‘How’s it all going?’
‘About as crazy as you’d imagine.’
As Bel waited for her coffee, she checked the bridal group chat. ‘Have you checked in on your bride today? Remember your duty as a bridesmaid is to reassure her!’
She closed the app again immediately and glanced up to see Dean walk inside. She hadn’t seen him since the other night at Emma and Craig’s. She bit back an irritated huff and braced herself.
‘Hi,’ he said, eyeing her warily. A part of her was happy that he seemed unsure of his reception after their last conversation.
‘Hello.’
‘I … uh,’ he started, shifting his weight slightly. ‘About the other night.’
Bel raised her eyebrows slightly.
‘What I said came out wrong. I wasn’t having a go at you. I was … I don’t know …’
‘Was astonished that someone could still be living here all this time?’ she asked.
‘No,’ he said, shaking his head. ‘Surprised, yeah, but … if you want to know the truth, pleasantly surprised.’
Huh?
‘Pleasantly?’ she repeated, as she eyed him uncertainly.
He shrugged and shoved his hands in the pockets of his faded fleece-lined jacket. ‘I wasn’t expecting anyone I knew to still be out here. Figured it’d be kinda lonely. Plus, most of the people around here are married and have a tribe of kids.’
His shy reply took away some of her earlier irritation. ‘Yeah. Me too. But it’s not so bad. There may not be a lot of nightlife, but we’ve got a pretty decent progress committee. And the local hall is always hosting get-togethers and events,’ she told him. ‘You just have to get involved.’
‘I saw a few flyers up around the place for the movie night and markets. Are you going?’
‘Yeah. I’m kind of obligated since I’m on the committee. But it should be fun.’
‘Sounds good.’
Bel was starting to concede that Dean might no longer be much like the fourteen-year-old jerk who’d stolen her bra and hung it from the flagpole in high school. ‘Well, I better keep going, I suppose. I’ll have to face Larkin’s wrath if I’m late for my dress fitting.’
‘Ah, the Wedding of the Year.’ Dean nodded sagely. ‘Is it true they’re bringing in that celebrity chef from the TV to cater it?’
‘Is that the rumour going around this week?’
‘Heard it down at the pub.’
‘Interesting. No, I don’t believe so. Thereisa reality TV star invited, but I have no idea which show they’re from.’
‘Sounds like a major production.’
‘It’s going to be something, all right.’
Larrisa called to Bel and handed over her flat white.
‘Well, good luck,’ he said.
‘Thanks. See you around.’ Bel waved and headed out, taking a fortifying breath as she walked back to her car.
She dreaded these stupid fittings. She had no idea why there had to be so many, but thankfully, this was the final one. There was added stress today—the possibility of running into Tate had been sending her into alternating fits of anxiety and excitement. She couldn’t wait to see him again, yet every time she thought about it, a wave of nausea instantly followed. She was a complete mess.
She tried to distract herself during the drive by turning up the playlist of love ballads and drowning out all rational thought, which did help somewhat until she arrived at the imposing gates and could no longer put off the inevitable.
