It's been an interesting week. Ipsita has had a mountain of school papers to grade in the heat of her country but still managed to read the chapter. My son and future daughter have flown home for the weekend to choose wedding attire for the father of the groom, and he tested positive for covid just before they arrived, so they're not allowed to see him.

Thanks so much to everyone for reading and leaving reviews. I appreciate every word you send.


Showered and dressed, I follow the aroma of coffee and bacon frying, and the first thing I see is the roses. Such a grand bouquet of flowers deserves more than the saucepan of water I shoved them in last night, but that's all I could manage while trying to handle a man with one thing on his mind. The saucepan can't take away from their beauty and fragrance, though. I'm definitely bringing them to Lapland.

The man who introduced them to me in spectacular fashion is cooking my breakfast, and I kiss him before I speak.

"So, you want to fly to Sydney?"

"Well, I need to get my truck."

"Oh, right." Masen wants to drive his own vehicle, not some rental that could break down in the middle of nowhere. "I just thought since you vetoed Alaska, you might consider flying into Darwin. We have time to see Arnhem Land and Kakadu."

"How much do you know about Arnhem Land?" he asks.

"A little … Why?"

"Do you want to stay at a resort?"

I wasn't really thinking about accommodations. "I thought we'd drive around and see rock paintings, meet some locals, learn about bush tucker."

"It's wet season, babe. The roads into Arnhem Land are closed until May."

"May?" My jaw drops and I push my fingers into my hair. "How do I plan a year-long documentary when I don't know this crucial information? Fuck!"

"Hey, don't stress before you even get started. I know you want everything to be perfect, but I guarantee it won't be. I'll help you, and we'll double-check all our plans before we go ahead."

It's true I can't know everything, and I'm forgetting I'll have expert help with me. This documentary won't happen without Masen's knowledge of his people and country, just as it will be mediocre without Jasper's cinematic vision. I wish I knew more about our Australian cameraman's work, but Alec has won Jasper's confidence, and that has to be enough for me.

I hesitated when Jasper said he would only take the assignment if Alice and their baby, Jane, could accompany him, but he can take his pick of any number of jobs that don't involve him having to leave them behind, and he assured me it won't cost me any more. I want him to be happy, and I'm looking forward to having Alice around. I'll be able to observe Jane without her being my responsibility, and maybe they'll let me babysit once in a while.

"Okay, I'll stop stressing and let you guide me."

He tips up my chin and kisses me. "That's better."

"I'm sorry, but sometimes I fear I'm taking on more than I can handle."

He rubs my back. "I'd rather you feel like that than be cocky, but we'll work through it together. It will be like second nature before you know it."

"All right." He's wonderful, making me calmer already. "I love you."

"I love you, too. Now, do you want an egg?" he asks as he cracks one into the frypan.

"Yes, please. I'll make the toast."

-0-

From the top of the Helsinki Skywheel, we can see most of the city. The Allas Sea Pool is right below us, and the Viking Line ferry is boarding for its daily voyage to Tallinn in Estonia. We're planning to take that trip tomorrow.

Helsinki is endlessly flat and nothing like Anchorage, where the mountains near the city appear to float on clouds. I'm feeling a little homesick today, preoccupied with our future and the move to Australia.

"What dates are we already committed to?" Masen asks, apparently thinking of the year ahead as well.

"We need to be in Adelaide the first week in March to meet with Professor Weber. She is responsible for rebooting the Australian Centre For Ancient DNA, our expert in approaching the Aboriginal communities, and I've accepted her offer to accompany us when she's available. She knows about the collection of samples—when they need to be refrigerated and how we send them off for analysis."

"Okay, she's important."

"You'll really like her, Masen. She's great."

"Is she … black?"

"I didn't ask. I guess I could try to find out. Does it matter?"

He nods. "Yeah, probably."

I leave that as it is. He understands this better than I ever will, and that's why I need him. During the year, I'll learn more, but I must start by deferring to the knowledge of people I trust.

The content for the documentary is developing in my head. While we're essentially tracking indigenous migration patterns, it will be pretty dull if it's all about the science. I have to entertain an audience, so there has to be more than swabs and gathering information. Maggie has always encouraged us to take a step back and look from other angles because different perspectives often give rise to new theories or lend weight to old ones. She likes to compare the myriad of human ideas and questions to evolution. Only the strong and clear go forward while the weak ones eventually die.

I already appreciate that a culture evolving over tens of thousands of years, using the land without plundering it, has a valuable story to tell in a world on the brink of destruction. I'd like to show they are not nomadic hunter gatherers, but people with knowledge of sustainability who could actually be the world's first subsistence farmers. It will be interesting to test my theory that moving on to allow an area to replenish has led to bigger regional movements and migration. If possible, I would like to show a cool burn, and I can't film in Australia in 2020 without covering the horrific bushfire season. I just hope they get rain and it stops burning so we can see the recovery.

Another idea is forming, but it will need more strength and clarity before I would pitch it to Maggie. Masen and his family must agree before I even mention it to her. She has been extremely supportive in giving me creative freedom, but she didn't really take me seriously until I proposed putting Masen in front of the cameras. While I'm grateful she fought hard to get my project funded, I'm not naive. Maggie is an experienced, savvy operator who will certainly take some of the credit if we're successful. She flirts with Masen shamelessly, and I once overheard her saying it's impossible not to fall in love with him.

"That could work out really well," he states, bringing me back to our conversation.

"The beginning of March?"

"Yeah, if your parents can come in the middle of February, we'll have two weeks before we need to go to Adelaide."

I'm suddenly imagining a wedding five or six weeks from now. "Is it possible to arrange a wedding that fast?"

"Well, we don't have to worry about visas, so we just need to complete the Notice of Intending Marriage a month before the wedding. They check we're not committing bigamy."

I scoff at the notion. "So, we get married … in Sydney?"

"Are you opposed to a church wedding?"

After all he's told me about Christians stepping in to steal his grandmother from her family, I'm kind of amazed he would propose this.

"I never thought you'd choose a religious ceremony."

"I just know it would make Mom happy to see me marry in the chapel at Scots."

"Your high school?"

"Yeah, she ran the fund-raising for its renovations. She's pretty proud of what they achieved."

"I didn't realize it was a religious school. Why would they send you there?"

"Scots has a foundation that sponsors Aboriginal boys to board there and get a good education."

Now I'm confused. "Were you one of them?"

"No, I didn't find out I had Aboriginal blood until I was fifteen and put two and two together. Mom and Dad paid heaps to send me to Scots, and they still donate to the foundation."

I'm surprised I never knew this, but it fits with the charitable qualities I've seen in Esme. She is always the first person to offer help, and I love that Masen wants to do something just for her.

"I'm happy to get married anywhere, as long as it's to you."

He puts a hand to his chest as if I've made his heart skip a beat. "I love that answer."

When we're back on the ground, Masen directs us toward the Uspenski Cathedral.

"After the ceremony, we could go to the Eighteen Footers. Remember the club?"

"Yes!" I definitely remember the location and the delicious seafood. "It's right on the harbor, where the ferry comes in, where the calamari melts in your mouth. I had the fish pot with Balmain bugs."

"Charlie and Renee should like it."

They would love it, just as much as I did when we went there for Esme's birthday. Rather than being a public restaurant, you have to be a member or their guest, and I really liked how they welcomed us as family.

We wander through the cathedral, the largest orthodox church in Western Europe, a building commissioned by the Russian tsar. The towering dark stone arches and gold are breathtaking, and I'm fascinated by the massive chandeliers that look like snowflakes from directly below, but contain hundreds of candles. My eyes have to adjust to daylight again when we come out onto the terrace overlooking the water.

"Do you think your parents would like to see Melbourne?" Masen asks.

While I'm still getting used to a wedding in Sydney, he's already jumping ahead.

"I don't know. We could ask them. Why?"

When he hesitates for a little too long, I get ready for another unexpected answer.

"All my good friends live there, and so do the rest of the family. There are a thousand good venues we could use for the reception."

"So, does that mean you're going off the idea of getting married in Sydney?"

"No, I still want the ceremony at Scots, but my friends from high school don't live in Sydney. It would be awesome to catch up as we travel around the country, though."

That's an attractive idea when we can never have enough local contacts. However, my parents have never been to Australia, and we need to allow enough time for them to see more of Sydney than just our wedding.

"My parents want to see Sydney, Masen. I know that for sure."

"And I want to show it to them. Once we're done sightseeing, I'd like to take them to Mom and Dad's house on the Hawkesbury River for a couple of days. We take a tinnie to get there."

This will be good. "What the hell is a tinnie?" There have been countless times like this where I can't begin to guess what he means.

He laughs. "It's a small boat we use for transport from the Berowra Waters car park. There's no actual road to the house."

"Is it on an island?" I try to picture it in my head.

He shrugs. "No, but there are not enough homes to warrant roads."

Whatever is he proposing? I hope it's not like the remote places in Alaska only accessed by boat or seaplane. "How isolated is it, Masen? My parents are not used to roughing it."

"You'll see, babe," he says, clearly amused.

"Are you having fun teasing me?" I press on his chest, shoving him slightly.

He traps me in his arms so I can't get away. "You don't have to be so serious all the time, you know. They're gonna love it, and so will you."

Relaxing against him, I know he's right. I do need to lighten up and accept that he will do the right thing by me. We might have a lot to arrange in a short space of time, but I have a partner now. I don't have to do everything on my own.

-0-

We're tasting salmon in Helsinki's Old Market Hall, and Masen's moans are making me horny. A little bit for me, a little more for him, and it's hard not to fantasize how this might play out when we're alone. Watching him at the counter getting our salmon soup, I can't stop smiling, knowing he's the man who'll father my children, the one I'll go gray with.

Walking in Esplanadi Park, we stop at the stunning restaurant called Kappeli. Kappeli means chapel, and it's easy to see how the lofty ceilings inspired its name. Opened in the early 1800's, it became famous for its cold beer and hot music, the stylish meeting place for the city's poets and musicians. Masen asks me to imagine having the money to fly our guests over and hold our wedding here, but while he's creating a most glorious fantasy, I can't help wondering who I'd even invite.

Since the sauna market is closed, we move on to Hietalahti Market Square. The outdoor market doesn't operate at this time of the year, but there are stalls inside selling all kinds of souvenirs and food. I get Masen a slouchy beanie with an embroidered snowflake, giving him no reason to wear that nasty reindeer-threesome thing.

Picking up gorgeous ceramic bowls in blue, white, and green, I would love to buy them, but I'm worried about their weight. I only just scraped in under the limit for the flight from Johannesburg, so I have to be careful about what I buy.

Masen asks the woman if she can pack a pair of them to take as hand luggage on an international flight, and she demonstrates how she does it all the time. Satisfied the box will fit under an aircraft seat, he asks if she'll do a deal for four bowls, and she resists at first, eventually relenting when he tells her they're gifts for our mothers.

When I question what he's doing, he says we can juggle our stuff and if we're overweight, we can always send an unaccompanied suitcase as we're leaving for Lapland and collect it at Sydney airport. I probably would have put the bowls down as too heavy and walked away, but now I'm getting what I want, and we'll have gifts! Masen just has a knack of making things easy.

We browse the delicatessens, and I propose we invite Maria and Marcus over for dinner. It's the first time we'll entertain as a couple, and Masen agrees, asking if we can have more smoked salmon. I'm happy, especially when I'm seeing all the yummy goodies here to make a great antipasto for our starter. Maria is excited when I call, and we make plans to have dinner before we take off for the opening night of Lux.

-0-

I'm so pleased with my new serving bowls that I'm using them tonight—one for different breads and the other for pasta. This has been one of the easiest meals I've ever prepared for guests and having Masen's help has made it so much more enjoyable. I tell him I love being in the kitchen with him, and we're seriously making out when the buzzer announces our guests are downstairs.

Masen takes Marcus out on the balcony while I finish the pasta sauce, and Maria pours us a glass of the Prosecco they brought. "Congratulations!" she says, and I'm a little embarrassed we left straight after he proposed last night.

"Cheers," I reply, clinking our glasses together. "I'm still coming down from the clouds. This morning, I could hardly believe it."

"Everyone will be asking when you're going to get married, so have you thought about it?"

"We're going to try for the middle of February."

"This year?" she asks, clearly surprised.

"Well, our project starts soon after, and we don't really know when we'll be back."

"That's right. National Geographic," she states with a sigh. "I'm so jealous of you traveling around Australia."

We only shared a little last night after Maria gave us the impression she sees our work as one long vacation. She and Marcus might say they're jealous, but they have preconceived ideas about the land down under and its distinctive wildlife, thinking the cities are full of cuddly little bears and kangaroos. They don't realize marsupials have long, dangerous claws, or that a kangaroo can crack ribs with a single kick from its powerful legs. Hitting one can total your car.

She's worried about swimming and sharks, so we don't need to mention the lethal jellyfish that inhabit the continent's northern coastlines. They'd never consider Australia as a destination if they knew that saltwater crocodiles are one of the most highly evolved predators in existence, or that there are venomous snakes and spiders everywhere. Masen seems unfazed by these deadly creatures, but I'm not looking forward to encountering any of them.

"You are the opposite of us, Bella. You're having a honeymoon in Finland before your wedding, and we're having ours a year after. How strange we are!"

I just smile, not knowing her well enough to reveal the reason we're here, but the boys save me from having to answer when they come in from the cold, and I ogle Masen wearing the sweater I made for him.

"I'm nearly ready here," I announce, popping a lid on the sauce. In no time, Masen and I have the antipasti laid out, and we sit down.

"What are your plans for tomorrow?" Maria asks.

Masen answers. "We were going to take the day trip to Tallinn."

"Oh." She glances at Marcus, looking disappointed. "We were hoping you might like to join us. For a wedding present, we received an overnight stay at a cottage in the Nuuksio National Park. It's on a lake with two bedrooms, a fire pit, and our own wood fired sauna."

I know this kind of setup, and it's right up Masen's alley, but we've run out of time for an adventure like that.

"We haven't bought our ferry tickets yet. How far away is it?" Masen asks.

Marcus answers. "It's one hour. Train to Espoo and bus to Haltia. It is isolated, so a breakfast is included, but we supply a dinner."

Masen nods imperceptibly, as if he's considering it. "We have hiking shoes but no snow gear until we get to Lapland."

"There is no snow," Marcus responds. "Light falls only this winter, and they melt. Of course, it's the place we want to enjoy. We don't hike, and it will be cold, so we relax in the sauna and fire pit. We use it to cook our meat for dinner."

I can imagine the crackling fire, the haunting sounds of thrush in the forest, and it feels like the end of fall in Alaska, before the snow starts to fall. I did want to see Tallinn tomorrow, but this entices me much more.

Masen takes a hold of my hand. "What do you reckon?"

"A cottage on a lake in the national park? If you think we could make it work with the flight, then I say yes."

Marcus asks, "What time is your flight?"

Masen rolls his eyes. "Six-thirty in the evening would you believe? It's the only flight of the day."

"It doesn't really matter," I add. "It's polar night in Lapland, so we won't know the difference."

"Do you have this polar night in Alaska?" Maria inquires.

"In the north they do, but Anchorage is more like Helsinki."

"So is your answer yes?" Marcus asks.

Masen looks at me. "If it's only an hour away, then let's do it, babe?"

"Yeah, let's do it." I grin and nod.

"Bewdy." He lifts my hand and brings it to his lips, transfixing me with his stare, and I finally realize what's changed since he proposed. This is intimacy bringing us closer together. It's the perfect combination of respect, friendship, love, and sexual desire that's going to make me very content with my future husband.


Thanks for reading xo