‘We are?’ Well, that was a surprise that Quinn hadn’t ruined, I had no idea. And worse, I had no idea where we were even going. I’d had to pack for arctic conditions, as well as tropical climates, before Dean came down this morning to whisk my cases away.
‘Mmmm-hmmm,’ he confirmed. ‘Damn, have I told you how beautiful you look, wife?’ he asked, planting a kiss on my forehead.
‘Yes, but I won’t tire of hearing it, husband,’ I grinned. I was stunned at what greeted me when he set me down and told me that I could open my eyes. The entire front of Severn Manor looked like a scene from Narnia. There was snow everywhere. On the roof, the windowsills, on the twinkling Christmas tree outside, all over the grass. In fact, I was even standing in it, but it wasn’t cold. I looked up at Miller, completely confused. Delighted, but confused. ‘I don’t understand, there’s so much and it wasn’t snowing.’
‘You wanted a snowy Christmas wedding, so I made it happen with a few industrial fake snow machines, and when the guests walk out of the patio doors onto the back terrace, they’ll find an ice skating rink, too.’
‘I think I’ll keep you,’ I squealed, throwing my arms around him as I gave him a grateful kiss. It was just how I’d pictured my perfect reception.
Even Miller gasped as we finally entered the reception hall. I’d gone for an icy silver and warm purple theme. Large pillar candles with a garland of fairy lights circling them stood on frosted-glass stands in the centre of each of the guests’ tables. We had silver-sprayed twigs and fir cones, the same coloured lighting scheme and draped panes of material forming a canopy above us, and there was a roaring fire in the gorgeous inglenook fireplace. The scent of the hot mulled wine the guests were drinking permeated the air. It was everything I’d hoped it would be and more.
They all stood to applaud us as we entered and took our seats at the top table, passing the cake table that I’d asked the staff to make doubly sure was secure after the disaster at poor Tracey’s wedding. Jess had outdone herself with purple, white, and silver macaron croquembouches on silver stands, resembling Christmas trees, the largest of which had edible silver-leaf snowflakes hanging from its base. Dad would have just loved this, he’d have been so happy for me. And me? I was just ecstatic.
After we’d eaten the most sumptuous five-course meal and drank copious amounts of champagne, making the laughter and chatter in the room completely infectious, it was time for the speeches, and Miller helped a very tipsy Daphne to her feet.
‘For those that don’t know me, I’m Daphne Jones and I’ve known Abbie Carter, no, no, Abbie Davis now, since she was this high,’ she began, bending over to indicate how high off the floor and almost knocking herself out as she smacked her forehead on the table. I heard Georgie snort with laughter as the table shook and Miller quickly helped Daphne back up and checked she was ok. ‘Crikey, who put that there? I just put my back out,’ she giggled. ‘The last time was when Mr. Jones and I tried the rowing boat position from the Karma Sutra!’
‘Oh no,’ I groaned, covering my eyes as I giggled and the rest of the guests joined in. She was hammered. This was about to get even more entertaining.
‘Don’t try the Catherine wheel one then,’ someone called.
‘Or the bridge. How do you think I got that double hernia last year?’ came another voice that sounded just like Mr. Benson’s.
‘Must have been all that Viagra you took by mistake,’ Daphne teased. ‘Had you imagining you were fifty years younger. Now, where was I?’ she asked, squinting at her speech cards. ‘Ah yes, since she was this high.’ She bent over again, and Miller caught her just before she head-butted the table for the second time.
‘We get it, she was very young,’ he said, straightening her up.
‘Pretty as a picture and look at her now, the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen. I tell you, I couldn’t be more proud if it was my own son in that dress. Not that he’s a cross dresser, I hasten to add, no, no, no,’ she confirmed with a serious face and wagging finger, as other people startled chuckling. ‘Just making the point that friendship, and good whisky, is thicker than blood. I love this girl as if she were my own. She’s treated me like she was my own, been there for me when my son hasn’t, or wouldn’t. And there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her,’ she stated, with a so-there nod.
‘Likewise, Daphne,’ I replied, blotting my eyes with my napkin. Miller put a comforting hand on my shoulder as he remained standing, supporting Daphne with his other hand in the small of her back.
‘If you ever hurt her, Miller Davis, I still have a shotgun licence and a twelve-bore hidden under the cushions of my sofa,’ she warned.
‘Oh my God,’ Georgie exclaimed. ‘I kept saying there was something hard in the sofa and no one believed me. It could have gone off, I could have ended up with bottom shrapnel!’
‘I think we’ll put that into safe keeping,’ Miller advised, ‘and as for using it on me, you’ll never have to. It’s that nephew of yours you need to worry about after I found him half-naked with my girl last year.’ He shot a wink at Heath, who shook his head, an embarrassed pink hue settling on his cheeks at the reminder.
They’d actually become really good friends, which was excellent, as I’d be able to have him over for dinner at the same time as Quinn. I’d already spotted them eyeing each other up across the room, both quickly looking away if their gazes crossed. I was going to have to trade in balancing accounts and turn my skills to matching up pairs in the village if no one ever made the first move.
‘So I want you all to raise your bottoms to Miller and Abbie, glasses up,’ Daphne called, everyone laughing out loud as she got her words muddled up.
‘Steady on,’ I exclaimed as she downed her champagne, while the rest of us took a polite sip.
‘Oh dear,’ she giggled, settling her fingers on the table as she swayed. ‘I do believe I’m a little tipsy.’
‘Make that a lot tipsy. I think you ought to sit down,’ I warned her, worried she was about to keel over.
‘Oh no,’ she moaned, closing her eyes as one hand clutched at her stomach. ‘Oh, Abbie, I’m so … oh dear … I’m so … so sorry.’
‘What, what’s wrong?’ I cried, shooting to my feet in a panic. I’d lost David on Christmas Day, surely I wasn’t about to lose Daphne on my wedding day?
‘Aunt Daphne?’ Heath called as he leaped up from his seat nearby and started racing over. He was a few feet away when the most God-awful belch, the kind that rumbles up from deep in your stomach after guzzling a bottle of fizzy pop, came gurgling out of Daphne’s mouth. Seconds later, her top set of dentures flew across the room and landed with a plop in Rachel’s glass of champagne.
‘Oh, I’m so verwy sorrwy, how wude,’ Daphne giggled, her lack of teeth affecting her normally eloquent voice. Quinn burst out laughing as Daphne burped again, while Rachel just stared at the set of teeth floating in her glass with an unreadable expression. ‘How wude,’ Daphne repeated. ‘Thank goodness it wasn’t a bottom burp. At my age, you’ve got no chance of keeping in a five-course meal. We could have had a whole Mr. Sumo shart situation if the wrong end had blown.’
‘Oh my God, she’s completely wasted,’ I laughed.
‘I’ve never seen her this bad,’ Georgie agreed as she struggled to compose herself. The rest of the guests either sniggered or looked completely mortified to see an eighty-year-old acting like a teenager. But that’s part of what I loved about her. She could be sage and wise old Daphne, or one of the girls that had us all in fits of hysteria. I’d never met anyone like her.
‘Heath, grab her teeth back off Rachel, who looks about to pass out, and help Miller carry Daphne up to her bedroom,’ I ordered. We’d treated her to a night at the hotel so she could enjoy herself, I just didn’t know how much she already had enjoyed herself. I’d never seen her so drunk. ‘She needs to sleep this off for a while.’
‘So, Mrs. Davis, was your day everything you’d hoped it would be?’ Miller asked as he undid his jacket bu
ttons after laying me down on the bed in his private plane.
‘Everything and more,’ I nodded, propping myself up on my elbows to watch him strip off his jacket. ‘And if August, lead stripper of AMD, is about to make an appearance, it would just make the perfect day even better.’
‘Then sit back and enjoy the show, August aims to please,’ he advised with a waggle of his eyebrows. I giggled and sat up, reaching behind me to undo my dress. ‘What are you doing, baby?’
‘Taking off my dress.’
‘Oh no you don’t,’ he warned. ‘You’re keeping it on. You look amazing in it. Don’t worry, I’ll work around it,’ he winked.
‘Dress on, got it,’ I nodded, palming the mattress below me instead as he kicked off his shoes, and one flew into one of the wall lights and smashed it. ‘Hmmm, I think you might need a bit more practice at this.’
‘Practice makes perfect, and I’m planning on doing a lot of practicing. That dress might not be coming off the entire honeymoon, you look so damn sexy in it.’
‘Fine with me,’ I confirmed with a smile and a blossoming of my heart. I’d done it, I’d finally done it. I’d broken the curse and found the man, and the dress. This was the best day ever!
Chapter Eighteen
Mr. Barker
February
‘WHERE ARE WE GOING?’ I asked Miller as he shot down some country lanes in Oxfordshire, enjoying testing out his new Mercedes GLE. We’d just had a romantic Valentine’s weekend at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, Raymond Blanc’s famous hotel and gourmet restaurant, and I’d assumed we were heading home.
‘To get your Valentine’s present,’ he replied, flashing me a smile.
‘I’ve just had my Valentine’s present, and a very lovely one at that,’ I reminded him.
‘That was just a getaway, for both of us, not your actual present.’
‘You don’t need to spoil me so much, Miller. We’re married, you’ve already got me.’
‘I know, but I really wanted to get you this. Plus it will make me feel better to know you have this when I’m not at home. You know I worry when I’m in New York.’
‘Is this about the whole “key under the plant pot” thing again?’ I asked with a roll of my eyes. He just didn’t get how safe Dilbury was compared to New York. ‘Are you taking me to get one of those rocks for the garden that’s really a secret key hideaway? As that’s as much use as a chocolate teapot, all the burglars know they exist. I bet they look at all the rock gardens first now, rather than under the plant pots or front door mats.’
‘Actually no, it’s not, but I have asked Heath to install a wall-mounted combination key safe while we’re on the topic,’ he advised, as the Sat Nav told him to turn left and we pulled into a large private gravelled drive. ‘It’s more important to be security conscious, especially now that the work on the rear extension is about to begin.’
‘Honestly,’ I muttered under my breath as he got out and came around to open my door. I’d never felt safer than I did in the cottage. He was blowing it all out of proportion. I’d half expected him to suggest we have a team of his security guards patrolling the lane at night.
I shrugged it off, as I knew he was just being protective. It was quite endearing most of the time, but lately I was finding it annoying. In fact, I was incredibly irritable this week. I wasn’t sure what had me so grumpy. I was really tired at the moment and was having to make a concerted effort not to snap at people, which wasn’t like me.
‘Come on,’ he said, helping me out and pulling me against him for a quick kiss. I winced as he crushed my chest against his, my breasts feeling really tender. Of course, I was due on, that’s why I was tired and moody. What with the wedding, the honeymoon, and catching up with everyone when we got back, it was no wonder I’d lost track and forgotten.
‘What’s here?’ I asked as he led me to the front door of a large old stone house, set substantial and beautifully kept grounds.
‘You’ll find out in a minute,’ he replied mysteriously as he rang the bell. The door opened revealing a ruddy-faced man in his fifties.
‘You must be Mr. and Mrs. Davis. I’m Rupert Bonneville,’ he greeted with an outstretched hand, which Miller shook. ‘So glad you found us. Come on in, they’re just finishing up their lunch.’
‘We can come back if we’re interrupting at a bad time,’ Miller offered.
‘No, not at all. Honestly, they’re almost done, so it’s perfect timing,’ he replied, gesturing for us to step inside.
Miller gave my hand a gentle tug as I wondered what was going on. Rupert shut the door and led us down a soft grey painted hall, with large old flagstones on the floor, and took us into a huge kitchen diner with a glass wall that faced out onto the garden at the rear. There was no sign of anyone eating, so I was feeling rather confused as he led us to a side door which he threw open. All of a sudden, my ears were assaulted by the sound of tiny excited barks and the pitter-patter of of claws on the old stone floor as we followed Rupert into a huge conservatory. ‘Here they are.’
‘Oh my God,’ I cried, my heart fluttering to see five tiny white fluffy puppies scampering around inside a large four-sided pen, while a larger dog, who I presumed was their mum, lay on a plump rectangular dog cushion watching them.
‘Aren’t they adorable?’ Miller asked, squeezing my hand.
‘They look like little teddy bears,’ I laughed, letting go of Miller’s hand to crouch down as one of them came scampering over and barked at me. ‘Can I touch it?’ I asked, looking up at Rupert for confirmation first. He smiled and nodded.
‘I’ll let you into the pen so you can sit down and interact with them all, see which is your favourite.’
‘I don’t understand, what’s going on?’ I replied with a frown, glancing across to Miller.
‘We’re here to chose one for us. They’re pedigree bichon frises,’ he confirmed, leaning on the wooden rail. ‘I know you prefer smaller dogs, and while I thought about a bulldog again, I wanted a dog that can come on a plane, so it can fly with us whenever we travel to New York. We’ve got first choice for you to pick the one you want and it’s coming home with us now.’
‘Are you serious?’ I exclaimed as my heart leapt with excitement. I’d really missed not having a dog, but to be honest, I’d felt disloyal to the memory of Sumo to even think about going to look for another. I’d never have suggested it, or done it on my own, but somehow Miller making the choice that we were having one took that weight off my shoulders.
‘Is that ok?’ he asked gently. ‘I know no dog will ever replace Sumo, and I didn’t want to surprise you with one I’d picked, since I knew how much it broke your heart that he wasn’t as loving with you as he was with other people. I thought it was best to let you choose a puppy that you bonded with.’
‘Is that ok?!’ I scoffed, then laughed as I felt a little wet nose nudging my hand through the bars of the pen and looked down to see the bravest of the pups lick me. ‘It’s wonderful!’
‘Come on then, let’s get you both inside. Best to sit on the floor and let them come to you, though it looks like you’ve already got a fan,’ Rupert chuckled.
I nodded eagerly and pulled my hand away as I stood up. The pup let out a bark and bounced back and forth, like it had springs attached to its feet, its tiny tail wagging ten to the dozen. Rupert opened up the pen in the one corner, to give us room to squeeze in, and caught the pup as it tried to zip out. When we sat down, the mum just lay there, relatively unperturbed by our arrival. Three of her pups had gone to cuddle up to her, their eyes full of fear, and another was sitting closer to us, appraising us apprehensively. As soon as Rupert set the original bundle of fluff back down inside the pen, it trotted over and tried to climb up onto my lap.
‘Miller, look,’ I cooed as I gently stroked it.
‘I think you’ve already bonded with him,’ Rupert said as he watched me pick the pup up and hold him gently against my chest, then receive a sloppy lick as a reward. ‘He’s never b
een that friendly with me or my wife.’
‘Oh, he’s adorable,’ I breathed, smiling at Miller as I got a neck wash from the little guy. Miller laughed and held out one of his hands, which he slowly offered to the pup, and was rewarded with a lick and a nuzzle himself, then an excited bark. ‘I don’t know much about bichons, what are they like as pets?’ I asked, hardly able to tear my eyes off the fluffy ball of gorgeousness in my arms.
‘Very sociable and easy to train, but they don’t like being left alone. They need regular grooming, as they shed a lot and their coats are quite thick and fluffy.’
‘Not a problem. My best friend is a dog groomer and lives virtually next door,’ I confirmed, reluctantly passing the pup over to Miller when he asked for a turn.
‘They’re not normally known for their barking, but this one’s extra vocal today,’ Rupert stated, as the pup continued to vocalise his enthusiasm at our petting between excited licks of Miller.
‘Oh, hello, little one,’ I said quietly as as the bravest of the other puppies came a bit closer to see what was going on. I offered it my hand and it leaned in and sniffed, but as soon as I tried to stroke it, it scampered back to the safety of its mother. I turned back around to find the original pup was struggling to get off Miller’s lap to come back to me. ‘Oh, Miller, can we have this one? He’s so friendly.’
‘Of course we can. Anything to see that amazing smile of yours,’ he confirmed, offering me a kiss as he let the little mite come back to settle down on my lap for more cuddles. ‘Is that ok, Mr. Bonneville?’
‘Of course it is, and please call me Rupert. I have all of the paperwork in my office, and we can leave your wife to play while we go and set up your car with the cage, bedding, and accessories as discussed. Would you like a drink, Mrs. Davis? I can hear my wife back in the kitchen.’
‘No, I’m fine, but thank you for the offer.’ I gave him a grateful smile as I tore my gaze from my adorable new little boy.
Never the Bride (Dilbury Village #1) Page 30