Nemmie lets out a wail. ‘Sienna Harry in my class has been a bridesmaid seven times already. I haven’t done it once.’
I pull a face. ‘I’m afraid we Brownburys aren’t big on weddings.’
Nemmie’s face brightens as she turns to me. ‘I’ll be your bridesmaid, won’t I?’
For someone so tuned in in other areas, you’d think she’d get that if I were going to get married I’d need an actual partner, and that considering she hasn’t seen one in nine years, I’m more likely to fly to the moon.
I always try to tell the truth, but this is an exception. ‘Of course.’
Nemmie punches the air and calls to the others. ‘Let’s go and collect shells. If Tia’s getting married on the beach she might like to give out those instead of flowers.’
Tia and I watch them running across the shingle, and a few yards before we get to the beach hut we stop.
I half close my eyes. ‘Imagine deckchairs on the sand, bunting coming down from each front gable to the floor, tall lanterns on the front steps. We’ll fold back the double doors so the inside flows out to the verandah.’
We walk up the steps, I pull the doors open, then the shutters, and Tia goes in. ‘Now that it’s empty apart from Oliver’s table, it looks more spacious and even prettier.’
The huts along this section of the beach are generous, with double doors opening onto a covered verandah out front. There are side windows with shutters and a door at the back, but as Windflowers is only seven feet by ten with a four-foot verandah, I’m desperately hoping she’s okay with it.
‘I’ll put cushions on the built-in benches along each side, then we’ll have the chairs, and it’s high enough to hang bunting in here too.’
Tia stands in the doorway. ‘I’ve adored this place since we were kids. I just hope Thom likes it too.’
I hear a clatter and glance out to see the pickup parked on the narrow lane above the sands and Thom stacking chairs against the roadside railings. ‘He’s here, let’s go and help him unload.’
As we make our way from the lane to the hut and stack the chairs on the verandah, it feels like a good time to talk about the drawbacks.
‘There are no mains services and it’s not licensed, so we’d have to use lanterns or battery-operated fairy lights and you bring your own fizz. The toilets and water are in a building by the Sardine Club, and you can drive in the way you’ve come or walk along the beach. Apart from that, welcome to the world’s smallest and most basic wedding venue.’ I’m anxious to see his reaction.
Tia takes his hand and leads him across the deck. ‘So what do you think?’
Thom nods. ‘They’re very solid considering they were free, and it’s great they fold flat.’
Tia snorts. ‘Not the chairs, I mean about the hut!’ She pulls him inside and waves her arms in the air. ‘I know it’s minute compared to other places we’ve seen, but if it means we can get married rather than not…’ She bites her lip as she looks around.
Thom catches her hand. ‘The important part of our wedding isn’t the party. It’s wanting to celebrate our love and express our commitment to each other.’ He wraps his arms around her. ‘Looking out on the ocean now, I can’t think of a better place to do that.’
I’m silently thanking the sun for giving the sea a brightness that’s making the whole bay shimmer, and I desperately hope the day they choose is this good when it arrives. Then I think how some days, even in summer, the rain hammers so hard it drills holes in the sand, and I add umbrellas to my mental shopping list, and then move on from that thought.
I’m completely hard-hearted when it comes to the mushy stuff, but I scrape a tear away from the corner of my eye, then wiggle my eyebrows at Tia. ‘You’re my favourite couple in the world. I can’t think of anyone I’d rather get married here.’ There’s a rush of enthusiasm as I realise it’s truly going to happen.
Tia reaches up and kisses Thom. ‘Just think, we won’t have to stress over invitations or seating plans or menu choices; we won’t have blow-ups in bridesmaids’ WhatsApp groups, and no bridezilla meltdowns.’
Thom smiles down at her. ‘It’s just us, a handful of guests, and bottles of bubbly we bring in paper bags.’
She laughs. ‘I don’t know why we didn’t do this all along.’
Thom holds his finger up. ‘And a cake. We must have cake.’
‘Can it be a rainbow one with rainbow hundreds and thousands sticking to the buttercream covering, and jam between the layers?’ Tia’s eyes are shining.
Thom’s eyes are bright when he looks at me. ‘There’s no point in waiting. We’ll be your first wedding. I don’t know how to begin to thank you for this, Maeve.’
I’ve been thinking about this. ‘If you let me use a couple of your pictures for the beach hut wedding publicity, I’m the one who’s going to be grateful forever.’
Tia smiles. ‘In that case, I think we may need to stretch the guest list to two more.’ She calls down the beach. ‘Nemmie and Zara– please will you be my bridesmaids?’
We try to discourage screaming at home, but as they stampede towards us shrieking, I let it go. When they eventually calm down, I grin at Tia. ‘A full five minutes for the yells to subside! You’ve made two girls very happy.’
