She conjured images of the mysterious eligible bachelor that Claudia had mentioned holding her in his arms as they danced. A new man was just what she needed to knock all thoughts of Jack out of her mind for good. She tried to quash any hope that swelled within her at the thought. The truth was she was desperate to meet someone to settle down with and she knew only too well that men could detect desperation on a woman like a bad smell.
Lucy approached her mirror and her make-up bag with determination. She smoothed her foundation over her face, watching any red marks and uneven patches of skin tone disappear as though being airbrushed away. A dusting of bronzer, a touch of pink blusher and a thick line of smudged black kohl around her eyes and she was nearly there. A final double coat of black mascara made the striking dark rings around her irises stand out in contrast to the blue of her eyes. She fluttered her eyelashes seductively at herself in the mirror, practising, just in case.
Lucy looked at the clock, 10.05 a.m., perfect timing. She dashed to the loo one last time, grabbed her canvas overnight bag, already packed, and her beautiful satin dress in its protective plastic sheath, and closed her green front door behind her, clattering down the three flights of stairs and blinking in the early morning sunlight as she emerged onto Mayfield Road. A feeling of huge excitement rippled through her, she was on her way! She whipped out her phone and sent Claudia a text.
All on schedule and so excited! Should be there by 12, can’t wait to see the beautiful BRIDE! L x
With that, Lucy made her way to Baron’s Court tube with a skip in her step. Not even the realization that the back of her skirt had been tucked into her knickers most of the way there, thanks to some rather overzealous honking of car horns, could dampen her spirits.
Chapter Two
A couple of hours later, as the train pulled slowly into the station, Lucy spotted Claudia’s sister-in-law Tara waiting on the platform. She looked radiant in a coral maxi dress and white jacket, one hand resting on her bump. Lucy suppressed a familiar twinge of jealousy.
Lucy descended from the train and made her way over to Tara, enveloping her in a hug.
‘It’s so good to see you! Look at your bump… how exciting!’ said Lucy. ‘It’s been far too long.’
‘I know, isn’t it ridiculous how time flies?’ Tara agreed as she guided Lucy away from the station. ‘I have to warn you, Luce, it’s complete chaos chez Reynolds, as you no doubt expected! I’m so glad you are here. You can help Claudia do the final touches while Rob and I keep the rest of the family out of the way. You look amazing by the way, I love your dress!’ Tara kept up a constant stream of chatter as she led the way out into the car park, telling Lucy amusing anecdotes from the pre-wedding build-up over the last couple of days. She always enjoyed Tara’s company, she had a dry sense of humour which made Lucy laugh. ‘How was the journey?’ Tara asked as they clambered into her little red Nissan and began to make their way along the winding roads towards Claudia’s childhood home.
‘Oh, not bad at all, couldn’t have been easier in fact,’ Lucy replied. ‘How’s pregnancy suiting you? You look positively glowing!’
‘Ah, you’re too kind. I’m fine now, but bloody hell the morning sickness in the first few months nearly finished me off!’ said Tara, shaking her head at the memory.
‘And Rob? Is he excited?’ asked Lucy.
‘Oh, you know what Rob’s like,’ laughed Tara. ‘He’s been ready for this for the last ten years. He’s over the moon!’
Lucy was so chuffed for her dear friend Rob, a brotherly figure to her just like her own brother, Ollie, though definitely more settled. The thought of Ollie, the eternal backpacker, being anywhere near ready for fatherhood made Lucy chuckle. Knowing him, he was probably reclining on a beach somewhere in Australia with a beer in one hand and a surfboard in the other. Claudia’s brother Rob was the complete opposite.
Like Ollie, Claudia had always been one hundred per cent sure that she never wanted children. Dan was luckily of the same mindset; another reason why Lucy was convinced they were a match made in heaven. Claudia insisted she had been born without a single maternal bone in her body and was perfectly happy that way, a phenomenon that Lucy had never really understood. Though given that Claudia was verging on phobic when it came to all things medical, Lucy supposed it wasn’t that surprising. In contrast, having children was an idea that Lucy was never more than a thought away from, her biological clock was ticking louder and louder with every passing year. This desire to procreate was a deep, primal urge that was impossible to describe but deeply rooted within her. During the hours when Lucy lay sleepless and awake in the middle of a restless night, the fear of never having children would sweep over her. It was her darkest worry. In those moments, Lucy reassured herself that should fate let her down she would always be able to take matters into her own hands, after all, you didn’t need a man to have a child these days. But she prayed fervently that destiny would intervene and that she, too, would meet her perfect match, before it was too late for her to conceive. The trouble was, at thirty-five, her time was running out.
Lucy and Tara parked in front of the ramshackle cottage. Several of the latticed windows were thrown open to let the warm air into the house and the scent of freshly baked pastry came floating out to greet them.
Claudia’s mother, Sue, opened the front door to welcome them.
‘Welcome to the madhouse!’ she said, wiping the flour from her hands onto her floral apron as she did so.
Graham, her husband, was following close behind her.
‘Juicy Lucy!’ he chortled, reverting to her childhood nickname and enveloping her in a hearty hug. ‘Great to see you! How’s the big smoke?’ he asked.
‘Oh, you know, hectic, busy, exhausting!’ replied Lucy. ‘Nothing changes! How’s the bride?’
‘Oh, you know, hectic, busy, exhausting. Nothing changes!’ repeated Graham with a wink. It felt good to be back in Claudia’s family home after so long. She suddenly felt nostalgic for her own beloved parents and made a promise to herself that she would sort out a visit home sooner rather than later.
Having brought Lucy’s bag inside, Sue ushered Lucy straight upstairs. She found Claudia sitting serenely at the chintz dressing table amidst the clutter of her childhood bedroom, curling her eyelashes.
‘Luce!’ Claudia cried, putting down her tongs. ‘You made it!’
‘Oh my god, Clauds! I can’t believe this is happening,’ Lucy said, feeling her eyes well up at the sight of her dearest friend.
Claudia came over, skirting around the piles of discarded clothes, shoes and accessories that carpeted the floor, and gave her an enormous hug.
‘Don’t you start or you’ll set me off too!’ warned Claudia, patting the rollers that were secured haphazardly to her head, checking that they were still in place.
Lucy cleared a space for herself to perch on the corner of the bed as Claudia proceeded to give her a full report on the morning so far. The main drama had been caused by the seating plan. Each member of the family had refused point blank to sit next to drunken Uncle Alan, resulting in three entire tables having to be re-planned last minute. Claudia was laughing about it now, but she had clearly been at her wit’s end. Luckily, despite the late alterations, Claudia insisted that Lucy’s strategic placement next to the most eligible man at the wedding was non- negotiable. Apparently, he was a friend of Dan’s who had just moved back to the UK from America. Despite Claudia’s encouraging words, Lucy could picture him now: he was probably balding, had a paunch, and was nearly forty. She was only too used to the ever-shrinking pool of talent that remained available to a thirty-five-year-old woman. All the good-looking ones were already taken, like Jack. She did not have high hopes.
Having temporarily exhausted their chatter, they went into the spare room to admire the dress that they had chosen together back on a rainy February day in London. It hung like a work of art, glistening in its swathe of protective plastic. The art-deco silver beading that fringed the plungi
ng back suited Claudia’s bohemian style perfectly.
Suddenly feeling overwhelmed, Claudia reached out and grabbed Lucy’s hand. ‘Oh my god, this is really happening, isn’t it, Luce?’ She turned to face her, her big brown eyes shining with excitement, tinged with nervous anticipation and a hint of sadness in acknowledgement of the era that was drawing to a close. ‘I’m not leaving you, you know. We’re still going to be exactly the same; this isn’t going to change us, right?’ Claudia said. She was only too aware of how tricky this day must be for Lucy, and was filled with regret that her friend didn’t have a plus-one of her own to accompany her.
Lucy said, ‘Of course not,’ and gave Claudia a friendly push. ‘Don’t be daft!’ But they both knew that things would be different from now on, they already were. Gone were the days when Claudia and Lucy had shared a flat during their first years in London. Friends since their days at Fairview primary school, they had spent secondary school apart when the Reynolds had moved away from Cornwall, and then reunited once again at Exeter University, falling back into stride as the best of friends, wingwomen to each other and the centre pair of an ever-growing crowd of friends, always laughing and getting up to no good.
Claudia had been on the single scene with Lucy for the majority of their twenties following serious relationships at university. Lucy had broken up with her boyfriend of two and a half years after realizing they had become more like friends than anything that would last the distance. Since then both girls had had the odd fling, dalliance and holiday romance, but nothing too serious. Then Claudia had met Dan at a work party just before her twenty-ninth birthday and that had been it! They had moved in together the next year and had never looked back. Dan was an extremely laid-back guy, the perfect counterbalance to Claudia’s chaotic lifestyle and personality. They complemented each other perfectly. Lucy was delighted that Claudia had found him and she was happy that she had gained a new friend in Dan, but she knew in her heart of hearts that the days of Claudia and Lucy, just the two of them, were over. She just wished she could find someone like Dan for herself.
At one o’clock, Sue called everyone down to the kitchen for a light lunch. She had made a quiche Lorraine with buttery, crumbly pastry that melted in Lucy’s mouth, a mixed salad and some warm French bread straight out of the oven. As they devoured their food, Graham, Sue and Rob swapped stories about Claudia’s childhood. Tara and Lucy wept with laughter as they heard about Claudia dressing up in her mother’s white petticoat aged six and insisting on going to the church to demand a groom.
After lunch Lucy got changed and helped Claudia to apply her make-up, put the finishing touches to her hair and get into her dress. Everything seemed to be going smoothly until a last-minute panic erupted when Claudia couldn’t find the glamorous beaded hairpiece that would complete her twenties-inspired look. Lucy searched high and low, frantically sorting through piles of mess whilst placating Claudia, who was sitting on the bed on the verge of tears, getting steadily closer to full-blown hysteria with every passing minute. Lucy breathed a sigh of relief when she spotted the culprit wedged firmly behind the bed, and with a quick wipe to remove the coating of dust and fluff it had acquired along the way, fixed it in place with some spare kirby grips from the emergency stash she had brought in her clutch. There was just time for Lucy to pin the delicate veil to the back of Claudia’s head before she had to set off with Tara to drive the couple of miles down winding country lanes to the church.
Lucy was dropped off at the gate, where she spotted Rob on grandfather-sitting duty accompanying Graham’s father Bill in his wheelchair. They were perched under a large beech tree, sheltering from the bright sun in the leafy shade.
She looked up as a white dove flew over her head and settled on the lopsided cross at the top of the old stone spire. A good omen, Lucy thought, as she walked down the curving path through the gravestones towards the church.
Chapter Three
The sweet smell of newly polished oak mingled with the fresh scent of lilies and the abundant swathes of honeysuckle that arched over the entrance to the church. Lucy stepped over the cool stone threshold and tottered down the aisle, taking care not to catch her stilettos in the air vents or slip on the floor, worn smooth by the constant footfall of the faithful. The thrum of chatter and the excited anticipation of Claudia and Dan’s nearest and dearest filled the church. A riot of jewel-like colours and feathered fascinators tilted towards one another in hushed conversation. She found her allocated seat at the front, as instructed, in case she needed to get up and perform any emergency adjustments to the bride’s train. She was relieved that Claudia had asked her to go straight into the church rather than accompanying her as part of the bridal party. Claudia hadn’t wanted a gaggle of bridesmaids and Lucy had been grateful that she didn’t have to walk solo down the aisle.
She caught Dan’s eye and grinned at him as he stood nervously by the altar, waiting with Mark, his best man. He gave her a wave and a small thumbs up, straightening his tie and shifting uncomfortably under the weight of his tails.
Lucy scanned the people surrounding her, searching for familiar faces and smiling at everyone she knew. Just behind Dan, a handsome, dark-haired man with a strong jawline caught her attention. Probably gay or taken, Lucy thought to herself. She knew better than to assume that any remotely fanciable man might possibly be available. Just at that moment, the vicar came in and made the usual garbled announcements, asking people to silence their mobile phones and join in with the required responses. After he finished, there was a hushed air of anticipation until at last the organ broke the silence, cranking and groaning into life, emitting the first bars of ‘Canon in D’ by Pachelbel. The congregation, as one, turned to face the door.
A universal intake of breath announced the arrival of the bride. Lucy craned her neck to catch a glimpse of her best friend but she was unable to see her. She quickly turned to take one last look at Dan. She was moved by the look of sheer pride that was plastered across his face. Claudia and Graham had turned the corner and started to walk down the aisle, coming into Lucy’s line of sight. Hot tears sprung into her eyes and she blinked her curly lashes several times to stop them from rolling down her cheeks and spoiling her mascara. As she had announced to Claudia earlier, she looked the most breathtakingly beautiful that Lucy had ever seen her. Her olive skin glowed with radiant happiness, her brown hair shone deeply and curled softly just as it reached her shoulders. The soft lace of the veil swept up and over the crown of her head, hanging gently down her back. As she walked slowly towards the altar, arm in arm with her dear old father, the material of her dress flowed over her body like liquid silk. When she arrived at the front, Claudia caught Lucy’s eye and winked before taking her place next to Dan at the altar, beaming.
Lucy choked back tears as she listened to them make their vows. As they sung the hymns and listened to the sermon, she dreamt of a time when she might get the chance to be the bride. She allowed her thoughts to wander until she could see herself walking arm in arm with her father, Gus, down the aisle of her village church in Cornwall. She imagined the fragrant smell of sweet peas, the little bridesmaids in their taffeta dresses leading the way while the soft music of a cello filled the church to the rafters. In her mind’s eye she could see Jack standing at the altar. He was smiling at her with the same tender and adoring expression that she had seen on Dan’s face a few minutes earlier. Her heart felt like it would burst with happiness. All of a sudden the deafening strains of ‘Widor’s Toccata’ wrenched Lucy back to the present with a jerk and she turned to face the aisle once again, slightly shaken from her vivid daydream, as the newly-wed couple made their way out of the church.
The wedding reception took place at a local hotel in a sumptuously decorated room. Round tables groaned under the weight of glittering glass and silver, each place-setting denoted with an ornately folded napkin. The tables were heavy with white linen.
Lucy accepted a glass of champagne from a passing waiter and sipped it gratef
ully; the cold bubbles quenched her thirst. She watched Claudia flitting happily around the room, greeting all her guests, never far from her new husband. Lucy chatted to a group of university friends and caught up on their news of work, babies and marriage; expertly deflecting any attention away from her barren love life with the practised hand of a long-term single. She saw the chiselled man from the church once again. This time he was talking to a tall blonde with a glossy ponytail that flicked from side to side coquettishly every time she laughed. ‘Taken,’ Lucy muttered to herself. ‘Just as I thought.’
At that moment she felt a light tap on her shoulder and spun around to find her old friend Zoe standing before her. She was cradling the tiniest bundle that Lucy had ever seen in her arms.
‘Oh my god, Zoe! How good to see you! Is this baby Lola?’ squealed Lucy, kissing Zoe on the cheek and telling her how wonderful she looked. It amazed Lucy how some women could snap back into shape what seemed like mere moments after giving birth. Zoe looked radiant, if exhausted, and delighted in telling Lucy all about the arrival of Lola into the world a few weeks ago.
‘Do you mind if I hold her?’ Lucy asked, trying to keep the longing out of her voice.
‘Be my guest!’ said Zoe, draping a muslin cloth over Lucy’s shoulder just in case Lola decided to ruin her dress with regurgitated milk.
Lucy caught her breath as she scrutinized the tiny features of her friend’s newborn. She leant her cheek next to the impossibly soft, downy hair on Lola’s head and breathed in deeply that sweet baby smell. Holding Lola’s feather-light body as she nestled into the nook of her shoulder caused such pangs of longing in Lucy it was like physical pain. She rocked the baby gently from side to side, trying to keep her attention on Zoe as they swapped stories about mutual friends. They were all too quickly joined by Zoe’s husband, Nathan, who whisked Lola off for a nappy change, the ultimate modern dad doing his bit. As she watched Nathan carry Lola away, noticing the look of adoration plastered across his face, she strengthened her resolve that she would have a baby of her own before it was too late.
Just the Two of Us Page 2