Starry Skies at Castle Court

by Holly Hepburn

  ‘Done?’ she’d asked her friend, squeezing her arm in a mixture of sympathy and solidarity.

  Sadie had swallowed hard and managed a brave smile. ‘Done.’

  Her bravery was wavering by Friday and Cat wasn’t entirely surprised when Sadie asked if she would mind two house guests on Friday night. It wasn’t that Cat minded their company; they’d ordered pizza and played silly games until Lissy began to yawn. Then Sadie and Cat had stayed up late, talking and reminiscing, and that was fine too. What Cat had found hard to cope with was the Lissy invasion at the crack of dawn, roaring like a T. Rex and demanding a fight to the death.

  ‘There was a lot more dinosaur talk than I’m used to,’ Cat told Delilah wearily. ‘Especially at 4.48 in the morning.’

  ‘Bless her little heart,’ Delilah said indulgently. ‘She’s had a rough time herself.’

  Cat couldn’t argue, although she’d been amazed at the way Lissy had coped with the news that Daddy was moving out. She’d been quiet initially, Sadie said, but then had accepted the news and asked for a bowl of ice cream. Cat supposed it helped that Andrew and Earl had been only too delighted to have a dinosaur flower girl and Lissy was now the proud owner of a size five to six years triceratops suit.

  Cat stretched and sighed. ‘I suppose we’d better get a move on. Our gift is going to take a bit of reassembling. I only hope I remember which piece goes where – Sadie will kill me if I get it wrong.’

  ‘We’ll manage,’ Delilah reassured her. ‘And there’s always the internet if we get stuck.’

  By eleven o’clock, things were starting to happen in the Court. The caterers had set up in the kitchen of Let’s Go Dutch and Cat had given permission for the wine waiters to use La Clé d’Argent as their base. The celebrant had arrived too and had been greeted by the brunette woman Cat had seen talking to Adam at the stag party. And Cat and Delilah had laid wedding favours on every seat, along with the order of service, and put the finishing touches to their surprise gift to the grooms.

  Cat checked the time and let out a yelp. ‘Time for me to get ready. Let me know when Sadie and Lissy arrive, please, Delilah?’ She paused on her way to the stairs that led to the basement and glanced at the satin-covered mountain that sat on top of the Smart Cookies counter. ‘And guard that with your life.’

  She’d just applied her lipstick when she heard Delilah calling her. ‘Yoo hoo – are you decent?’

  Cat grinned. ‘As decent as I’ll ever be. Send them down.’

  But it wasn’t Sadie and Lissy who made their way to the basement. It was Elin.

  Cat watched the elegant blonde woman walk down the last few steps. ‘Hello. This is a surprise.’

  Elin didn’t smile. ‘How are you, Cat?’

  Better than you, by the looks of things, Cat thought but she didn’t say it. Elin had the world-weary look of a woman who’d been disappointed too many times. ‘I’m fine. Looking forward to celebrating with Andrew and Earl. How are you?’

  Elin gave her a bleak smile. ‘Oh, you know. Up and down. But I didn’t come here to exchange pleasantries. I understand you had a conversation with Seb last week.’

  ‘That’s right,’ Cat said, suddenly wary.

  ‘What did he tell you?’

  Cat frowned. Had Elin seen her skulking underneath the tree with Seb and put two and two together to make six? Was that what this was about? ‘Jaren, mostly. Why?’

  The Swiss woman did not seem surprised. ‘Let me guess – he was warning you off.’

  Now Cat’s eyebrows shot up in astonishment. ‘That’s right – how did you know?’

  ‘Because he’s jealous,’ Elin said bluntly. ‘Of Jaren and Adam and anyone else he thinks might be a rival. If Andrew and Earl weren’t getting married today, I’m sure he’d develop an unreasonable dislike of them too, despite the fact that they’ve been together for seventeen years.’

  ‘But why would Seb be jealous?’ Cat said, with a sceptical shrug. ‘He cheated on me with you. There’s no way he can pretend to still be interested in me.’

  Elin let out a hollow laugh. ‘You’d think so, wouldn’t you? But Seb’s one of those men who always wants what he can’t have. When he had you, he wanted me. And now that he’s got me . . .’

  Understanding washed over Cat. ‘He wants me.’

  Elin nodded in mute resignation.

  ‘But—’ Cat paused, going back over her conversation with Seb the week before. ‘He told me you’d said Jaren wasn’t really interested in me. He said Jaren was still in love with you.’

  ‘I thought it might be something like that,’ Elin said, with a soft sigh. ‘He lied, I’m afraid. Jaren was never in love with me. As a matter of fact, I think he’s always been in love with you.’

  The words jolted through Cat like electricity. ‘You’re wrong.’

  ‘I assure you I am not,’ Elin said, the ghost of a smile flickering across her face. ‘Believe me, I’ve seen the way he looks at you, the way he has always looked at you. And you should have seen the way he raced into the flood waters to rescue you – if that isn’t love, I don’t know what is.’

  Jaren loves me, Cat thought, testing the idea out. Could it be true? And then something else occurred to her; how dispirited must Elin be feeling, when it turned out both the men in her life were carrying a torch for the same woman? ‘Oh, Elin, I’m sorry. You must hate me.’

  ‘Of course I don’t,’ Elin replied, although she looked a long way from happy. ‘But I do want something good to come out of this mess. Jaren is a good man and he deserves to be happy. I hope you might be the person to do that.’

  Cat could have wept; if only Elin had spoken to her earlier, before she’d told Jaren they could only ever be business partners. Now it was too late. ‘I don’t know – it’s complicated.’

  ‘Then uncomplicate it,’ the Swiss woman urged. ‘Don’t wait for the problems to unknot themselves. Be happy now, Cat.’

  Could it work? Cat asked herself. More importantly, could she take a risk that it might all go wrong and cause ripples in her professional life? ‘I’ll think about it,’ she said slowly, then her eyes met Elin’s. ‘But what about you? What are you going to do?’

  Elin sighed. ‘Join a convent? I’m sure they’d welcome a chocolatier.’

  Cat smiled. ‘I’m sure they would.’

  ‘But maybe I’ll just try celibacy for a while,’ Elin went on. ‘There’s no need to go overboard, after all.’

  ‘Thank you,’ Cat said, closing the gap between them to take Elin’s hand. ‘I know this can’t have been easy for you.’

  ‘No,’ Elin said, her mouth twisting into a sad smile. ‘But it’s been harder on you. I’m glad I can unpick some of the damage I caused, at least.’

  A roar floated down the stairs, causing both women to look up.

  ‘I think that means Lissy’s here,’ Cat said, her lips quirking into a half-smile. ‘And if Lissy is here then the grooms can’t be far away. We’d better go and find a seat.’

  ‘Try to sit next to Jaren,’ Elin whispered as they reached the top of the stairs. ‘A wedding is a good time to show someone you love them, right?’

  With one final look, she was gone, leaving Cat to stare after her.

  ‘Everything okay?’ Sadie asked, frowning. ‘What did Elin want?’

  ‘Oh, nothing,’ Cat said hastily. ‘Something to do with the bistro, that’s all.’ She turned her attention to Lissy, who was clutching a small, hand-tied bouquet to her bright-green triceratops outfit, and patted her cream-coloured horns. ‘Look at you and your lovely lilac flowers. I hope you’re not going to eat them on the way down the aisle.’

  Sadie let out a strangled groan. ‘Please don’t give her ideas. If we end up in A&E later, I’m blaming you.’

  *

  Lissy did not eat the flowers. Instead, she followed sedately behind Andrew and Earl, roaring quietly at the assembled guests as a harp played. And behind Lissy came Kirsty and Lara, each in fitted lilac dresses that matched the col
our of Lissy’s flowers perfectly. Their bouquets were twin tumbles of greenery to mirror Lissy’s triceratops scales. Sadie held her breath as they passed and let out a heartfelt sigh of relief when the procession reached the front without mishap. Now she could relax into enjoying the ceremony, she thought, until she caught sight of Lissy’s horns bobbing up and down in the front row. Mostly relax, she corrected herself silently.

  ‘Look at those suits,’ Cat whispered as they settled into their seats again.

  Sadie nodded. Earl, always the more flamboyant of the two, wore a white morning suit with a slate-grey cravat. And Andrew was his mirror, in a grey morning suit with cream accessories. They both removed their top hats, handing them to Kirsty and Lara before turning to face the celebrant.

  She spread her hands and smiled. ‘Friends, we have gathered here today to witness the marriage of Andrew and Earl and celebrate the love they share. My name is Juliet and I have the great pleasure of performing the ceremony today.’

  Everyone’s attention was fixed on Andrew and Earl. Sadie took the opportunity to study Adam’s profile. He’d sat in the row in front of her, a few seats along, so she could appreciate how good he looked in his suit without making it obvious what she was doing. Nothing escaped Cat’s notice, however. She leaned towards Sadie. ‘Scrubs up well, doesn’t he?’

  Sadie gave a slight shake of her head, hoping she wasn’t as red as she felt, and saw Cat grin as she sat back. As the ceremony went on, Sadie found her gaze drawn back to Adam more and more often, until she began to worry he must be able to feel her staring. Fixing her eyes on the grooms, she concentrated on the vows.

  Earl cleared his throat. ‘Andrew, from the first moment we met, you have brought me joy. I promise to do everything in my power to return that joy to you. In this world, I believe everyone is capable of choosing love and that when we open our hearts, amazing things happen. I will always be grateful that you chose to love me and I promise to always love you.’

  Sadie felt her eyes swim with tears. ‘How beautiful,’ she murmured to Cat, who took her hand and gripped it hard.

  Then it was Andrew’s turn. ‘Earl, you are Leia to my Han, Snape to my Dumbledore, Picard to my Riker. I promise to always return your “I love you”, to keep our unbreakable vow and to make it so whenever I can. Together, we’ll boldly go where no one has gone before.’

  Spontaneous cheering broke out here and there. Sadie glanced at Cat and saw that her friend’s eyes were now suspiciously damp too.

  Juliet smiled. ‘Lovely. And now the rings.’

  Lara and Kirsty stepped forwards, each carrying a cushion that matched the grooms’ suits.

  Juliet turned to Earl. ‘Do you, Earl Eric Jones, take this man, Andrew Godric Samuels, to be your husband?’

  Earl gazed at Andrew with such tenderness that Sadie allowed a small sob to escape her.

  ‘I do,’ he said, sliding a golden band onto his finger.

  ‘And do you, Andrew Godric Samuels, take Earl Eric Jones to be your husband?’

  Andrew took Earl’s hand and beamed at him as he put the ring on. ‘I do.’

  Sadie sniffed. The other guests smiled and Adam twisted in his seat to hand her a fresh tissue. Beside her, Cat winked.

  ‘I now pronounce you partners for life,’ Juliet said. ‘You may kiss the groom.’

  As they leaned towards each other, the congregation got to their feet and burst into applause. Sadie dabbed at her eyes with Adam’s tissue and cheered as loudly as she could.

  Holding hands, Andrew and Earl made their way down the aisle, grinning as though their faces would split, although their progress was slowed by the number of guests trying to shake their hands. Lissy hopped along behind, waving her bouquet like a floral lightsaber. Sadie blew her daughter a kiss as she passed by and was rewarded with a beatific smile. And at the rear came Kirsty and Lara, arm in arm.

  ‘If that doesn’t restore your faith in love then nothing will,’ Cat said, with evident satisfaction.

  Adam turned around. ‘Amazing ceremony.’ He grinned at Sadie. ‘I think everyone will be having dino-maids next year.’

  The pop of champagne corks announced that drinks were being served and the guests started to drift away.

  ‘Warm, isn’t it?’ Cat said, fanning herself with the order of service. ‘Why don’t I go and grab us some drinks?’

  She gave Sadie a meaningful stare before making her way towards the bistro. Adam watched her stop to tickle Lissy, then turned back to Sadie. ‘Lissy did so well. You must be very proud of her.’

  ‘I am,’ Sadie said, smiling. ‘I brought a change of clothes – it’s too hot for her to stay in that triceratops suit all day but I don’t suppose I’ll be able to get her out of it. Today was basically a dream come true for her.’

  ‘I can imagine.’ Adam said, laughing. He glanced around. ‘No Daniel today?’

  Sadie felt her good mood slip. ‘No. Not today. Or any day for that matter.’ She took a deep breath and looked him squarely in the eye. ‘We’ve split up, for good this time.’

  Adam’s face fell. ‘Bloody hell, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have mentioned him.’

  ‘It’s okay,’ Sadie reassured him. ‘I’m fine, really. It was a bit of a shock and I’m still adjusting but – well, as you know, I’ve had my doubts for a while now and let’s just say he confirmed them in spectacular fashion.’

  ‘Not—’ Adam said, breaking off with a hesitant look.

  Sadie nodded. ‘Yes, he was having an affair, with the same woman as before.’ She drew in a long, ragged breath. ‘It’s been going on for months. In fact, I’m not sure he ever really stopped seeing her.’

  ‘Fuck,’ Adam swore, then blushed a deep crimson. ‘Sorry. But I can’t get my head around it. Why would he even so much as look at another woman when he had you?’

  The compliment caused all the air to whoosh from Sadie’s lungs. She gazed up at him, feeling slightly dazed and not sure how to respond without seeming to agree with him. Adam noticed her discomfort and blushed even harder. ‘Sorry,’ he said again. ‘I’m sure the last thing you need is idiots like me saying stuff like that. But the real moron here is Daniel.’

  ‘Hear, hear,’ Cat said, materialising at Adam’s elbow and handing him a flute of champagne. ‘I will most definitely drink to that.’

  She passed the second glass to Sadie and raised her own into the air. ‘To Daniel, for finally showing his true colours and setting Sadie free at last.’

  Now it was Sadie’s turn to flush scarlet but she lifted her glass all the same. ‘To the future.’

  ‘To the future,’ Adam and Cat both echoed.

  ‘Mummy, Mummy, did you hear me roar?’ Lissy came barrelling towards them, her face alight with happiness. ‘Andrew says I was the best triceratops flower girl he’s ever had and he’s going to throw a dinosaur party in the diner to say thank you and I can invite all my friends!’

  Sadie laughed as the little girl wrapped her arms around her legs in a sweaty hug. ‘That’s amazing, and of course I heard you roar. Adam says he thinks everyone is going to want a dinosaur for a bridesmaid now.’

  Lissy shot Adam a worried look. ‘But I don’t know if I can go to all of their weddings. What if they live a long way away?’

  ‘Don’t worry, I expect there are plenty of other children who would love to wear a dinosaur suit to a wedding,’ Sadie said, smoothing Lissy’s damp hair from her forehead. ‘Speaking of which – do you think it might be time to get changed? You look awfully hot in there.’

  ‘No,’ Lissy said instantly, shaking her head. ‘I’m not hot.’

  Sadie studied her daughter’s red cheeks and feverish eyes. ‘I disagree. Come on, let’s go and find you something cooler to wear. You can still be a triceratops on the inside.’

  ‘That’s true,’ Adam confirmed. ‘I’m actually a diplodocus.’

  Lissy eyed him suspiciously. ‘If that’s true then what do you eat?’

  ‘Leaves, mostly,’ Adam said, not missi
ng a beat. ‘Ice cream, if I can get it. Look, there’s a stand over there. Maybe we can go and get some once you’ve got changed.’

  The little girl nodded, evidently satisfied he’d passed the test. ‘Okay. As long as I don’t have to wear a dress.’

  Sadie smiled. ‘No, Lissy. I wouldn’t dream of it.’ She handed her champagne to Cat. ‘Sorry. Mummy duty calls.’

  ‘See you soon,’ Cat called.

  By the time Sadie came back, with a noticeably cooler Lissy dressed in shorts and a dinosaur T-shirt, Adam was nowhere to be seen.

  ‘You didn’t say anything to him, did you?’ Sadie asked Cat, grabbing her champagne flute and taking a long sip.

  ‘Of course not,’ Cat said innocently. ‘We both stood here entirely mute for several minutes and then he went off to find the toilets.’

  ‘Cat,’ Sadie warned.

  Her friend rolled her eyes. ‘All right, if you must know, he asked me how you were coping and I said not brilliantly but you were getting there.’

  ‘Cat!’

  ‘What? It’s the truth,’ Cat said. She glanced at Lissy, whose attention had been caught by another child wearing a similar T-shirt on the other side of the Court, and lowered her voice. ‘I didn’t suggest he gave you a practical lesson on the birds and the bees at the first opportunity. But I did tell him that I knew you valued his friendship and friends were something you really needed right now.’

  Sadie opened and closed her mouth. ‘Thank you,’ she said after a few seconds had passed. She caught sight of Elin and remembered the evasive look she’d seen in Cat’s eyes earlier. ‘So, are you going to tell me what Elin wanted or do I have to go and ask her myself? And don’t say it was something to do with the bistro. I’ve known you for over twenty-five years, Cat Garcia – I know when you’re lying.’

  Her friend hesitated, then sighed. ‘Okay, I’ll tell you. But you have to promise not to lecture me or tell me how stupid I’ve been.’

  Sadie was intrigued. ‘I promise.’

  She listened as Cat explained first about her conversation with Seb, then the discussion she’d had with Jaren and finally what Elin had revealed that morning.