By the time she passed through customs and collected her case, the answer to her dilemma was clear. The tiny possibility that Viv had broken the habits of a lifetime and not exaggerated the truth wouldn’t go away. If Alex did want her there then he might be ready to step back into his ‘best friend’ shoes . . . Whatever else she felt about him, she had to admit that she had been bereft without his friendship. If they could make peace, at least that would be a start to regaining the friendship she thought had died.
She hailed a taxi and leaned against the plush upholstery inside as it took her around the outskirts of Birmingham, on through the Black Country towards Stone Yardley. As they drove through Innersley, Harri suddenly had a thought and asked the taxi driver to stop outside Impress, the small boutique at the end of Oak Street. The purple shoes on the rack just inside the shop immediately caught her eye – gorgeous purple satin with tiny diamanté sparkles all over them. She winced when she saw the price tag, but she needed to feel confident tonight and they were perfect for the occasion.
When she stepped out on the road by her cottage, her mind was made up: she was going to the party.
She showered, then suddenly panicking that she had nothing suitable to wear with her new shoes, she searched through her wardrobe for a dress. Eventually, she discovered the emerald-green halter-neck dress that Stella had bestowed on her and was delighted to find it draped beautifully around her figure. It was a bold colour, but it glowed like a jewel against her wavy red hair and Ionian tan. Realising it was nearly seven o’clock, she ran a brush quickly through her hair, noting with pleasure the strawberry-blonde streaks recently added by the Kefalonian sun, applied a little eyeshadow, some mascara and a slick of lipstick, slipped on her ludicrously expensive shoes, grabbed her handbag and purple cardigan and ran out of the door to another waiting taxi.
When she arrived at Stone Yardley Village Hall, Harri paused on the pavement, seeing the disco lights whirling through the hall’s windows and hearing the thud-thud-thud-thud of Disco Dave’s music extravaganza already in full swing. How different she felt today from the last time she was here: leaving the Binchams’ celebration early before Rob broke her heart over his abandonment of their Scotland break. Now, she even seemed to be walking taller, the spirit of optimism Kefalonia had infused through her glowing with an iridescence that was almost visible.
‘Harri! You came!’ Viv spotted her even before she reached the front steps and came running out, flinging her arms around her. ‘You look amazing! Have you lost weight? Ooh, it’s just so good to see you.’
‘It’s nice to see you, too,’ Harri smiled. ‘But if Al doesn’t want me here then—’
‘He does,’ said a deep, velvety-soft voice behind her. ‘Very much.’ Spinning round, Harri came face to face with familiar chocolate-brown eyes – not filled with horror as they had been the last time they had met hers, but wide with anticipation and maybe a little touch of apology.
‘Hi, Al.’
‘Hey, H.’
‘Right, well, I’ll just . . . er . . . go inside, then . . .’ Viv chirped, clapping her hands together and skipping quickly indoors.
Alex kept his eyes fixed on Harri, as if scared she would disappear if he looked away. ‘I apologise for my mother,’ he smiled wryly.
‘You should thank her, actually. I wouldn’t have come if she hadn’t asked me to.’
This was news to Alex. ‘Seriously? Wow.’ His hand moved, and for a moment Harri thought he was going to reach out to her, but he quickly thought better of it, stuffing it in his pocket. ‘I’m really glad you did.’
‘Me too.’ A myriad questions flocked about their heads as they stood there like two uncertain teenagers at a school disco.
‘Look, H, this is stupid. I was a total idiot in February and once I’d walked out I didn’t know what to say to you.’
Relief broke like a white-crested wave over Harri’s mind. ‘I’m sorry, too. I was so embarrassed about . . . well, you know . . . and it was easier to hide away than face what happened. I never meant to make you feel uncomfortable or anything.’
‘No, you didn’t . . . I didn’t . . .’ He laughed nervously, in spite of his embarrassment. ‘Um, I’m not brilliant at this, am I?’
‘No, you’re not.’ The tension between them gone, Harri laughed. ‘For heaven’s sake, shut up and hug me, will you?’
‘Gladly.’ He opened his arms wide and she wrapped hers around his waist. The sudden closeness felt strange after so much time apart. At the end of the hug, Alex took a step back. ‘I want to say how proud I am of you for just jumping on a plane, H. I always knew you had it in you. Rob is an idiot for not seeing that.’
‘Thanks, Al. That means a lot.’
‘Harri? Oh my life, how amazing do you look?’
Harri turned to see a familiar face walking towards them. ‘Stella? When did you get back?’ Harri squealed and they hugged. ‘Let me look at you . . .’
Doing a little twirl, Stella happily obliged. Alex stared, open-mouthed. ‘Crikey, Stel, what happened to you?’
‘Dan. And Tibet. And truth,’ she answered. ‘There’s so much I have to tell you about truth. Lama Rhabten taught me so much – I can’t believe I ever lived my life without it. Absolute truth, Harri – it’s the greatest gift.’
As transformations go, this was pretty impressive. Gone was the uniform bottle-blonde hair, strands of her natural chestnut tones now clearly visible. Gone were the designer-copy clothes and killer heels: now Stella was dressed in a flowing ethnic-print shirt over a plain white vest top with loose-fitting jeans and blue kitten-heeled pumps, and a simple wooden necklace hung at her neck. She was thinner than before and her skin was dewy fresh – in fact, Harri could hardly see any make-up at all. But the most notable feature of her ‘Dan Beagle make-over’ was the change in her attitude: she was calmer, more relaxed, maybe even more mature.
‘I’m glad you could come,’ Alex smiled.
‘Your mum invited me this afternoon when Dan and I popped into her shop. I went into SLIT too, Harri, but they said you were abroad?’
‘I’ve just come back actually,’ Harri beamed. ‘It was amazing, Al, you should’ve seen it. And the scent of the place – nobody tells you how wonderful that is, either! I’ll definitely go back.’
There was a definite twinkle in his eyes. ‘I’ve missed you. Now I suppose I should be getting back to my fiancée . . . Where is she?’
Harri looked around. ‘There she is,’ she said, pointing to the hall entrance, where Chelsea was deep in conversation with Jack.
Alex followed her outstretched arm until he saw them. ‘Man, are they nattering again?’ he groaned. ‘Honestly, they’re either planning something thoroughly nasty for my stag night or else I’m about to lose a Best Man and gain a Chief Bridesmaid. I’ll catch you later, Harri – OK?’
The village hall was packed with guests, mostly sitting at tables around the edges of the hall or crowding together at the bar, although some brave souls were already throwing some dubiously funky shapes on the dancefloor. Stella and Harri found a vacant table and sat down to catch up.
It was so good to see Stella after all this time, and Harri found herself relaxing back into their easy conversation, her mind at peace knowing that Alex didn’t hate her. It transpired that Dan and Stella had taken three months off, following the completion of the filming schedule for his great Himalayan odyssey, and were now making plans for their own wedding after an unexpected result of their trip came to light.
‘You’re pregnant?’ Harri repeated, as Dolly Parton’s ‘Nine to Five’ elicited a gutsy singalong from the dancing partygoers.
Stella nodded ecstatically. ‘I know! And I hated children! Who’d have thought it, eh? Me a wife and mother . . .’ she lifted one foot and pointed, ‘. . . in almost flat shoes!’
As the evening progressed, Harri told Stella about Rob and her subsequent spur-of-the-moment decision to go on holiday. Stella listened intently to it all, taking everything in –
something virtually unheard of before she had met Dan. Maybe he was what she had been waiting for during all those years of dating unsuitable men.
‘So, I take it the stand-off between you and Al is over?’ she asked as they watched the long line for the buffet snake its way across the dancefloor.
‘Yes, I think so. I just missed him being my friend,’ Harri replied, looking over to the table on the opposite side of the room, where Alex and Chelsea were chatting to friends.
‘But the kiss was real, right?’
‘I honestly don’t know what happened, Stel. I’m just so glad it’s behind us.’
‘Uh-huh.’ Stella’s expression concealed more than Harri could fathom.
‘Laydeez and gentlemen,’ Disco Dave’s voice boomed through the hall, ‘please join us on the dancefloor to toast the happy couple!’
Harri and Stella joined the other guests as they formed a circle in the middle of the room. Viv stepped forward and took the microphone from a slightly worried-looking Dave.
‘Thank you, Dave, and welcome everybody. Now, as you know, the reason we’re all here tonight is to celebrate the engagement of my lovely son Alexander to the lady who has stolen his heart – Chelsea.’
Suitable ‘aah’s’ and noises of approval rippled around the room. Chelsea looked like she was in heaven, being the centre of attention.
‘We thought it would be a lovely idea if some of you here tonight had the opportunity to offer your own good wishes to Alex and Chelsea,’ Viv continued, as trays of sparkling wine were handed out. ‘So if you’d like to say something, just raise your hand and I’ll bring the microphone over.’
Unlike his fiancée, Alex looked decidedly uncomfortable in the middle of the dancefloor. Catching Harri’s eye, he mouthed, ‘Help!’ as his mother circled the floor, seeking out her first volunteer.
Jack raised his hand and Viv thrust the mic into it. ‘Hell-o Stone Yardley,’ he said in his best rockstar voice, to the amusement of the onlooking guests. ‘OK, listen. I’ve known Al for a long old time and I know he’s the kind of guy that will go out of his way to make any woman happy,’ he grinned wickedly, ‘so watch out for my Best Man’s speech in September! And as for Chels – well, what can I say? Top bird, Al, she’s the best thing that’s happened to you.’ He raised his glass. ‘Cheers.’
‘Cheers!’ echoed the guests.
Chelsea feigned embarrassment and blew him a kiss.
‘Right, thank you, Jack. Someone else?’ Viv looked hopefully around the room as almost every guest dropped his or her eyes to avoid her stare. ‘Come on – there must be someone?’
To Harri’s surprise, Stella’s hand shot up. Delighted, Viv walked over and bestowed the microphone on her. Walking into the middle of the dancefloor, Stella turned and smiled at everyone.
‘Hi, everyone. Can I just say what a great honour it is to be here tonight, to celebrate Alex and Chelsea’s engagement. Don’t they make a wonderful couple?’
The guests agreed and a smattering of applause broke out across the room. Harri was impressed by Stella’s self- assuredness with the microphone; she had obviously learned a lot from watching Dan at work.
‘I’ve known Alex since he came back to live in Stone Yardley after all his years travelling this wonderful world. And I must say, having recently returned from the Himalayas, I now understand what all the fuss is about. Now, I have to admit, Alex and I haven’t always seen eye to eye on things, but I know the kind of friend he is to my best mate Harri Langton over there . . . come on Harri, give us a wave!’
Harri felt herself shrinking back, willing the crowd’s eyes away from her.
‘. . . and I know that he really cares about her, which is good enough for me. He’s a top bloke – a little insensitive on some things, perhaps, but generally a nice guy. Round of applause for the bridegroom-to-be, please.’
Hesitantly, the crowd obliged.
‘Excellent, thank you. As for Chelsea, well, I’ve only just met her although it feels like I know so much about her already . . .’
Chelsea’s smile turned into a grimace, willing the hippy limelight-hogger to leave her spotlight immediately.
Stella continued, oblivious to anything but her own train of thought. ‘And I’m sure she is fully prepared for the responsibilities of being a wife. Aw, round of applause for Chelsea!’
This time, the lukewarm applause was accompanied by confused glances exchanged around the room. Harri watched as the crowd began to get restless, shifting position where they stood and whispering amongst themselves. She tried to summon Stella’s attention, but it was no use: she was on a roll and there was no stopping her now.
‘So, to my toast . . .’
‘Haven’t you done that already, love?’ a man called from the crowd, as those around him agreed noisily, like a gaggle of backbenchers heckling a speaker.
‘Not quite,’ Stella smiled serenely. She raised her glass. ‘Alex. Chelsea. When I was in the Himalayas, I met an old Tibetan monk called Lama Rhabten. We spent three weeks at his home, talking about the mysteries of life and love. And he said this: “The greatest gift you can give yourself is the truth. Truth sets us free and gives us wings. Truth banishes doubts and fears.” So I would like to give you the greatest gift possible for your lives ahead: the truth.’
Harri’s heart began to pick up pace. What was she talking about?
‘Alex, if you’re going to spend the rest of your life with Chelsea, you need to fully understand her – not just what you see on the outside, but the secret, hidden aspects of her life. A good husband knows who his wife is and loves her anyway.’
Wincing, Harri stared at Stella. Where on earth had she got that little gem of wisdom from? A fridge magnet?
‘So the truth is, Alex, that Chelsea is more interested in your best friend than she is in you.’
Silence clamped its hand firmly across the mouths of the astonished guests. Chelsea looked at Jack, panic washing across her face, mirroring his own expression.
Angrily, Viv stepped towards Stella and made a bid for the microphone. ‘I really don’t think this is appropriate for—’
‘Mum, hang on a minute.’ Alex’s voice was low and serious. ‘What do you mean by that, Stella?’
‘I saw them kissing earlier this evening, round the back of the hall.’
Chelsea yelped and Jack sprang forward. ‘Mate, she’s a loon. You’re not going to believe her, are you?’
‘I – I don’t know . . .’ Alex’s stare switched between Chelsea and Jack like a spectator at a tennis match.
‘Alex, you of all people should know about hidden truths,’ Stella continued, a note of reproach in her voice. ‘I mean, when you kissed Harri, you—’
‘You kissed her?’ Chelsea demanded, as Harri shot to her feet. ‘Stella, enough!’
‘But it wasn’t enough, was it, Harri? Face it – you’re head over heels in love with him, aren’t you?’
‘Stop it, Stel! Just stop this!’
Stella moved the microphone away from her face and shouted loud enough for everyone else to hear. ‘But I’m only telling the truth, Harri! You said as much in your email – you said you were going out of your mind with it all and that you loved him!’
It was as if the floor beneath Harri’s feet was giving way. She slumped back into a chair as the whole room began to fill with noise and movement.
Viv wrenched the microphone from Stella’s hands. ‘That’s quite enough interfering from you, young lady!’
Stella folded her arms coolly, unfazed by the murderous look in Viv’s eyes. ‘Interfering, eh? Well, from you I take that as a compliment.’
‘I beg your pardon?’
‘It was your idea to nominate Alex for that magazine column that started all of this, wasn’t it? It was because you thought he was so pathetic at dating that he needed a helping hand. But you need to learn to complete each task you undertake, Viv. I mean, getting Harri to do all the work of going through those letters without ever helping was a
bit tough, wasn’t it?’
Viv opened her mouth to speak, but shut it when she saw her son’s expression. ‘Darling, I . . . I only had your best interests at heart . . .’
‘So why didn’t you help Harri?’ Alex demanded. ‘Yes, Viv, why didn’t you? Maybe then Harri wouldn’t have been tempted to set Alex up on the worst possible date.’ Stella looked pointedly at Chelsea, who was being comforted – perhaps ill-advisedly – by Jack.
‘What do you mean?’ Alex looked from Stella to Harri, who had begun to shake uncontrollably. ‘Harri?’
‘Chelsea was meant to be revenge,’ Stella said, ‘for what you said to Jack.’
‘How dare you?’ Chelsea screamed like a banshee. ‘I’m not the worst possible date. I’m the best he’s ever likely to get! If it wasn’t for me, he’d be nothing – still stuck in his crummy coffee shop with no ambition, no dress sense . . . I made him what he is, I mean, look at him!’
Obediently, all eyes in the hall swung to Alex, who was fuming dangerously. ‘Is that what you think of me, Chelsea?’
Defiantly, Chelsea wrapped her arm around a startled Jack. ‘Yes, actually. She’s right: I am more interested in Jack than I ever was in you. Jack takes me to nice, expensive places. Jack spends serious cash on making me happy. He doesn’t have a lousy business to “save his money” for.’
‘You should have chosen Harri when you had the chance!’ Stella shouted, as Viv swung for her. ‘She’s always loved you!’
At that moment, all hell broke loose. Alex lunged at Jack and hit him with a hefty right hook, sending him careering backwards into the bar, glasses and onlookers scattering in all directions. Chelsea jumped onto his back, kicking and screaming like a madwoman, and Alex yelped in pain, shrugging her off onto the buffet table. Rising to his feet, Jack punched Alex in the stomach, bending him double and Viv, incensed by this, ran over to Jack and laid him out cold with one seriously scary uppercut. Women screamed and men shouted as smaller disputes began breaking out all over the hall, vol-au-vents and sandwiches grabbed as ammunition and thrown at offending opposers.
Welcome to My World Page 35