I’m going to have to put a different spin on this. ‘How did we get that so wrong? It’s not meant to scare the bejesus out of you, it’s supposed to remind you that …forever isn’t long enough.’
Shadow’s sideways glance tells me my improvising hasn’t convinced him, so I can only hope it’s helped Bianca.
She shakes her head. ‘That’s what I’d always felt until now. The worst thing was, I blurted out how scary it sounded to Salvador. He lookedsogutted and the next thing I knew there were tears flooding down my cheeks.’
I put my hand on her arm. ‘The run-up to a wedding is a very emotional time.’ Then I notice how pale her cheeks are. ‘You say you had an early start. Did you have breakfast?’
She winces. ‘That was another disaster. We were running late, then when we did arrive the hotel menu was so weird, we didn’t bother.’
‘One thing I do know, you can’t make rings when you’re hungry!’ Gently reinforcing the idea of what they’re here for, I dial Nell, hoping she’s in town and available for a dash to Crusty Cobs. ‘How about we reset with some bakery pastries?’
Bianca’s face brightens. ‘Could we have coffee with those?’
‘Absolutely.’ I stand up and head for the row of three doors across the room, in search of a kettle. It would be more than I’d hoped to hit the kitchen straight away, but I dive into the walk-in cupboard in front of me, trying to look like that’s where I meant to go. When I come out of the gloom five minutes later, Nell’s up to speed on my new role and location and on her way. And Kit’s replied to my texts to say the coffee machine and fridge are one door along, and that they’ll give us another twenty before they come to join us.
As I emerge from the kitchenette with a tray of mugs and a large pot of coffee ten minutes later, Nell is already pushing her way through the front door, puffing with the exertion.
She shakes her head. ‘Latitude One and Two? What’s all that about then?’ Trust Nell to pick up on Kit’s shiny new name boards.
I grin at her as I put the tray on the coffee table in front of the sofa. ‘They’re the official addresses of the beach huts.’ Before she launches into a tirade about poncy Londoners, I get in first. ‘Latitude is a play on the navigational position and the sense of freedom.’
She drops a large cake box down beside the tray and leans back and stretches. ‘Well, who’d have thought?’ She turns to Bianca. ‘I’m Nell. I’m eighteen months pregnant which is why I’m the size of a ferry boat. And I don’t know about you, but I’m gasping for a drink!’
I smile at Bianca and pull up a leather chair for Nell. ‘Nell runs the St Aidan singles club, and she’s promised she’ll share her insights on romance in return for a Danish.’
As I open the lid of the cake box Nell closes her eyes and breathes in the smell of vanilla and jam. Then, as I hand round the drinks and they pull out an almond croissant each, Nell turns to Bianca. ‘So what’s he done? They can all be knobheads sometimes.’
Bianca replies straight away. ‘We hardly ever argue, but this morning we had our first tiff.’ Her frown deepens. ‘We were already behind, and I’d just been back into the flat to change my shoes for thethirdtime, because I wanted today to be perfect.’
I look down at my toes, realising the issue. ‘For you the important thing was your feet feeling right, but for Salvador it was being on time. Him hurrying you along could be a sign of how much he cares too.’
Bianca’s nodding. ‘That’s true.’
Nell chortles. ‘It’s also normal to throw wobblies when you get to the parts like the rings – because that’s when it hits you how real it is.’
Bianca’s nodding hard. ‘That’s it too!’
I’m the last person who should be persuading people to tie the knot, but there’s no going back now. ‘But if you’re more comfortable with that person than anyone else, it’s a damned good sign.’
Nell pushes the cake box towards Bianca and takes a cinnamon whirl for herself. She brushes the pastry flakes off her bump. ‘If you feel like you’d like their baby sometime, that’s even better!’
Bianca breaks a corner off her pain au chocolat. ‘He wants two kids, I want four – so we’ve settled on three.’ Her eyes go wider as she stares at Nell’s expanse. ‘Notstraightawaythough.’ She relaxes again. ‘The nursery is going to be Farrow and Ball babouche yellow.’
‘You’ve obviously thought it through.’ I sigh at the bliss of her certainty. That they have so much planned out, with no concept of what might lie ahead to derail those dreams. I widen my smile. ‘You still need to be brave. It takes a lot of courage to commit.’
Nell chortles. ‘The trick is, don’t overthink it. Listen to your heart and trust your own judgement.’
I have something more to add. ‘Kit doesn’t only make wedding rings. He does eternity rings, and promise rings, and groups come to make them to celebrate friendship.’Our time is running out, so I’m throwing it all in here. Playing it down, but playing it up too. ‘Your rings simply embody whatever you feel in the moment you create them. They can even just be a lovely way to celebrate a day by the sea.’
Bianca’s eyes are bright. ‘We want the ones with our fingerprints on in dark shadow. In gold, with inscriptions on the inside.’ She pushes a spike of hair off her forehead and gives her nose a last dab. ‘Or at least, we did. So long as I haven’t blown it with my howling.’
I hardly dare to hope, but Bianca sounds like she could be back on track.
‘You’ll be fine.’ As I push the pastries towards her again, there’s the sound of footsteps on the deck. As Kit and Salvador come into the room I jump to my feet and turn my smile on the guys. ‘Once Salvador’s had a cream horn, I’m sure he’ll be happy to carry on with the day?’
Salvador nods. ‘Definitely.’ He drops a kiss on Bianca’s cheek and takes her hand then turns back to me. ‘I explained to Kit earlier, nothing’s quite as beachy as it looked in the photos. I’m guessing that’s why Bianca was upset.’
Maybe this isn’t in the bag after all.
