by Carol Thomas
Hope you’ve had a really great time and you’re feeling more relaxed now. Really looking forward to seeing you tomorrow. So excited… Dum-dum-de-dum… xxx
Excited was perhaps a bit of an overstatement. As optimistic as she was, in truth, Abby was still a little scared that watching the happy couple exchange vows might just tip her over the edge. Taking a deep breath she reminded herself yet again that she just had to get through the service and focus on enjoying the less formal parts of the day.
Before Abby reached the end of the road Melissa text back. Pulling in, Abby read: Who, me? What makes you think I needed to relax? Haha, sorry I’ve been a bit of a Bridezilla lately. Thanks so much for the text. See you tomorrow. I’ll be the one in white ;-) xxx
Abby smiled. The pre-wedding spa organised by Melissa’s bridesmaids as a hen do was clearly having the desired effect on the bride-to-be. She had been so tense with nerves over the recent weeks Abby thought she might actually explode before she reached the aisle. Whisking her away as school broke up was an inspired plan – clearly her friends from college knew her well! Abby was pleased that Melissa was at last sounding like she might relax and enjoy her day. Smiling, and with the sound of Take That in the background, she set off. Only just over one hundred miles to go!
After one hundred and sixteen miles, one toilet stop, half her bottle of Diet Coke, the entire packet of fruit pastilles, three CD changes and a slight delay at Newbury, Sally was announcing Abby’s arrival at her destination on the left. All Abby could see was a long stone wall and dense trees beyond. Typical, she thought, wishing she had printed out the exact directions from Google Maps. Tapping her thumbs on the steering wheel she sat up taller in her seat as if that was going to make the place appear before her. She pondered pulling over and ringing somebody for help… but who? She couldn’t trouble Melissa, Patty wasn’t staying over until after the wedding and she didn’t really want to confess to Brad that she was lost, having turned down his offer of a lift. She looked at her phone, deciding that there must be others from school that would help. No signal, typical! Attempting to remain calm she continued down the road; if need be she could ask for directions in the next village. The road seemed to go on for ages, testing Abby’s patience and causing her jaw to ache as she realised she was clenching her teeth.
It wasn’t until she turned the next bend that she breathed a sigh of relief and sat back in her seat at the sight of the large open gates of the Elysium Park Hotel. As she turned into the long, sweeping driveway her eyes goggled. Bloody hell! Melissa had said it was beautiful but this was quite breathtaking. The building, standing proud and elegantly lit in the evening light, looked like it belonged in a BBC Jane Austen adaptation; Abby was sure it must have once been a grand stately home. Winding her way along the gravel driveway she wished she had cleaned her car, or that she was driving a much posher car; or better still that she was riding a horse! That would have been oh so much more fitting to the stunning setting. Not that she could actually ride a horse (but that was an irrelevant detail in the scheme of Abby’s fantasy). She couldn’t see it all clearly in the evening light but the hotel seemed to be set in acres of idyllic countryside. It was quite perfect. The wall and dense trees she had followed along the road must have been hiding the grounds. Sorry Sally, it seems you were right after all.
As Abby got out of her car and stretched, she half-expected Mr Darcy to come striding through the undergrowth, wet from his cooling dip in water she couldn’t actually see anywhere, white shirt clinging in all the right places. Oh yes, this was the type of place where such fantasies happened; Abby’s imagination could go quite crazy in this stunning setting. She took a picture with her phone, which annoyingly didn’t really do the place justice, and sent it to her mum and Kennedy with the message:
Arrived safely, just awaiting Mr Darcy and the weekend can begin! xx
Her hand hovered while she wondered if she should send it to Simon. But after his several “don’t forget I love you” statements as she attempted to leave, which she was pretty sure roughly translated as ‘please don’t get off with Bradley Hunter’, she thought he wouldn’t appreciate the humour. But she knew her mum and Kennedy would love it. Like her, they couldn’t resist a costume drama. Who can resist a bit of Mr Darcy from time to time?
“You OK there?”
Abby swung round, taken aback by the deep voice from behind.
“Bloody hell Brad, you made me jump. I thought you were…” Abby bit her lip and thanked everything that was holy that she managed to keep the next stupid words from leaving her mouth.
Brad tilted his head quizzically and unleashed a very lovely grin.
As her heart pounded with what she thought must be the shock of being made jump Abby fought for something sensible to say. “Amazing isn’t it… been here long?”
“Since six, it’s a bit quiet.” Brad did a frosty style shake.
Not that she would have believed it a few months back but peace and quiet and staying in that beautiful building sounded perfect to Abby. The weekend was looking better by the minute. She hoped she would have a room high enough for a good view.
“Dare I be a gentleman and offer to take your bag?” Brad motioned with a way-too-cheeky grin.
Abby blushed. “It’s alright, honestly, it’s not even heavy.” No stupid comments today, well done me!
They walked towards the natural stone building, its grandeur and the heady scent of the roses around the door becoming more apparent with every step. As Abby needed to check-in they headed for the reception.
The receptionist on the phone motioned for another member of staff, who approached the large, swooping oak-topped desk with a broad, overly lipsticked smile. “Good evening.”
Abby smiled. “Room for Turner, please?”
The young woman flicked her eyes down to the computer, clicking the mouse before lifting her head with a puzzled expression. “Are we expecting Mr and Mrs Turner?”
“No, no, no, just me…” Abby clarified, her cheeks glowing as she realised Brad had walked her all the way to the desk.
Brad coughed, a poor attempt at masking his giggle.
30
Abby had slept really well; too well. Perhaps staying for one too many nightcaps as the school crowd had grown in the hotel bar hadn’t been such a good idea. She had hoped to go down and sample the breakfast menu. Back when she and Simon stayed in hotels, when she used to wait for the weekend so she could join him at whatever conference or seminar he was attending, they always made it their mission to check out all the hotel facilities. It seemed rude not to when they were paying for it. Besides, it was all part of the fun, getting hot and steamy in the sauna, looking at each other longingly over breakfast, brushing up just a little too close in the pool. Abby lost count of the amount of times they had been almost caught in the lift, hands all over each other. Now the thought made her shudder. Those times had been theirs – now she couldn’t think of Simon in a hotel without thinking of him with her! She groaned at the thought of perhaps never quite being able to enjoy her memories again without them being slightly tainted.
Looking at her watch Abby realised breakfast in the restaurant had almost finished. There wasn’t really time to shower and make herself presentable enough to go down, not when almost all the hotel guests would be attending the wedding as well. She looked at the little kettle, bags of English breakfast tea, UHT milk and shortbread fingers on the dresser in the corner of her room. That’ll do, she thought, feeling a little too excited at having an excuse to unwrap the shortbread.
After the thrill of the outside of the building Abby had been a little disappointed with her room. It was rather more Miss Marple than Jane Austen in style. But at least it was clean and being located towards the back of the building, it was blissfully quiet. Yawning and stretching her way across the room, she opened the curtains; the evening light meant she had only got a glimpse of the view the night before. Abby smiled. It was beautiful; English countryside at its best. Despit
e the recent spell of hot weather the view was positively verdant. A velvet carpet of lush green grass rolled into the distance, merging effortlessly with a stretch of woodland where veteran sycamore and ash trees with their open headed canopies and irregular branches created an idyllic English skyline. Abby watched, amused, as a rabbit cheekily munched at the grass seemingly unaware of the peril of being out so boldly in broad daylight, and a male pheasant strutted out from the treeline. Perfect! It was only at that point that she noticed the golf buggy cutting across the green to the left. OK, so perhaps not quite perfect English countryside but she couldn’t deny it was a very pretty golf course.
With the wedding only a few hours away Abby decided she ought to start getting ready. She didn’t want to panic in the last hour and starting early meant she could have a soak in the lion-clawed bathtub before showering and straightening her hair. While the bath water was running she checked her phone: it was out of battery. Rummaging through her case Abby found her charger and plugged it in. As it slowly came to life, it buzzed repeatedly with several missed messages. Watching them all bounce up the screen she felt guilty for not having charged it before. She had meant to do it when she returned to her room. Unsure what had distracted her she reflected on her steamy shower and snuggling straight down between her Egyptian cotton sheets on her marshmallow bed. She hadn’t slept quite so well for a long time. When the texts stopped coming in, she noticed missed calls from Simon and her mum. Oh bugger! Slightly panicked that something might have happened she listened to her voice messages.
“Abby, the girls said to say goodnight. Hope you got there safely, I’ve sent you a text. Maybe you have no signal. Anyway, let me know you’re OK. We miss you.”
Abby smiled; if she was honest, being away from home she missed them all too. She realised that after deciding not to send Simon the Mr Darcy text she had forgotten to let him know she’d arrived – with the weird mood he was in when she left she was surprised he hadn’t sent out a search party. She decided she should text and apologise once she had dealt with her other messages.
“Abby, it’s Mum. Everything’s all fine but for goodness’ sake turn your phone on.”
Abby giggled; clearly her mum hadn’t quite thought that through. Aware that she most definitely had fulfilled her promise to let her know she’d arrived safely she wasn’t concerned; she would give her a call later when she could tell her all about the wedding.
Abby went to her text messages. Her interest was piqued when she saw that the most recent was from Melissa.
Missed you at breakfast, hope you’re enjoying your room. Wish me luck! xx
Abby was a little disappointed; she hadn’t realised Melissa would be at breakfast otherwise she would have made more of an effort to go down. She was also rather touched that she had taken the trouble to text her on her wedding morning. She text her good luck and sent her a hug.
The next in her long line of texts was from Brad: Had truly hoped to share breakfast with you this morning. Ah well, there’s always tomorrow xx
Cheeky! Abby laughed. While she repeatedly reminded herself that she wanted their relationship to remain strictly friends she was more than a little flattered by his attention and she was beginning to quite like it when he occasionally blurred the lines. Abby grinned, reflecting on the previous evening when he had insisted on sitting with her in the bar, buying her drinks and walking her up to her room, giving her a friendly kiss on the cheek that lingered oh just a little too long. Remembering how that kiss had fuelled her dreams, she flushed and realised why she had slept so very well.
Simon had left several texts. Before starting on them she flicked to those left by her mum and Kennedy. Kennedy was answering her Mr Darcy text, weirdly telling her not to do anything she might regret – what did that mean? It wasn’t the answer she was expecting. It was a joke! Abby rolled her eyes. Her mum had sent two texts, the first saying she was pleased she’d arrived safely, the next telling her off for not calling Simon. What? She flicked to Simon’s texts. Feeling a pang of guilt creeping over her, she scrolled to the first left and read down the screen:
Hope the journey went well. You should be there by now. Let me know you’re OK. Love you. xx
Abby? xx
Hope all is OK, text me. xx
Well your mum says you’re there safely. Text me when you get a chance. Enjoy your weekend but not too much ;-) Love you. xx
Abby cringed; she hadn’t wanted to worry him. The last text was sent at half ten – Oh bugger, he must have woken Mum. She read on:
Called your hotel. No answer from your room. Call me. xx
Oh no. She hadn’t answered and she hadn’t text or called either. She knew she didn’t really owe Simon any explanations, it wasn’t like she had to answer to him but really it all looked so bad. She searched for her bottle of water to refresh her dry mouth and slowly read the text again. Does he think I…? That I actually would…? Abby felt momentarily indignant before a picture of her with Brad, laughing, joking and drinking the night before, slipped into her mind. Would I? She shook her head and read on.
The girls slept well. Did you? They’d love to talk to you. xx
Saying the girls would love to talk to her was a way of getting her to call. She knew that, but now he’d said it she could hardly ignore it. She hesitated. Calling meant speaking to Simon and that would mean answering questions. The type of questions she wasn’t sure she could face. Not that she had done anything to feel guilty about, apart from not letting him know she’d arrived safely, which was thoughtless. And perhaps spending an evening in the bar chatting to Brad when she had implied she would be doing no such thing. But that was all. Well, that and the slow walk up to her room, where their hands had brushed together a few too many times, and that kiss. Hmm, that kiss! Abby shook her head, forcing herself to stay focused. It was just a kiss on the cheek, she reminded herself, pushing away the memory of how it had sent quivers through her body. Abby chewed on her lip and turned off the bath taps. After thinking it over she decided to ring the home phone, that way one of the girls might answer. Simon picked up after the first ring.
“Hello.” Abby’s voice came out too high. All she had done was say hello and she already sounded like she had done something wrong. Her heart pounded a little too fast.
“Abby, I was worried.”
Now she felt really guilty, he sounded genuinely concerned. It made her want to look him in the eyes; to reassure him the way she always did. “Si, my phone wasn’t charged, I’ve only just got your messages. I overslept.”
“Really? Why so tired?”
The tone of his voice made Abby defensive. “I don’t know – the journey, it being the end of term at school, the fact I’ve been coping with quite a lot lately. What do you think?” Her voice was rich with sarcasm, her inkling to reassure him forgotten.
“Yeah, of course, sorry. It’s just I rang you—”
“You don’t need to check up on me Simon.”
“I wasn’t, I just wanted to know you were safe. I was worried.”
“Worried about what? Did you call the hotel before or after you spoke to my mum, Simon? Before or after you knew I’d arrived safely?” She was aware she sounded like Columbo the way she was trying to catch him out. She knew the answer and deep down she knew she was reacting based on her own feelings of guilt.
“I wasn’t checking up on you. I thought your phone must need charging, it’s not like you not to answer. I was thinking of you in a hotel and it reminded me of when we used to have our weekends away, so I rang the hotel to surprise you.”
“Oh…” Abby swallowed hard and tried to rub away the knot in her stomach. She was pretty sure that wasn’t the only reason he’d called, but being jealous and reminding her of happier times they’d shared were hardly things she could be cross with him for. A part of her liked being able to stir those emotions in him, a part of her needed to know that he cared – enough.
“Did you like your flowers?”
“Flo
wers? What flowers?” Relieved to change the subject, she looked round the room but couldn’t see any.
“I had them delivered this morning.”
Ever since he had filled her lounge with freesias Simon had sent her a fresh bouquet every week. She had told him repeatedly he shouldn’t but he insisted she should take them, saying that she deserved beautiful things. Secretly she had come to look forward to their arrival; they were always gorgeous and never failed to make her smile.
“Si, I can’t see any flowers.”
“Check outside your door.”
Abby opened her door. Outside was a beautiful bouquet of hand-tied yellow roses with deep purple freesias. They were in a tall vase with a note: Wish I was there with you, S xx
She picked them up and inhaled their delicious scent. “They’re lovely, thank you. You really shouldn’t have.” She bit her lip. You really wouldn’t have if you had seen me in the bar with Brad last night.
“I like getting them for you.”
She could hear the satisfied smile in his tone.
“Abby, when I rang, I just wanted to hear your voice. Honestly… and I know I have no right to question you—”
“No, you don’t.” Except for the fact technically I am still your wife – I haven’t cleared up the issue as to whether I do or do not want to be with you because what you have done to us is driving me nuts, and I told you I wasn’t coming here to be with Brad and yet I spent the first available opportunity with him! Abby rubbed her hand across the back of her neck in an attempt to ease the tension she could feel building there.
“But when you didn’t answer—”
“I was just in the bar with friends from school.” She meant it to appease him but as the words came out she realised what she had said; what she had implied.
“Friends from school?” It was a loaded question; she knew what he was asking.