‘I thought I overheard you on the phone, trying to get something sorted in time for the wedding – it sounded important,’ JJ says.
I shoot her a look. Obviously, it was me who overheard Cordelia on the phone, and told JJ all about it, and Cordelia probably knows it.
‘You heard too, right, Whit?’ JJ checks.
Okay, well, Cordelia definitely knows now.
‘Oh, erm, maybe,’ I reply.
‘What’s that?’ Andy asks her.
‘Oh, no, it’s nothing, just a last-minute gift I’m trying to sort,’ Cordelia tells him. ‘Thanks for ruining the surprise, girls.’
She shoots us a look but, I don’t know, I’m not buying it. She’s definitely up to something.
‘You’ll have to tell us later, when Andy’s not around,’ JJ insists. ‘Maybe we can help.’
‘Maybe,’ Cordelia says plainly.
Something sharp flickers in Cordelia’s eyes when she looks at me, like she knows exactly what we’re doing and she’s not impressed.
‘Y’all have picked a beautiful place to get married,’ Jake says warmly, trying to take the chill out of the atmosphere. ‘And I like the food.’
‘Thanks, Jake,’ she replies. ‘But I’m guessing we’ll have to go for something simpler.’
‘They do a buffet,’ Andy says.
‘A buffet?’ Cordelia squeaks back at him.
‘I love a buffet,’ Andy replies.
‘So long as the food is beige,’ I tease.
‘Or I could do the fish and chips,’ he protests. ‘If you want seafood.’
‘Yeah, he loves seafood when it’s battered,’ I point out. ‘So do I. Actually, I saw a couple eating it, it looked great.’
‘Fish and chips,’ she repeats slowly. ‘At my wedding.’
‘Our wedding,’ Andy reminds her with a smile.
Okay, now she really doesn’t look happy.
‘I want this day to feel elevated,’ Cordelia says, dropping her shoulders like a stroppy kid.
‘And I want people not to be hungry,’ Andy replies.
There’s a beat of silence.
‘You could always do both,’ Jake suggests. ‘Fancy starter, hearty main. Best of both worlds.’
Arty Morgan chooses this moment, when things are kind of frosty, to turn up at our table.
He pauses when he sees us, eyes lighting up.
‘How is everyone doing?’ he asks. ‘Oh…’
His face falls when he sees what we’re eating.
