Chapter 7

Fifteen minutes later they drew into the parking lot of the Ellison and Evie’s heart sank. Every parking space was taken and girls in stunning jewel-bright outfits were picking their way across the gravel on the arms of men in top hats and tails. Irony of ironies, Lara had booked into a hotel where another glamorous wedding was about to take place.

“Let’s hope things turn out better for this lot. Oh God…” Her feeble attempt at lightheartedness was scuppered in an instant by the sight of a tall blonde in a dress that resembled an emerald satin bandage. “That’s Emily Morris, she’ll wet herself laughing if she sees me.” Evie ducked down in the passenger seat. “And she’s been after Joel for years.”

“Right, what do you want to do?” Lara parked in the last available space, away from the hotel entrance and marked Manager Only. “Wait here or come in with me? I’ll be five minutes, max.”

Evie glanced over her shoulder at the boisterous wedding party milling around the entrance. Accompanying Lara into the hotel would mean having to squeeze through them and would attract way too much unwanted attention.

“I’ll stay here.”

Lara jumped out of the car. Evie did her best to calm down. She was facing a high stone wall; there was no reason why anyone should notice her all the way over here. Too agitated to sit doing nothing, Evie switched on the radio and turned up the volume. Then she opened the glove compartment and found a packet of wet wipes. Pulling down the sun visor, she looked at the wreckage of her face; the foundation was all blotchy, her lipstick had melted in the heat, and the ill-advised attempt at eyebrow penciling looked as if it had been carried out in the dark. How stupid to have imagined she could do it herself.

Evie pulled out a wet wipe and began scrubbing it vigorously, like a washcloth, all over her face. Don’t think about Joel, don’t think about the wedding you’ve walked out of, just sing along to the music on the radio and block everything else from your mind.

Bellowing along to a Madonna track, she heard a sharp knocking noise and slid the wet wipe down from her eyes. She jumped at the sight of an unamused male eyeing her through the glass.

Evie buzzed the window down. “Yes?”

“You can’t park here.” He looked faintly horrified when he saw her face, which would normally have been mortifying but today just made her irate.

Instead of launching into the usual groveling apology—dammit, would Madonna apologize and grovel?—Evie said, “There weren’t any other spaces. We won’t be long.”

Ooh, that felt quite liberating, actually. Channeling Madonna had its perks.

The man’s eyes narrowed. “You shouldn’t have parked here in the first place.”

“I didn’t. I wasn’t driving the car.” Ha, outfrosted him.

“It can’t stay here.”

“Are you the hotel manager?” In his late thirties, with his uncombed hair, rugby shirt, and ripped jeans, he looked more like the gardener. “I don’t think so.”

He looked even more annoyed. “I can still ask you not to park in a reserved space.”

“For crying out loud, will you stop giving me grief? Look at me!” In disbelief, Evie gestured wildly at her dress, her veil, her pink shiny face. “Do I look like I’m in the mood to be hassled by some petty jobsworth who thinks he’s—”

“Right, all sorted, let’s go.” The trunk of the car swung up and Lara’s case landed inside with a thud. She beamed at the angry man and said, “Did I park in the wrong place? Sorry! We’re off now.”

“Don’t do it again.” He shook his head as Lara jumped into the driver’s seat.

“I won’t! Not while you’re watching anyway.” Lara said this last bit under her breath, then smiled again and gave him a cheery wave as she reversed out of the space. “Shame he’s so grumpy. He’s got a nice bum. Were you two having a fight?”

“Some people need to get a life. I just ran away from my own wedding.” Evie slid down in her seat and shielded her face as they drove past Emily Morris and her glamorous friends being photographed. “I’m obviously not having a good day. Yet he decides to have a go at me about a stupid parking space. While I’m wearing my wedding dress. What kind of a moron does that?”

“A miserable one.” Lara swung the car out through the gates. “Never mind him now. Are you sure you want to do this?”

Ahead lay the road junction. Turning right would take them back into Bath. Turning left meant hitting the motorway. Evie experienced a fresh wave of panic; talk about empty-handed. She’d be leaving without so much as a spare pair of knickers and a toothbrush.

Sod it. What would Madonna do? Apart from sending out a minion to buy new everything?

“Let’s go to Keswick.”

“Good girl.” Lara reached over and gave her knee a pat. “You’re going to get through this.”

“You haven’t even asked me yet what happened.”

“Well, I’m sure you had a good reason. You didn’t just wake up and decide you weren’t happy with the way he squeezed the toothpaste. Anyway,” said Lara, “we’ve got five hours before we get to Keswick. There’s plenty of time to tell me everything.”

And that was it. As if some inner key had been turned, the whole story came pouring out. Without censoring anything, Evie voiced all the secret doubts and uncertainties she’d kept quiet about for so long. The fear that Joel was settling for her because she was no trouble, easygoing and grateful enough to have him as a partner to turn a blind eye to his failings. And the awful thing was, she had. Over the years there’d been slips and hints and whispers suggesting he may have been playing away, but she’d always given him the benefit of the doubt. If she challenged Joel, he denied it absolutely. And if she carried on accusing him, it just made an awkward situation worse. They were both happiest when they weren’t arguing, so it stood to reason that it had become easier not to bring the subject up in the first place.

“I’ve never said any of this before.” When she eventually finished, Evie shifted in her seat and began to regret the many cups of tea she’d had since breakfast. “Did we just pass a service station?”

“A couple of miles back. Why?”

“I need a wee.”

Lara left the motorway at the next exit and found a pub. “I’m going to grab something to eat. Do you want anything?”

“No thanks. But I wouldn’t say no to a glass of wine.”

“Here.” Having opened the trunk of the car and rummaged in a bag, Lara passed her a change of clothes. “You might be more comfortable in these.”

Ignoring the raised eyebrows of the pub’s incumbents, Evie swished her way through the bar in her billowing wedding dress and paid a visit to the ladies’. Five minutes later she was back, wearing the faded purple T-shirt and slightly-too-big black jeans, with the wedding dress draped over her arm.

“Much better.” Lara handed her a large glass of white with a flourish. “Here you go. Cheers!”

Jilting was thirsty work, it turned out. The Frascati went down practically in one go. Not normally much of a drinker, today Evie found herself needing help quelling her jangled nerves.

“Can I have another? I feel terrible about not having any money.” She watched the barmaid pour her a refill and Lara pay for it. “You’ll have to keep a tab so I can pay everything back.”

Lara ate a ham and cheese toasted sandwich and drank a Coke while Evie finished her second glass of wine.

“You and your old man had a falling-out already, then?” One of the men at the bar asked the question everyone else had been thinking. “What’ve you done with him?”

The alcohol felt fantastic, snaking its silky way through her bloodstream. Emptying the last of the Frascati down her throat and jumping off her bar stool, Evie eyed the row of regulars and tilted her head in the direction of the parking lot. “He’s in the trunk.”

Back in the car she slept for the next couple of hours, eventually waking again to find they were making good progress up the M6.

“I keep expecting my phone to ring.” It felt odd, being without it.

Lara pointed to her handbag in the footwell. “You can use mine if you want.”

“No thanks. I think I quite like being out of reach. I wonder what’s going on back there now. Do you think they’re having a wild party?”

“Haven’t the foggiest.” Lara hesitated, then said, “Can I ask you something?”

“Fire away.”

“You told me Flynn wouldn’t be there. You said he was in Australia.”

Evie looked puzzled. “Yes, that’s right. That’s where he is, on a business trip. Touring vineyards and buying stock.”

“He isn’t. He was there.”

“Where?”

“At the church! He turned up in a taxi while we were all waiting outside.”

“Did he?” Bemused, Evie said, “I didn’t notice. He must have caught an early flight back specially.” She thought about it and let out a groan. “Oh God, and all for nothing. He’ll be pleased.”

“Stop that. It’s not your fault. You aren’t the one who shagged the makeup girl.”

“I know, but still.” If you were cursed with the take-the-blame gene, this was what it was like, always feeling guilty and responsible whenever things went wrong. Evie changed the subject. “I didn’t tell him I’d invited you to the wedding. So how did it feel to see him again?”

“Weird.”

“Did he see you?”

Lara nodded. “Yes.”

“And recognized you? Duh, stupid question, of course he recognized you. God, then what happened? He was devastated before, when you left. Did he get a chance to speak to you?”

“Only for a minute. Not even that,” Lara amended. “A few seconds.”

Evie clapped a hand to her mouth. “Oh no, and then I dragged you away! And now you’re here and he’s there. I mess everything up.” She exhaled noisily. “I’m a walking disaster.”

“It’s fine, don’t worry,” said Lara. “I’ll see him again. After this many years it won’t kill us to wait a bit longer.”

There was an edge to her voice. Looking across, Evie saw her knuckles whitening as they gripped the steering wheel.

“So, do you think there could still be something between you?”

“No.” Lara shook her head. “There couldn’t.”

How could she be so sure? “Not even a little bit?”

“No.”

“But there might be. You two were so brilliant together before. He’s single, and you’re single…”

“That was when we were at school. Anyway”—Lara flicked the indicator as they approached the next exit—“nearly there now. When we get home there’s someone I have to introduce you to.”

“I know. Aunt Nettie. I can’t wait to meet her,” said Evie. “She sounds fantastic.”

They were heading up the slip road now. “She is, but I didn’t mean Nettie.”

“Who, then?”

Lara was smiling. “Someone else.”