A Kiss Across Borders ✔

Twelve: And I Swear

After taking a few pictures in front of the cathedral, Fabio asked his cousin Davide to drive us to the gardens. We followed Davide to where his sweet, silver BMW X6 was parked.

I was about to get into the back seat when Liam bolted past me.

"You can sit in front, bro," he said before quickly sliding into the back seat.

No surprise there. He can't sit next to Sofia if he's riding shotgun.

"Are you sure you don't want to sit by the window?" Sofia stood by the open door.

"Thanks, Babe," Liam grinned. "But I have more legroom in the middle."

Smiling, Sofia shook her head and got in; Liam inched closer to her side of the SUV. I held Caroline's hand as she took her seat.

She smiled. "Thank you."

"No problem." I smiled back.

Shortly after I put my seatbelt on, Davide followed the procession of cars led by the bride and groom's white, antique limousine. The drive to the gardens was short but stunning. On my right, the road was lined with stone walls that had bright pink and purple flowers spilling over them. On my left, the rocky coast was dotted with beautiful clay-roofed villas. And in the distance, green hills rolled on for miles. 

When we arrived at the gardens, Davide dropped us off at the entrance.

"He says he'll meet us up at the villa," Caroline said, translating Davide's response. We thanked him and followed the crowd through the gate.

We walked along winding gravel paths shaded by tall trees and pergolas with flowers crawling all over them. The air smelled like a forest kissed by the sea. The paths eventually led to the top of a hill where a handsome orange villa with green shutters watched over the gardens. Tables were stacked with all kinds of food along a wall in front of the house. My rumbling stomach reminded me that the last time I had food was back at the market.

I hope Caroline didn't hear that.

She turned around, and I thought for sure she was about to mention the growling. But thankfully, she didn't.

"We should probably tell Lisa that we can't stay too long," she said.

"Right." I almost forgot about the time. "I guess we should let her know sooner rather than later."

Caroline nodded, and I followed her around the villa towards the back. Behind the house, there were tables and chairs with purple bows surrounding the charming fountain that sat in the middle of the courtyard.

We found Lisa and Fabio by the raised table near the back wall. Caroline explained the high points of our trip and said that we needed to have lunch in Italy and then catch a train to France.

"That actually sounds like a lot of fun," Lisa smiled. "Okay, here's what we'll do, hun..."

Lisa changed up the order of the reception to accommodate our short timeline. She had us sit close to the head table so that we could begin with the toast to the bride and groom. The servers quickly came around and filled everyone's glasses with champagne.

"You're all eighteen, right?" Lisa whispered-shouted.

We nodded, and she gave us a thumbs up before the toast was given.

Then the bride and groom led the wedding party plus Liam and me up to the large balcony on the left side of the villa.

"You boys can dance with your girlfriends," Lisa said. "Fabio's brothers brought their girls so everything's all worked out. The DJ will let you guys know when to come join us-at the start of the second verse-that should be enough time for pictures."

And before any of us could say anything, Lisa walked back over to Fabio. When I turned to Caroline, my palms were already getting damp.

Why am I like this?

Liam offered his hand to Sofia, she took it, and they went off to the far end of the balcony. Sofia gestured for us to follow them. My feet felt like two giant boulders as I trailed behind Caroline. About a minute later, the opening bars of I Swear by All-4-One started playing.

Lisa and Fabio moved to the middle of the balcony and started dancing. In between their smiles, I could see their mouths moving; they were singing to each other. It was a wonderful sight.

Behind them was a breathtaking backdrop of column-like trees and a blue sea that could have been glass. Before I realised what was happening, Liam started leading Sofia to go dance as the other couples also joined the bride and groom. 

How'd I miss the DJ's announcement?

Caroline was looking at me expectantly, so I rushed over and offered her a shaky hand.

"Ready?" I blurted out. Ready? Really Javier?

"Yes," she smiled, melting my heart.

Caroline guided my left hand to her waist while her right hand rested on my shoulder, very close to my neck; it suddenly got hard to breathe. She seems happy. But how much of that is just her ability to always look calm and friendly? I doubt she'd let her face show it, even if she hated the idea of dancing with me.

My knees felt like Jell-O when Caroline looked up at me with those blue eyes I love. Can she tell I'm shaking? I needed to take my mind off the fact that there was almost no space between us. So I started singing the song in my head as we danced.

...I'll love you with every beat of my heart.

"And I swear."

"What?" Caroline asked, looking into my eyes.

Crap! Did I just say that out loud? "Uh, sorry," I said, "I just really like this song."

Her face lit up. "I do too."

"Really?"

"Of course," she beamed. "What's not to love?"

"It is a great song."

She nodded and kept staring up at me.

I got lost in those eyes, and everything else around us melted away. Day changed into night, and a full moon shone over a black sea. We danced by ourselves on the balcony as a millions stars looked down on us from above.

I don't know what's happening right now, but I hope it never ends.