by Karen King
He passed her the breakfast tray. ‘I must apologise. I’ve been so preoccupied I haven’t had time to discuss your visit to the photographer yet. Mother said she was impressed with all the options.’
‘I wanted to talk to you about that. You’ll never guess …’ she started to say, but the classical ring of Timothy’s mobile cut her short – classical, literally. It was Bach’s Cello Suite, which she only knew because Timothy had told her. He tried his best to encourage her to like classical music too, but she wasn’t really in to it.
‘Morning, Mother.’
Cassie stifled a groan. Sylvia could talk for England, and now there wouldn’t be time for her to slip in that she knew Jared. She couldn’t make out what Sylvia was saying but could tell from Timothy’s end of the conversation that she was singing I.D.’s praises.
‘Mother wanted to know if we’ve looked through the list of photographic services I.D. offer,’ Timothy said when he’d finally managed to end the call – by which time Cassie had finished her bowl of muesli and low-fat yoghurt. ‘We must go through them tonight. Is there anything you particularly wanted?’
‘I like the idea of the pre-wedding shots.’ She lifted the tray onto the bedside table. ‘And they provide a mini studio on the day for guests, which might be fun. Oh and J.M. wants to do a venue visit, so he can get the feel of the place and work out where to take the best shots.’ She hadn’t meant to sound so enthusiastic, but it was difficult not to be. I.D. Images offered an enticing variety of photography packages to ensure its clients’ wedding days were special ones. She’d be totally made up to have I.D. as their wedding photographers if it wasn’t Jared taking the photos. She must tell Timothy about him and she had to do it now before she lost her nerve. She leant forward and touched him lightly on the arm.
‘I couldn’t believe it when I saw who the photographer was …’ she started to say, but Timothy stood up.
‘Can we talk about this later, sweetheart? I really need to go. I’ve got a meeting with Felicity before court begins.’ He bent over and kissed her on the forehead. ‘We’ll sit down tonight and talk about it, I promise.’
‘Yes, of course, it’s just that …’ she hesitated. If she insisted on telling Timothy about Jared now she would make it seem like their past relationship was important, and it wasn’t. She and Jared were over long ago. Best to wait until tonight and casually slip it into conversation.
‘No problem. I hope it goes well today.’ She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down towards her for a proper goodbye kiss. All she got was a quick peck and then Timothy was gone. Ah well, it was time she got ready to go to work too. She wanted to be at the Discover France show early as it was bound to be packed. Then she had to interview up-and-coming author Alex Hawkins, whose latest crime novel was racing up the charts. She got out of bed and headed for the shower.
The traffic was bad so it was a little after ten when she arrived at the plush hotel where the Discover France show was being held. Crowds of people were already milling around the thirty or so tables placed around the outside walls of the room. Craig waved to her over the crowd.
‘Anything interesting?’ she asked as she joined him.
‘There’s some fantastic venues. I’ve left my card with some exhibitors. I’m hoping to get a free press trip.’
‘You and me both.’ She grinned. ‘A few days in France is just what I could do with right now.’
‘Go for it. I reckon you could talk a few of them here in to buying advertising space in your column. They could bill themselves as honeymoon destinations,’ Craig carefully placed his camera in its case and zipped it up. ‘Oh, and there’s a stand advertising wedding venues so that must be worth a look. I can’t think of the name but it’s near the back of the room.’
‘Really? Brill, I’ll certainly check them out.’
‘I’ve got to go. I’ve got a couple of jobs to do before the author interview. I’ll see you there at 2.30.’ Craig disappeared into the crowd before she could reply, anxious to get to the next job, as usual. As they both worked on a small local paper, there was always plenty of work to do and they both often flitted from job to job.
She wanted to spend a bit of time here though, to see if she could get a couple of advertising features out of it for the Summer Wedding Supplement and bring in some much needed income for the paper. That would please Owen. So she wandered around, stopping to talk to a few of the exhibitors, swapping business cards with those interested in advertising space and noting down information of others that she thought Owen might be interested in doing a feature on. As she passed an exhibition near the back, a poster of a medieval château set in beautiful countryside caught her eyes. Beneath it was another château, this time by a lake. Intrigued, she looked at the name of the stand Romantic Wedding Venues. That must be the one Craig mentioned, and he was right. It was ideal for her column.
A young couple sat on the chairs at the table, talking to the fair-haired woman behind it, so Cassie took a handful of brochures to glance through while she waited. The company, L’Amour, was based in the Dordogne region. It looked stunning. Now she wouldn’t mind going there.
Finally the couple got up, shook hands, and left. Cassie sat down, smiling brightly.
‘Hi, I’m writing a wedding diary for the local paper,’ she explained, handing the woman her card. ‘We’d be very interested in writing a feature on you.’
‘That would be excellent. We’re hoping to organise a press trip in a few weeks,’ the woman replied. ‘Let me tell you a bit about our company and I can contact you once the trip is organised.’
Cassie listened fascinated as the woman, Adele, showed her the photos of the different châteaux they represented, and outlined the services they offered. One château, a seventeenth century castle in the Champagne region, was particularly gorgeous. A dream wedding location. If only she and Timothy hadn’t rushed their wedding plans they could have done something like that, she thought wistfully. They hadn’t even had chance to discuss wedding options. Sylvia had heard about the cancellation at Hollington Castle and pushed them in to booking it. Pushed them into everything.
‘It’s beautiful, isn’t it?’ Adele said. ‘The hosts have only recently joined our list. The château was refurbished last year and then opened for wedding functions. They’re offering very good rates at the moment. Would you be interested in visiting it and including it in your wedding feature?’
‘Definitely,’ Cassie nodded. A few days in France were just what she needed. Of course, she’d have to sell it to Owen and persuade him to give her a few days off work to go but she didn’t think that would be a problem. She could get several holiday and wedding features out of the trip, enough to supply the weekend section for a few weeks at least.
Adele promised to email her within the next couple of weeks with more details so Cassie picked up a few brochures to take back for Owen then moved on to the other exhibitions. She left a couple of hours later with a goody bag of French chocolates, pens, bookmarks, and brochures. She’d thoroughly enjoyed the morning but now it was time to meet Craig and interview Alex
It was a difficult interview. Alex liked to talk and the success of his book had obviously gone to his head. Cassie had trouble keeping him on track and he refused to answer some of her questions, such as what difficulties he’d encountered or any negatives he’d experienced or rejections he’d had. Alex was determined to portray himself as a successful author whose star had always shone bright. Which was a shame, as readers preferred to read about the struggles people had overcome to get where they were – it made them appear more human. Still, she recorded the interview – with Alex’s permission – ready to write up later. Rather than pose for a photograph Alex insisted on handing them a publicity one, along with a promo sheet so they could write a short biography about him, which seriously peeved Craig off. He complained loudly as soon as they got out about how it was a waste of his time when he could have been doing another job. All in all, Cass
ie was glad to call it a day.
Timothy was already home when she got in and she could tell by the big grin on his face that he’d won the case. He was sitting on the cream leather sofa in the lounge flicking through the leaflets Jared had given her yesterday. ‘There’s a good choice,’ he said. ‘The Story Book albums are nice, but I prefer the traditional style. They offer a bespoke service too, which sounds ideal. We can design our wedding album exactly how we want it. What do you think?’
She preferred the traditional style too and had been quite taken with the bespoke albums. There was a variety of page plans to choose from, even some vignettes. ‘Yes, that would be lovely. Perhaps we could match the album cover with our wedding theme?’ she suggested.
‘Good idea. Have we decided on a theme yet?’ Timothy’s voice was laced with amusement.
Of course they hadn’t. Timothy had been too wrapped up in his court case but now it was over perhaps they could start planning the wedding together without Sylvia butting in. ‘No, it’s on our to-do list. Along with wedding invites. We really need to send them out as soon as we can.’
‘Yes, we do. How about we discuss it over dinner? I’ve booked us a table at Alberto’s for eight. That should give you plenty of time to shower and get changed.’
‘Really? Oh, lovely.’ They hadn’t dined out for a while and Alberto’s was their favourite restaurant. It was where Timothy had taken her on their very first date, and where he’d proposed, of course. It was evident that he wanted this to be a special occasion.
‘I thought that emerald green dress might be nice. Up to you, of course. Wear whatever you feel comfortable in.’
‘I thought the red one …’ She saw the frown cross Timothy’s face and quickly retraced. ‘Maybe it’s a bit bright. I’ll try them both on and see.’
In the end she decided on the green dress. She knew that Timothy liked it and she wanted tonight to be perfect. It was the first chance they’d had to talk to each other properly for ages and she was really looking forward to it.
Jared noticed her as soon as she walked in. She looked sensational in a long, emerald green dress that clung in all the right places. She looked happy too – her eyes were bright, sparkling, and she was laughing at something her companion was saying, a laugh that spread to her eyes. She was leaning very close to him, her arm hooked through his, her whole body language saying that she was in love. So this must be Timothy Campbell, the man she was going to marry. Tall, immaculately groomed, his fair hair obviously styled by a professional, his suit expertly cut. His whole manner shouted both money and authority. This was a man used to getting what he wanted.
They were so engrossed in each other that she didn’t notice him sitting at the table in the corner. She floated past, still talking animatedly to the guy on her arm.
‘Someone you know?’ Savannah asked curiously.
Jared nodded. ‘Clients. I’m going to be photographing their wedding.’ He forced himself not to stare at the seductive way the silky material clung to Cassie’s hips as she sashayed over to the table in the window and turned his attention to the beautiful, perfectly groomed brunette sitting opposite him. ‘It’s good to have you back. How long are you in London for?’
‘Only until the weekend. I’m off to Cape Verde on Saturday. I’m modelling beachwear so we’ll be there for a couple of days. It’ll be exhausting, of course. People think it’s so easy to be a model but they don’t realise just what’s involved.’
Jared tried to pay attention as Savannah related all that was expected of her during a photoshoot and not to let his gaze wander over to Cassie, who fortunately had her back to him. Even if she hadn’t, he doubted she would have noticed him; she was too wrapped up in Timothy. Well, he was glad she’d found happiness, it made him feel less guilty about breaking her heart all those years ago. It just proved he’d done the right thing for both of them. It would have been a disaster if they’d married.
‘Jared?’
Savannah’s petulant voice broke through his thoughts. ‘You haven’t been listening to a word I’ve been saying, have you?’
‘Of course I have, you were telling me about your modelling trip.’ He smiled and gazed straight into her eyes, knowing she could never resist that. ‘Sorry if I seemed a bit absent, I was thinking how lucky the photographers were. That’s one photoshoot I’d love to be on.’ Women like Savannah always liked lots of flattery.
‘Really? Well, maybe I could recommend you to the agency for my next shoot.’ She leant forward and clasped his hand. ‘It would be lovely to work together. And we’d have the evenings free so we could spend some time together, instead of snatching a couple of hours here and there.’
‘Sounds good to me. And talking about spending the evening together, how about I get the bill and we head back to mine? I’ve a bottle of very nice white chilling in the fridge just waiting to be opened.’
She clasped his hand tight, her heavily mascaraed eyes gazing into his. ‘Sounds perfect.’
The last person Cassie had expected to bump into was Jared. When she’d spotted him sitting at the table with the stunning brunette she’d wanted to walk right back out again. She hadn’t seen him for seven years and now he was everywhere she turned. Well, she wasn’t going to let him know she’d noticed him. Then she wouldn’t have to acknowledge him. Clutching Timothy’s arm tightly she’d fixed her attention on her fiancé and glided past Jared’s table without even a sideways glance.
Timothy had reserved them an intimate table in the corner of the restaurant, lit by the warm glow of a thick white candle in a red hurricane lamp. A single red rose was placed in a bud vase by her place, reminiscent of their engagement night. Cassie felt a thrill of pleasure as she sat down, her back to Jared. She could feel his eyes on her but refused to look around, focusing all her attention on Timothy. This was their evening and she wasn’t going to let Jared spoil it. She couldn’t be happier. She was marrying the man of her dreams. He was kind, considerate, understanding. All she ever wanted in a partner.
As the evening passed she toyed with the idea of glancing around to look for the loo, pretending to notice Jared for the first time and introducing him to Timothy. Casually telling him that Jared was going to be their photographer, of giving a little laugh and saying ‘Would you believe it? Jared and I actually dated for a while many years ago, didn’t we, Jared?’ It’s what she should do. It was the perfect opportunity, but she just couldn’t. She didn’t want anything to spoil this evening. She and Timothy had hardly spent any time together for ages. She’d tell him tomorrow.
Five
The news room was buzzing when Cassie walked in the next morning. Owen called her before she even got to her desk – there had been a smash and grab at a local jewellers and he wanted her to chase up the story. She spent the morning interviewing the staff and witnesses and then typing up a report for the next day’s paper. By the time she’d sent it over to Gary, the sub-editor, it was almost time for lunch.
‘How’s the wedding diary coming on?’ Owen asked, coming out of his office. ‘I need it by four.’
‘You’ll have it,’ she promised. She’d brought her memory stick with her. It wouldn’t take long to finish what she’d started Monday night. She’d do that now and then go to lunch.
Owen gave her the thumbs up and went back into his office.
‘Lucky you, having a regular column.’ Beth sat down at the desk next to her. Beth worked part-time and had just arrived for her shift. ‘How are you getting on with it?’
‘OK, but I wish it was about something more exciting than planning a wedding.’ Cassie slipped her memory stick into the hard drive.
Beth grinned. ‘I have noticed you don’t seem as carried away by all the preparations as brides usually are. I don’t think there’s any danger of you turning in to a bridezilla.’
Cassie selected the ‘Almost a Bride’ file, opened it, and saved it to her computer. ‘No chance. I mean I’m looking forward to marrying Timothy, of course I am
, but I think there’s far too much fuss made over weddings. It’s almost as if it’s all just about the day and it isn’t, it’s about the rest of your lives together.’ As she said the words her future life with Timothy flashed across her mind: living in his minimalist apartment, hosting stuffy dinner parties, putting up with Sylvia interfering with everything they did. She shook her head. It wouldn’t be like that at all. They’d buy a house together, make it theirs. Not that they’d discussed that yet, they’d hardly had time to discuss anything but she was sure Timothy would want that too. As for Sylvia, like most mothers, she was trying to help because she wanted the wedding to be perfect. She’d be fine when it was over.
Cassie read through the draft she’d written yesterday. Owen had told her he wanted the column to run for eight weeks and to cover at least one topic each week, so she started by saying she had two months to plan her wedding and her first step was choosing the venue. She chatted on about deciding whether to get married abroad or at home, whether to have a small family wedding or a larger one, giving the pros and cons of each. She ended by giving a few hints about how to decide what venue to choose then read it through. The style was light, chatty, informative – and made it sound like planning a wedding was no bother at all.
Not at all what planning a wedding was really like! Well, planning her wedding anyway. She sighed, leant back in her chair, and flexed her shoulders.
‘What’s up?’ Beth glanced over.
‘I’m not sure about this column. It sounds boring.’
‘Let me take a look.’ Beth leant over her shoulder. ‘It sounds fine, and I like the options you’ve given the reader at the end. It’s a good idea to ask them to choose what sort of wedding to have. If I ever got married again I’d opt for a wedding abroad – it saves a lot of expense and drama.’
That’s exactly what Cassie had planned to do. What she’d still like to do.