Three months later …
EMMA stepped in front of the mirror and studied her reflection. It was her wedding day and she wanted everything to be perfect, even though it had been a rush to get things organised in such a short space of time. Now she smiled as she took stock of the dress she had chosen.
Made from pure silk in the palest shade of cream, it fell in soft folds to the floor. The cream rosebuds that the hairdresser had pinned into her hair that morning exactly matched the colour of the fabric. More rosebuds had been hand-tied to form a posy which she would carry up the aisle. She knew she looked her best and hoped that Daniel would think so too. They had waited so long for this day to come and she wanted it to be special, a celebration of their love for each other.
A knock on the bedroom door heralded the arrival of her aunt. Both her aunt and her uncle had been thrilled when she and Daniel had announced that they were getting married. It appeared that they had known all along how she had felt about Daniel five years ago. Although he would never admit it, Emma suspected that her uncle had been doing a bit of matchmaking when he had asked Daniel to cover for him.
It had been Uncle Jim who had suggested that Daniel should think about becoming a partner in the practice, an offer which Daniel had eagerly accepted, much to Emma’s delight. It had solved the problem of where they should live as once they returned from honeymoon, she would be taking up a new surgical post at the local hospital. She and Daniel would start their married life in Avondale, where they had first met and fallen in love.
‘Your uncle sent me upstairs to check if you were ready,’ her aunt informed her, taking a tissue out of her bag. ‘You look beautiful, Emma, really beautiful.’
‘Thank you.’ Emma gave her aunt a hug then smiled at her. ‘Shall we go? I don’t want to keep Daniel waiting.’
There was quite a crowd gathered outside the local church when they drew up a short time later. Emma smiled when she spotted Alistair Grant, who was acting as one of the ushers. The source of his problems had been traced to the old chemical drums Harold Dawson had used to block access to the wind farm. Environmental services had visited Niths Farm and removed a number of other drums containing hazardous liquids. It was good to know that the community she was going to be a part of once more was no longer at risk.
The organist struck up ‘The Wedding March’ as they stepped inside the porch and her uncle gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. ‘All set, my dear?’
‘Yes.’
Emma took a deep breath as they set off down the aisle but the moment she saw Daniel waiting in front of the altar her nerves disappeared. Here was the man she loved, the man she wanted to spend her life with. From this moment on they would be together for ever.
Daniel felt his heart turn over as he watched Emma walking towards him. It was as though every hope and dream he’d ever had had crystallised into this one moment. She stopped beside him and he saw the love in her eyes when she turned to look at him and knew she could see the same emotion in his. They loved each other. They trusted each other. They were meant to be together.
Taking her hand, he made himself a promise that no matter what happened in the future nothing would spoil what they had. Maybe he had been afraid in the past but he wasn’t afraid any longer. He loved Emma and she loved him. They had everything they needed to guarantee a wonderful life together.