‘Isn’t that just about every love song?’ asked Ray cynically.
‘We don’t want anythingtoosoppy,’ Ronnie warned. ‘That would just be too embarrassing for everyone.’ He nodded approvingly as Millie relayed what he’d said to her niece.
‘Jeez, come on guys!’ Harmony threw up her hands in despair. ‘There are so many great songs. Someone must have a good idea.’
‘Look,’ Lucy promised, ‘I’ll have a think. I’ll google love songs that talk about those feelings without being overly sentimental and see what it comes up with, and I swear I’ll let you know as soon as possible. In fact, I’ll just see what it comes up with now before I go.’ She began to scroll through her phone, while the ghosts continued to discuss possibilities.
‘“Wonderwall” is about someone saving the person who loves them,’ Danny mused. ‘It’s the song I wanted for our wedding dance, but Kirsty wanted “Two Become One” by the Spice Girls.’
Brooke stared at him in amazement. In eighteen years, she had never once heard Danny mention Kirsty. Not when the shock of dying had worn off anyway. It was like he couldn’t bear to say her name, and now here he was telling all and sundry about their wedding music choices as if he’d never had a problem with it!
‘I’ve heard those songs,’ Millie said. ‘Lucy likes the Spice Girls, don’t you, Lucy?’
Lucy looked up. ‘Sorry?’
‘And Sam likes that song, “Wonderwall”. He says the group who sings it were inspired by The Beatles. Good taste, but I don’t think they were anywhere near as good, personally. Who won then? What song did you dance to at your wedding?’
‘Take a wild guess,’ muttered Brooke.
‘I didn’t know you were married, Danny,’ said Aubrey, sounding astonished, and a few other ghosts voiced their surprise at the fact, too.
‘Six years,’ Danny said falteringly. ‘I was with her for four years before we got married, though.’
‘And your wife’s name was Kirsty?’ Walter asked. ‘How lovely. When were you wed?’
‘July 2002,’ Danny said. ‘I was twenty-three.’
‘That’s a bit young,’ Millie said.
‘Waytoo young,’ Brooke said with feeling, earning a sympathetic look from Polly.
‘Well, maybe,’ Danny said with a shrug, ‘but when you know you know.’
‘You sure do,’ Harmony said softly.
Brooke rolled her eyes.
‘I’m sorry, Danny,’ Agnes said kindly. ‘It must have been very hard for you, being separated from your wife at such a young age.’
‘Hey, that means it would have been your silver wedding anniversary next year,’ Millie gasped. ‘My mum and dad had just celebratedtheirsilver wedding anniversary when I fell out of the bathroom window. They seemed really old, though.’
Danny blinked away tears and gazed at the floor. A few of the ghosts shuffled, clearly feeling awkward that he was upset, and Brooke fought the urge to tell them all that it had hardly been the great love story Danny imagined.
She remembered the wedding all too well. She’d been one of the bridesmaids, which had been quite an ordeal given how she felt about the groom. She was eighteen by then and had dated a few young men, but none of them matched up to Danny. She’d hoped right up until the moment the vicar declared him and Kirsty to be husband and wife that something would happen to stop the wedding but no such luck.
For weeks she’d dreamed that Danny’s eyes would stray to her during the service, and he’d falter for a moment before declaring that he couldn’t go through with it as he was in love with another. But all her hopes were dashed when he said, ‘I will.’
He’d barely given her a second glance all day. Not surprising given her awful bridesmaid dress. Strapless cerise taffeta, with bodices that looked like folded crepe paper. Ugh!
And of course, she’d had to sit and listen to all those speeches. Him gushing about how lucky he was to have married the love of his life. His brother – the best man – telling everyone what a perfect couple Danny and Kirsty made. Kirsty’s dad – Brooke’s Uncle Tony – going on and on about how blessed he was to have such a wonderful daughter and how proud he and Auntie Sheryl were of her. It had got on her nerves.
And the worst part of it all was that she’d believed it at the time. She’d honestly bought into the story they were all telling. That Kirsty was a wonderful human being who was going to make Danny such a wonderful wife.
In a way that had made it bearable because she’d told herself repeatedly that all she wanted was for him to be happy, and if it took Kirsty to make him happy then so be it. She’d always got on with her cousin. Looked up to her even.
But she’d felt ashamed and bad for wanting Danny and wishing the wedding wouldn’t happen. She’d wanted to back out of being a bridesmaid because she didn’t think she deserved the honour. She’d been miserable and guilty forages, and all the time…
Lucy put her phone in her handbag and sighed. ‘I’ve got to go,’ she said. ‘I’m needed in the shop. But I’ll keep looking, honestly, and I’ll come up with something. I’ll have a talk to Sam, too, and see what he thinks since he’ll probably be playing the guitar. Millie, are you staying on or are you coming home with me?’
