‘Indeed.’ Dominic gave her an appraising smile. ‘Sam always undersells situations and himself. I had no idea you’d be quite asbeautiful as this.’ He took her hand and gave it a little squeeze. For a moment, Clara thought he might kiss it.
‘Thank you. And nice to meet you.’
‘The pleasure is all mine, I assure you.’ He cast Sam a highly impressed look. ‘Now, in you come and meet Astrid. Excuse the organised chaos. Astrid is in with the wedding planner, then we’re heading over to the hotel for the last-minute setup. It’s causing merry hell, but it’ll all be worth it – or so I’m told.’
Sam caught Clara’s eye, and they exchanged a look that made her want to burst out laughing. Probably to release the nerves.
The house was covered in trailing ivy and reminded Clara of something from a Jane Austen adaptation. Sam moved closer to her as they climbed the steps to the front door.
A woman with long blonde hair not much older than Clara herself bustled out of a room off the corridor and stopped dead when she saw Dominic and the others.
‘This is Sam and Clara.’ Dominic held out his hands in their direction.
‘Oh, hello. Forgive me, I had no idea you were here, and there’s just so much to do.’
‘We won’t keep you.’ Sam smiled and held out his hand. ‘We just wanted to meet you before the wedding.’
‘And it’s lovely to see you.’ Astrid shook his hand, then moved to Clara.
‘Hi.’ Clara had barely taken her hand when she let go again, looking around a little frantically. ‘Would you like us to help you with anything?’
‘Not at all,’ Dominic said. ‘You’re guests. Wouldn’t dream of putting you to work. Now, come on through to the kitchen and we’ll grab a brew before the two of you dash off.’
Astrid threw him a somewhat exasperated look. They were obviously wasting her valuable time because she looked hyper stressed.
‘Maybe this isn’t a good time,’ Clara suggested with a look at Astrid.
‘I’m sure we can spare a few minutes,’ Dominic said.
Astrid’s expression softened. ‘Of course, I didn’t mean to make you feel unwelcome.’
‘We just don’t want to get in the way if it’s not convenient.’ Sam caught Clara’s eye, and it amused her that he’d said almost exactly what she was about to say.
Dominic clapped Sam on the back. ‘I’ll make some tea. A few minutes won’t hurt, not when I haven’t seen this rascally face for far too long.’
‘How was your journey?’ Astrid pulled a huge smile, obviously feeling bad about how she’d greeted them, though Clara understood where she was coming from. Their visit was probably ill timed.
‘It was fine,’ Clara said. ‘Though it’s my first time here, so everything was new and intriguing to me.’
‘What drink will you have?’ Dominic asked.
‘A coffee for me, if you don’t mind.’ Clara tugged at her neckline.
‘Of course, and you, Sam?’
‘Same for me, please.’
Dominic grinned as they walked into the kitchen. ‘So, what is the story here?’ He raised an eyebrow at Clara. ‘What’s a pretty girl like you doing with a rogue like this?’
‘I think that’s a question for Astrid rather than Clara,’ Sam said. ‘Not that you’re not pretty.’ He smiled at Clara. ‘But there’s only one rogue here.’
‘Ah, so he says.’ Dominic winked at Clara. ‘But I bet he hasn’t told you the half of it.’
‘Oh, he has,’ Clara said, mirroring Dominic’s cheeky voice. ‘All the gory details. It’s that hidden wild side that makes him so…’ She flicked a chef’s kiss at Dominic.
Dominic threw his head back and laughed. ‘Brilliant.’ He looked at Sam, and his eyes glinted with mischief. ‘This one’s a keeper for sure.’
‘Sure.’ Sam stepped up behind Clara and put his hand on her shoulder. She had the feeling he was only just holding in a laugh.
