‘I’m looking forward to seeing you in it for the ball,’ said Barney. ‘Now, would you two mind if Lois and I had some alone time? You don’t need to worry about me now you know I’m doing just fine and I have company.’
‘Right.’ Harvey picked up his keys and, in his other hand, the brochure for Aubrey House. ‘I’ll throw this away, shall I?’
Lois covered her mouth to stifle a giggle.
Harvey didn’t wait for an answer, he slung the brochure in the recycling on his way out the door with Melissa, rolling his eyes in the process.
Outside beneath the sunshine Melissa smiled. ‘Ten days to go until the ball. Do you still have your tux?’
‘I’ve upgraded, I have another I bought for a workmate’s wedding a couple of years ago.’
‘What happened to the old one?’
‘Time for a change – that one was second-hand and never fitted as well as it could. I got this one tailored, I figured I’d be wearing it for plenty of years to come.’
They were loitering by the trees that led through to the courtyard. ‘I’m going this way.’ Melissa indicated the little gate at the front of the path that led out to the pavement and the bend that wound around to The Street.
‘I can give you a lift.’
‘I think I’ll walk, clear my head a bit – it’s been a crazy few hours.’
‘You’re not wrong there.’
‘I’m just pleased they’re talking, even more pleased we didn’t give Barney the shock of his life.’
‘I’ve a good mind to after what he’s been up to.’
‘He had the best intentions.’
‘Yes, I suppose he did.’ He pushed his hands into his jeans pockets. It was probably too warm to be wearing them but he’d needed them this morning when he walked Winnie along the beach down at the cove with the wind whipping unforgivingly. It had died down now to a gentle breeze. ‘Even Barney has a date for the ball this year,’ he grinned.
‘Lucky Barney.’
‘You could be my date, like old times.’
‘Harvey…’
‘I’m kidding.’ He wasn’t.
And with a smile she went out of the gate and on her way.
Harvey had a quick peek in the window of the house before he left and saw Barney and Lois smiling, laughing about something. The way that pair had danced in the barn must have pulled back the years for them, it was probably as though time had stood still in some ways.
He only wished he and Melissa had the same chance to make things right. Barney was happy enough, he was on the mend well and truly, but that meant Melissa would soon be leaving the Cove.
And there wouldn’t be anything he could do or say to stop her.
Chapter Fifteen
Melissa answered the door to her room at the inn and was surprised to see Lois on the other side. ‘I didn’t expect door-to-door service,’ she smiled, standing back for Lois to come in. The ball was tonight and she was already nervous, not about the event itself but about spending more time with Harvey. Because now she knew it was time to be honest with both of the men in her life.
Melissa had spent the last ten days keeping busy. She’d taken the final deliveries at the barn so the venue was totally ready for the ball, she’d confirmed bookings in her paranoia that something would go wrong, she’d helped Lucy choose an outfit for the event, and she’d spent days in the cove amongst friends. Jay had been busy with work and their contact had been emails and messages with time zone clashes, but rather than find it difficult she’d found that the space it afforded her helped to clarify things in her mind.
‘It’s no bother,’ Lois smiled. ‘I thought I’d leave Barney to it for a bit, he can introduce me to more people later.’
‘That sounds about right. I take it he’s getting back into his stride?’ She hung the dress over the open-doored wardrobe.
‘I’ll say.’
‘It must be overwhelming for you, I do sympathise, because now he isn’t pulling the wool over our eyes and pretending to be on his last legs, he’ll be making up for lost time.’
‘He told me it’s been hard for him to stay home so much.’
‘Hmm…I’m sure it’s been a nightmare for him.’
‘He always had the best intentions.’
‘I know,’ Melissa sighed. ‘I’m not angry, I don’t think I ever could be with Barney.’
Lois gestured for Melissa to open up the zipped plastic cover and when she did, the excitement built.
‘What do you think?’ Lois asked, fingers steepled together against her chin.
‘It’s stunning, the beading is beautiful.’ She lightly ran her fingers across the intricate detail. ‘Did you add more?’
‘Harvey’s mum brought around some extra beads and sequins and I’ve added those on. Now don’t make me wait any longer.’
‘You want me to try it on now?’
‘I need to check the alterations are good.’
‘Are you sure you have the time?’
‘Honestly, I left Barney at the bakery and they’d brought him out a chair to sit on. I think he’s in for a long visit so I said I’d meet him back there in half an hour.’
With butterflies zipping around in her stomach Melissa took the dress and behind the open wardrobe door, which acted as a mini separation and therefore changing room, she pulled it on. ‘It feels snug.’
‘Not too snug?’
‘I hope not.’ When she stepped out she wasn’t so sure.
‘Melissa, it’s perfect. Wedding dresses should fit the body like a glove, and this one does. Turn around, let me do the buttons.’
With a bit of wiggling and breathing in, she was in the dress for real. Her eyes misted up when she saw her reflection. The bodice shone beneath the light Lois had switched on to get a better look and Melissa could almost imagine a veil drifting down towards the ground, a bouquet clutched in front of her.
‘Oh dear, why the tears?’ Lois was quick to grab a tissue from the table beside the bed and hand it to her.
‘I’m a bit emotional.’
‘You’re thinking of your boyfriend.’
‘Am I that obvious?’
‘He’s a fine man, and what is it you all say these days? Hot.’
Melissa burst out laughing, Lois must’ve got her wires crossed, because she was surely referring to Harvey, the guy Lois had met, but Melissa wasn’t. She was crying because after all this time, all these years, her path had suddenly become clear. And the first person she needed to tell was the man she was supposed to be engaged to.
Lois pushed another tissue at her. ‘You’ll be seeing him in a couple of hours, stop crying or your eyes will be all puffy. He won’t like that.’
‘No, I don’t suppose he would.’
When they’d admired the dress some more Lois undid the buttons and they talked hair and make-up as Melissa put on the fawn shift dress she’d had on before. ‘And what about your outfit?’ she asked Lois. ‘Did you find anything?’
‘Barney and I went shopping yesterday and I found something suitable. It was quite the day out for us, we taxied both ways, we had lunch at a glorious country pub. It felt like a date,’ she confided.
‘You both deserve it.’
‘I want to thank you, Melissa.’
‘The dress is a big thank you, you don’t need to say any more.’
‘I do, and I will. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. When you get to our age, you know that most of your years are behind you and second chances don’t come along for many. You getting in touch was a gift, I’ll be forever grateful.’
‘You’ll have me blubbering again in a minute, and those puffy eyes will need a lot of make-up to disguise them.’
Lois dabbed at her own eyes with a tissue. ‘I don’t want them either so I’ll stop rabbiting on and go and rescue the staff at the bakery.’
‘Good idea,’ Melissa laughed. ‘I’ll see you tonight.’
After Lois left Melissa went out onto the tiny balcony. On so
me evenings during her stay she’d come out here with a glass of wine and watch Heritage Cove drift from its sun-filled day to dusk, and finally to night, when a star-studded sky blanketed the homes and the village she knew so well. Now, she watched the odd car pass below, noticed cows on a field in the distance, sheep on another, rolled golden hay bales on the farthest field her eye could see. A tractor trundled its way down the road before disappearing behind the trees, its rumble fading away gradually.
When a cloud passed across the sun she shivered and went inside. It was only a matter of hours before her first Wedding Dress Ball in five years, and she was so excited she felt just like the same girl who’d watched the event from high up on the beams and longed to be one of the party down below.
*
‘Mum, I’m not fifteen anymore.’ Harvey undid his bow-tie for the fourth time and pushed away any attempts from his mum to fix it. They were in the courtyard at Barney’s place and people were starting to arrive for the ball. Harvey had only come out here because he’d given up trying to perfect the bow-tie inside and he didn’t want to miss Melissa’s arrival.
‘You’re all fingers and thumbs. Why so nervous?’ Carol’s grey hair curled in large waves, skimming the back of her neck. She had a small white gardenia in her hair, a floaty white dress to show her slight figure. Given what Harvey’s dad had been like, wearing a wedding dress to this ball had never been an option for Carol because of the memories it would evoke, but she’d gone out and spent over a hundred pounds on a three-quarter-sleeved dress with delicate beading that made her feel like a new woman – her exact words when she’d returned from the shops with it one day. Harvey had known from that moment that his mum had her life back.
‘I’m not nervous,’ he lied unconvincingly, and with a bit more fiddling he was done. ‘There, sorted. Just a bit out of practice at tying them, that’s all.’
Carol smiled. ‘What a beautiful evening for it, thank goodness you talked Barney out of cancelling.’
Since he’d talked more to Barney it seemed plenty of others had been in on this little game of his. The bakery knew full well they were doing the cake but had pretended to Melissa it wouldn’t be easy, the band had never been cancelled but had been told to go along with the pretence, even Ashley from White Clover had known about this from the start. Harvey swung between wanting to throttle Barney one minute and wanting to thank him the next, because if he hadn’t lied to them then Melissa would already be back in Windsor. And he wouldn’t miss seeing her tonight, here at the ball once again, for anything.
The sun held the summer warmth that bathed the barn and courtyard in a soft glow as guests continued to arrive and mingle. The wooden doors of the barn had been folded back, hay bales graced the entrance for anyone who wanted to step outside for some air when the ball began. The food tables lined one wall and caterers would bring everything in at the agreed times. Barney and Lois were standing inside the barn doors greeting guests as though they were a couple who hadn’t missed out on decades together, and the band was playing a classical melody Harvey didn’t recognise but one that sat perfectly as a calm, country-wedding-type tune.
Harvey fiddled with the cuffs of his shirt to straighten them beneath the sleeves of his tux and nodded a hello to Ashley, who was next to arrive. She had on an ivory dress with a bustle – he only knew what it was called because she’d pointed it out last year when someone else asked her about it – and she was soon gossiping with his mum and discussing dressmaking, a topic that was always covered given the theme of the event.
Harvey was glad people weren’t wasting time in getting inside the barn, he didn’t want an audience to see how he reacted when Melissa arrived.
Casey turned up and came over to give him an enormous hug. ‘Your girl here yet?’
He was about to deny what she was implying, but how could he? It was all true. She knew it, he knew it, everyone else probably knew it too. ‘You look beautiful tonight.’ But their conversation ended swiftly when a girlfriend of hers whisked her into the barn. He’d heard her mention eligible men so he figured they’d be flirting it up a storm very soon.
Tilly was next to arrive with a couple of girlfriends he didn’t recognise, all chatting at a rate of knots, then came Gracie.
She did a twirl in a dress that only revealed itself to be pink when she stood next to someone in white. Her curly chestnut hair was pinned into an up-do that made her look sophisticated and totally different from the girl who bummed around the Cove in denim cut-offs and walked his dog for him.
‘How’s Winnie?’ she wanted to know.
‘Trust you to ask…most girls here probably want to check whether their lipstick is on their teeth or if their hair is perfect.’
‘You know me and dogs, Harvey.’
‘I do, and Winnie’s fine, made a real fuss of her before I came out.’
‘Save a dance for me later?’
‘Of course I will.’
And when she went inside he didn’t miss the admiring looks from Declan, a local lad about her age. He probably hadn’t recognised her when she first turned up but he’d certainly noticed her now.
Locals flocked, people from nearby villages and towns who’d bought a ticket returned for another year or to give it a go for the first time. And when Tracy arrived she confided in Harvey that she felt like a newlywed all over again. Her comment was bordering on too much information but he chatted with Tracy and Giles before they both went inside. He didn’t have to tell either of them why he was waiting there.
Jade and Celeste looked stunning when they arrived with the cake and set it safely in place on a table well out of the way. No sign of an apron for either of them, it was perfectly applied make-up against porcelain skin, and white dresses that were totally different and beautiful on the sisters who were the close siblings Harvey had always envied. They not only worked together, they lived in the same home, they got on apart from the odd cross word at the bakery making you steer clear until the dust settled, and it made Harvey wonder whether he might have had that same bond with Daniel had their father not been so terrible.
Harvey shook away thoughts of family problems and smiled, welcoming Patricia from the tea rooms, who was excited to be here and more than proud to be in her wedding dress for another year. She was instantly chatting away to anyone who’d listen about the laced-up back of the gown that was a godsend if your weight fluctuated year on year. Her husband looked at her as though their wedding day had been last week not years ago; his hands told the same story. Lottie was next, the tan she’d built over the summer even though she worked inside the convenience store striking against a white gown. Like everyone else here, she was transformed from the usual attire of jeans and a top or shorts and T-shirt, and it was all part of the fun of this event – seeing the same people you spoke to day in day out look different, act different and feel different.
The atmosphere here in the courtyard and beyond the doors of the barn was one of togetherness, excitement, heady summer love. Some arrived hopeful with a date on their arm, others were relishing an evening as a couple after the demands of family life and jobs, an evening where they could remind themselves of how they’d fallen in love. Some came here with friends and no intention of anything romantic, some would be surprised tonight, he wouldn’t mind betting – there was usually an unpredicted hook-up in the air. Last year it had been Jules, his boss’s sister, who’d got together with another of Harvey’s work buddies, both a little regretful the morning after apparently.
Lucy arrived next and on her arm was Fred Gilbertson, back in town for the event. ‘Fred, great to see you.’ Harvey shook his hand. ‘And Lucy, you’re looking beautiful.’
She did a quick twirl in an off-the-shoulder ivory dress that finished almost at the ground. ‘Why thank you. I found this beauty in a charity shop and it fits perfectly.’
‘If only all brides were this easy,’ Fred joked before winking at Lucy. ‘You never know, your future Mr Right could be in this very barn
right now.’
‘I doubt it,’ she laughed. ‘And I’m not even looking.’
‘Come on, this place is synonymous with romance,’ Fred insisted.
‘Not always,’ Harvey meddled. ‘Remember Clara and Michael?’
Fred’s brow furrowed. ‘The couple who met bellringing at the chapel and had their wedding there?’
‘The very same. They had a huge row right in this very barn, ended things once and for all when she admitted she was seeing someone else.’
Lucy laughed. ‘Come on, Fred, you can look out for me,’ she said. ‘I’m not after meeting anyone just yet, friendship is all I need.’
‘You’re on,’ he said, leading the way.
When they went inside and more people flocked the same way Harvey began to get restless. He was starting to wonder if Melissa would ever turn up when a voice behind him had him turning around. Melissa had come through the front gate when he’d been expecting her to arrive via the lane and the courtyard.
He couldn’t stop a smile from forming. ‘You took your time.’ But you were worth the wait, he almost added out loud.
She passed between the juniper trees and came over to him. The gown looked completely different from when it was being fitted against her body in the lounge, his focus torn between her, and Barney’s revelations. Now, it fit her like a glove, finishing just above the knees. A pair of white heels added more shape to her legs than he thought possible and when she turned to show him the full effect his eyes couldn’t help following her silhouette up and down. Her auburn hair fanned across her shoulders, left loose, curling into big waves.
He’d need a cold shower at this rate. ‘You look beautiful,’ he stammered.
‘You look pretty good yourself.’ Hazel eyes sparkled across at him. ‘Nice tux.’
‘Bet you say that to all the boys.’ His gaze fell to lips covered in a glossy pink he knew he could kiss away in seconds.
A couple of guys from work chose that moment to turn up. Harvey introduced each of them to Melissa and with one look he conveyed that she was out of bounds.
Coming Home to Heritage Cove Page 26