaaddy!’ comes a cry from the other side of the landing, making me jolt upright. ‘Daaaaaaaaaddy!’