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“
I’ve looked on
Cora as my daughter for many years, and she has never failed to
surprise me. She is the strongest person I know, the kindest, the
most sarcastic... her tongue just fires away with all sorts of
stuff, she never knows when to shut up....sorry, where was
I?”

Cora giggled,
the tears already threatening to fall.

Tabitha
continued, “She is the most loyal, the most dedicated person I
know, and she sometimes works hard too. She is a lot like her
mother, both of them in fact.

“
When you see
Jack and Cora together, it just fits. They bring the best qualities
out in each other which just helps the entire family to stay closer
together. You will all experience this now that she is the
leader...They were made for each other. She has made me so proud; I
think Ayden is a proud father too.”

Ayden nodded,
holding it together. Cora felt the tears trickle over her cheeks.
She remembered everything Ayden had told her yesterday. She looked
down at her bracelet. Jack’s fingers brushed up against the
hearts.

“
Today, we
officially welcome Jack into the family, although it has been a
long time coming, and we have wanted to get rid of him on many
occasions!”

“
Hey,” Jack
called, placing his hand on his chest in mock horror.

Eli and Clay
laughed, making others around them giggle.

“
Jack, I’m
joking.”

“
I didn’t think
you ever joked, Tab!” Clay hollered.

“
That is true,
I do not ever joke. But Jack, I know Eli wanted to say a few
words.”

Eli stepped
onto the platform and he already looked close to tears. Cora
glanced at Jack and saw the emotion run across his face. She
squeezed his hand tighter and cuddled into him.

“
Jack is like a
brother to me. He is annoying, quick witted, sarcastic...I see now
that sarcasm will keep you both happy. You two are a good pair. But
what some don’t see in Jack, and you really have to delve in there,
is his compassion, his loyalty, his love. Once he loves a person,
there is no getting away from him. He will protect and he will look
after you, or he will die trying. He loves fiercely does that one,
and Cora is so lucky to have him. We all are. They are lucky to
have each other after everything they have been through.

“
Not only have
I gained a sister today but I’ve also gained a whole family. One I
love with all my heart. I know we have lost loved ones, but they
are here today. They celebrate with us...This is our new beginning.
Today we all step forward as a family...so Jack, I just wanted to
say I love you, brother.”

Jack nodded,
letting his tears fall. “Love you too.”

“
And Cora, I
love you too, sister.”

Cora smiled
and then laughed when Ember handed her a tissue.

Eli walked to
him and enveloped him in a big bear hug with lots of back slapping.
Ember squeezed her hand as they looked on. Eli turned to her and
hugged her.

“
That leaves me
to say only two words to the both of you,” Tabitha whispered.
“Welcome home.”

Everyone
raised their glasses as Jack’s lips brushed hers. Their family and
friends, past and present, looked on and cheered.

51

Honeymoon

“
Okay, wife of
mine, are we ready?”

She looked at
him. The wicked grin on his face made her giggle, despite the
pressing urge to vomit. The sound of the engine drowned out the
blood that pounded in her head. She’d faced worse than this. She
could do it. Chanting that over and over in her head didn’t stop
her body from shaking at the thought of what they were about to
do.

“
Yeah, I’m
ready!” she shouted above the roar of the wind.

The instructor
shuffled, pushing her closer to the opening. Jack laughed as he
teetered on the edge, waiting for the green light. Her heart
pounded hard, watching. Waiting. The light changed and Jack was
out.

Flying through
the air.

The instructor
she was strapped to, moved into the opening and now Cora was
greeted by the drop. The blanket of green. The height. Jesus. She
panted, trying to breathe as her teeth chattered from the fear. The
light turned green and the weightless feeling as they fell made her
stomach bounce into her chest. She closed her eyes; she wasn’t
ashamed to admit it and screamed. That was until she felt the tug
of the parachute steady the fall, and then she heard Jack’s laugh.
She smiled and opened her eyes. He was drifting below her, mobile
phone out as he took pictures of the harbour around
them.

They’d come
back to Australia, the first leg of their honeymoon. Jack had
decided this would be a good idea.

She tried to
appreciate the calm around her. The sound of the wind that soothed
her soul and danced with her own element, guiding them back to the
ground safely.

As her feet
touched the ground, Jack came bounding up to her, his lips crushing
hers in all his excitement before he thrust the camera in her face.
“Tell the boys how much you loved that!” he exclaimed.

Cora smirked
at the camera. “I was petrified...I didn’t love it! But once you
are out, it was fun.”

Jack turned
the camera towards himself, grinning like a fool as the adrenaline
rush flushed his cheeks. “It was bloody amazing! She is
understating it. Anyways, we are going out for a bite to eat, more
videos to come later.”

Jack placed
his phone back in his pocket as he slung his arm around her
shoulders. “You loved it, I know you did! There is more to come,
beautiful!”

Cora sighed,
exaggerating it a little. “We’ve been here weeks and already you’ve
made me jet-ski, bungee jump and now jump out of a plane. Do you
miss danger that much?”

Jack laughed.
“I just want to live, and what better to appreciate living than to
do something you fear, and our honeymoon is the start of just
that.”

“
Our honeymoon
is something to fear?” Cora teased.

“
Hmmm....” He
kissed her noisily on the side of her head. “You need to pack, we
are going tomorrow.”

“
Where?”

He shook his
head. “You will have to wait and see.”

“
I will just
ask Ember when she comes to collect us.”

Jack laughed
harder. “You know she won’t tell you anything!”

Damn it. He
had a point.

“
Live a little,
we have our whole lives to explore amazing things!”

Dear
diary,

Tabitha
thought it would be a good idea to write a diary about my
experiences. It doesn’t matter that the family book will also
document things, she says that I will document it in better detail.
She also argued that I’ve been to these places before and I’ve
forgotten about them. I then argued my memory loss was her fault...
Tabitha shrugged. This signalled the end of the
argument...

So, here
goes. I have the pictures from the album that Ayden gave me, one my
mother kept, but it is nice to take my own pictures, to remember
the moment. Not the ones where Jack keeps throwing me in
ridiculously scary situations!

The few weeks
spent in Australia were lovely. The extreme sports were not! Why
did I marry an adrenaline junkie? He was never this enthusiastic
about danger before. I blame Dillon and their coven entrance. One I
have experienced myself, and it was terrifying!

I smile now
as I look at the word marry, I can’t believe Jack is my husband.
Finally!

We hit all
the tourist hot spots in Sydney via the cruise. The Opera House was
visited, it looked amazing. We also visited Fort Dension which was
a beautiful place where they served the best meal ever! You ate,
looking out onto the water. We also hit Darling Harbour because I
love wildlife, and Jack has to do some of the things I
like.

We’ve just
had Ember teleport us to beautiful Italy. (And then she left us
very quickly!) We have somehow acquired our own villa and our own
butler! The view from the veranda is stunning, the bay of Naples
glistens under the intense glare of the sun as I write. If, by some
chance I’ve been here before, I’m so glad I’ve come again. To
forget about this beauty is a travesty.

I’m currently
laid on a sun bed, wearing a bikini which Jack has been staring at.
I blame Ember. She packed most of my clothes. He needs to keep his
hands to himself for five minutes!

Tonight we
shall dine on pizza, Italian ice-cream and their finest wine. I’m
eager to taste the pizza. I want to know if they taste different if
you eat them in Italy, rather than doing what Ember has done by
bringing them home.

This is how
to live my life. The glorious, warm sun, my gorgeous husband and
lovely food.

I’ve never
felt more relaxed.

As I write
this, Jack has just looked over my shoulder.... he is laughing at
my entries... well... it is time to go.

Dear
Diary,

The three
weeks in Italy flew by, and we need to revisit the beautiful
country soon! We visited so many wonderful, old places. Pompeii was
lovely, Rome, Venice, I loved the gondola ride. We did the whole
Romeo and Juliet thing, even posting a message in the courtyard.
Hopefully we can come back... Jack stood in a square and allowed
pigeons to sit on him. I was not going to do that. Never. I hate
pigeons, they are strange things.

I feel like
I’m in fake pregnancy mode again due the extra pounds I have put on
from eating all the ice-cream. It is worth it though! Italians sure
know how to make ice-cream.

Ember has
just appeared, with Flynn, rather surprisingly. Something is
happening between them, Ember seems more relaxed around him– maybe
there will be wedding bells soon? She’s not getting any younger, or
older.

Shit. She’d
kill me if she saw this!

So we’ve
touched down in Germany. So far it looks so clean and amazingly
green! We are in Berlin at the moment but Jack wants to visit quite
a few countries, so I’ve not to unpack too much. Jack has informed
me that we have quite a few things to do in Germany, so I need to
go....

Dear
Diary,

Two
words....Base Flying! Jack should be satisfied with his elemental
power. If he put his mind to it, and found his balance, he could
quite literally be Superman. But for some reason, he isn’t happy
with it and he thinks it’s okay to jump off buildings! Of course
there were straps that hold you as you fall, but to jump off a
building isn’t normal.

I threw up as
soon as my feet touched the floor.

Hopefully he
will get all of this out of his system. Of course, he filmed the
entire thing, my descent, arms flailing, screaming... and vomiting
what had been a lovely lunch! The text messages I’ve received from
everyone, including Ciaran, who I thought would be a little more
sympathetic, all tell me to get over my fears and enjoy jumping off
buildings.

That is not
going to happen for quite some time.

What
else...oh, I’m addicted to Bratwurst sausages! I can’t get enough
of them! Apple strudel is also a hit with me. I love dessert so
that was always going to happen. Jack has acquired a rather fine
taste for the beer here. Ember has already taken beer back for the
men.

Dear
Diary,

I’m literally
shocked at what I’ve seen over the past six weeks. I will only
write some of the main attractions for me. I have seen the floating
mountains of Pandora! Jack knows how much I love Avatar so he took
me to China, to see them.

Okay, so they
don’t float like they do on the film, but sure as hell, we
did.

No helicopter
ride for this girl, just my arms around my husband who then floated
higher and higher until we were amongst them. I loved it! They are
quite popular since the film, so we had to acquire something to
make sure they didn’t see us.

Evelyn is
good with that so she passed a little something through
Ember.

We spent a
lovely week in the Maldives, not only was the room beautiful, we
saw the Sea of Stars. It is stunningly beautiful for something that
is apparently stressed. We stood at night on the beach as the waves
lapped near our feet; in those waves were the glowing blue stars.
The glow is emitted from the tiny organism which only glows when it
is stressed.

We sat on the
beach, listening to the soft sigh of water, sipping
champagne.

Jack has a
very romantic nature when he puts his mind to it as he’d also
packed us a picnic to eat on the beach surrounded by the
stars.

The following
day, I woke up to the sound of the ocean and the sun’s kiss upon my
skin. On this day Ember took us, and a picnic basket, to a hole in
the ground. I thought Jack was just being his usual idiotic self
but it turns out there is a hole in the ground in Mexico, and
within this hole was water and a beach. Jack told me it was only
accessible through the water.