Now I’m more awake, my mind’s racing ahead. ‘So is there anything else you need to tell me before you go?’ It’s one of those questions I already know the answer to – if there were he’d already have said.
His face crumples as he hesitates. ‘Actually, there is.’ He’s standing in a shaft of bright sunlight from the porthole window that’s making him even more dazzling than usual. ‘Great Auntie Di’s messed up her hotel booking, so I’m giving her my room at the castle.’
My lips are twitching. ‘And you need me to lend you my festival tent?’ I’m kidding to cover how I gutted am. He’s best man and brother of the bride, there’s no question what I have to do here. I just didn’t realise how desperately I was looking forward to staying in a princess bed myself until it’s been taken away. ‘No, you have to take my room. I’ll be finished by then, I’ll easily get a lift back to St Aidan.’
He jumps straight in. ‘Absolutely not. That brilliant breakfast menu was all down to you. The whole thing is, I want you to have your night at the castle,’
Two people, one room. It doesn’t take Einstein to work out the solution here.
I make it sound a thousand times more casual than it feels. ‘You didn’t keep me awake with your snoring at the Waterfront.’ Being forced to share a room with the hottie – it’s the stuff of teenage fantasies. Sure, I’ve played this exact scenario over in my head a few hundred times, but only because I’m temporarily obsessed and a sad person. But I’ll get over it. And lastly, I haven’t engineered this on purpose. I definitely have not been ringing round all the hotels to bribe them to make this gift happen. Honestly. Because it’s as terrifying as it is thrilling. And my throat’s so dry my I’m croaking. ‘We could … share again?’
This is how easy we are with each other now. How good I’ve got at concealing my galloping heartbeat, how skilled at blanking those dragonflies. There’s not even a hint of innuendo.
His eyes go soft. ‘Maybe I didn’t snore because last time I stayed awake to check you were okay.’ And that’s what a sweetie he is, looking out for everyone without ever making a fuss about it. And in the end, it’s not how edible he looks in his plain white T. What counts much more in real life is someone looking out for you at every turn without even questioning, like Nic does. Then he blinks and re-boots. ‘If you’re sure you don’t mind, that would be great. I’ll have the sofa, obviously.’
I can’t let him get away with that. ‘I take equality for women over chivalry every time. I’ll toss you for it.’
‘Tails I lose, you get the bed.’ And not a coin in sight. There are those slices in his cheeks he gets when he really smiles. ‘You do realise this could ruin my reputation as a sad loner.’
Lucky I made it super-clear to Pixie that the Polaroid of us on the loveseat meant nothing. Less than nothing.
I have a go at wiggling my eyebrows to show how much of a joke this all is. ‘Best make sure we sneak you out well before breakfast, then.’ I can’t help pulling a face as the full implications sink in. How much I’m going to have to restrain myself. How hard it’s going to be to have him so close yet so unavailable. How very much of a last parade this is going to be in every sense. But it’s another one of those times when the best way of hiding things is to bring them out in the open and shake them around. ‘Last time I was unconscious; this time – hopefully – I won’t be. Just don’t go looking too drop-dead gorgeous in that tux of yours, okay?’
His laugh is low and husky. ‘Back at you. In any case, Merwyn will be there to make sure we behave.’ He looks at his watch. ‘Great. In that case I’ll be back for you and Merwyn just before nine.’
And a moment later he’s gone.
I ease Merwyn off my chest and onto the duvet. ‘Come on, Merwyn, we’d better have some croissants to build our strength up.’ However testing today was going to be, it just got a whole lot harder.
And as I listen to the sound of his footsteps fading as he winds down the four flights of stairs, I can’t help thinking how quiet life will be when I no longer have any reason to go looking for Nic.
Chapter 33
Later on Thursday.
Outside Cockle Shell Castle.
Cornflowers and embroidered hankies.
As I wander out of the huge front door of the castle, the bright July sun straight overhead is shining out of a cobalt blue sky. I can’t believe it’s already time for Pixie to arrive and we’ve got this far without any more major hitches.
When we got here earlier, Nic and I took two seconds flat to drop our overnight bags in our room up a narrow flight of stairs behind the spacious castle kitchen. There was just enough time to take in wonderful views across the white sands to the light aquamarine expanse of the bay, catch a glimpse of the double shower in the en suite, and have a two-second pretend fight over the dreamy and inviting king size bed with its downy duvet and light-grey Egyptian cotton covers. Then we shot back downstairs to get on with our pressing jobs.
First on the list was finding Holly and her cameras, then shooting down to the beach to pull the groomsmen ashore as they chugged towards the beach in their inflatable. If the size of Holly’s whoops were anything to go by, the photos of Ewan and a dozen groomsmen in their tuxes sitting in the boat in the shallows, then all leaping out onto the sand and high fiving their way up the beach swigging bottles of champagne are going to be amazing.
She laughed at me as she jumped out of the way of a wave. ‘This is exactly what a wedding by the sea should be.’
I was shouting at Ewan as he hung back to talk to Nic. ‘Salt spray in your stubble and sand in your jacket pockets makes for an extra handsome party. Don’t forget your buttonholes, they’re waiting in the hall of the castle for you to pick up.’
He pushed his fingers through his light brown hair, blinking in the bright light as he stared up the beach at the turrets beyond the shrubbery. ‘Tell me again, am I dreaming, or are we really getting married in a castle with views across the bay?’
Nic’s face dropped. ‘You wouldn’t rather be getting married in the distillery?’
Ewan opened his arms wide, and flopped a hand over each of our shoulders. ‘I don’t know how you two have pulled this off. Brilliant doesn’t come close, I can’t thank you enough.’
Nic grimaced. ‘I just hope stroppy tomboy Pixie’s up for being star of the show for a day.’
Ewan gave him a wink. ‘You watch, she might just surprise you.’
