“How far away is the hotel where the reception is happening?” Tom asked as they climbed inside the vehicle.
“It’s maybe a ten- or fifteen-minute journey, I think,” Carole said, pulling the location details up on her phone.
Tom tapped the new destination into the satnav and they set off. They passed the church on their way along the road, and Carole smiled at the sight of her beautiful cousin and her dashing groom still standing outside the quaint old building and exchanging a kiss beneath the summer sunshine for the photographer to capture while the little flower girls threw rose petals in the air around the newly wedded couple, their faces filled with excitement.
That will make a gorgeous wedding photograph,Carole thought as they drove by.They must be so happy together.
And on the heels of that thought came another.
I wonder what that sort of happiness must feel like.
“So, are you ready to enjoy the wedding reception?” Tom asked, pulling her from her thoughts.
Pushing her philosophical notions to the back of her mind, she smiled at Tom and nodded. “I’m ready. And thanks to your parking skills when we got here, it looks like we’ll arrive before most of the other guests, which means we get to enjoy the welcome canapes before the hordes pile in and devour them all.”
“Sounds good to me,” Tom said.
They were almost at the end of the road, approaching the junction to make the turn, when Carole saw Steven again, unlocking a car that was parked facing in their direction.
At the exact moment that Tom’s car drew level, Steven looked up.
When his gaze found hers, Carole saw the flash of recognition in his eyes.
As his eyes widened, Carole’s heart thumped like a drum inside her chest.
And then Steven was gone as Tom’s car sped on.
Carole couldn’t stop her eyes darting to the side mirror, where she saw Steven turning to watch the car drive away. The punch of satisfaction she got at seeing him standing there and staring was childish and oh-so worth it.
Her heartbeat steadied as Tom made the turn at the junction. Carole was relieved she’d seen Steven and that he’d seen her. That mutual recognition and acknowledgement of each other’s presence at the wedding was one big hurdle out of the way already.
Now all they had to do was interact with each other at the reception and exchange a few polite words, and then she could forget about him all over again.
Simple.
