The Desperate Bride’s Diet Club (36 page)

‘She came dressed as a tart tonight,’ said someone
else. ‘Not much of a disguise.’

‘She’s such a flirt,’ said Edward. ‘I’m glad she’s not my missus.’

Kathy’s mind was reeling. Was it possible that she’d been wrong?

Before she had a chance to think, one of the men turned to talk to her.

‘It’s a good turnout,’ he said, with a friendly smile. ‘We should raise a lot of money tonight.’

‘What’s the money going towards?’ she asked, thinking it would
be new stumps or something similar.

‘The Alzheimer’s Society,’ replied the man.

Kathy turned to him, her mouth dropping.

‘Your fella’s idea,’ he told her. ‘Wouldn’t take any other suggestions.’

He was about to say something else but ‘Rockstar’ came on to the speakers and the team hit the dance floor to act out their Nickelback fantasies.

Edward came to stand next to Kathy. ‘For the team,
it’s a night out,’ he said into her ear. ‘For their carers, it’s a night off.’ He pointed to where the air guitar solos were in full swing and grinned at his own joke.

But Kathy’s mind was elsewhere. ‘The money tonight is being raised for the Alzheimer’s Society?’ she asked him.

He shrugged his shoulders. ‘It seemed important to you.’

Kathy’s eyes pricked with tears as she stared up into his
friendly brown eyes.

‘And what’s important to you,’ he told her, ‘is important to me.’

The way Edward was looking at her was making her pulse race.

She was still staring up at him when suddenly everything around them fell black and silent. The music stopped and only the glow of the candles filled the room.

‘Power cut,’ said someone close by.

‘I bet those dodgy disco lights have blown a fuse,’
said someone else.

‘Stay here,’ Edward told Kathy before disappearing into the darkness.

A few people were staggering about drunkenly in the semi-darkness so she flattened herself against the wall out of the way.

It seemed an awful long time before Edward reappeared in front of her.

‘Can’t see what we’re doing to fix it,’ he told her. ‘The party’s over. Shall we go? Thankfully I’m not on the
clearing-up committee.’

He put his hand in the middle of her back to steer her in the direction of the door. The cool night air washed over them and Kathy shivered a little.

‘There’s a taxi rank round the corner,’ said Edward. ‘We can get a lift from there.’

I’ll have frostbite by then, thought Kathy. But it was quite nice walking along in the moonlight, despite the cold.

They were halfway
around the cricket field when the clubhouse behind them suddenly sprang into life. Music thumped out and the lights were back on inside.

‘They must have fixed it,’ said Kathy, stopping to look. ‘Did you want to go back?’

Edward shook his head as he looked down at her. ‘No. It’s actually quite nice to get you on your own for once. There always seems to be someone around these days. Maggie, Violet
or the whole of the bloomin’ cricket team. It’s good to have you all to myself.’

The music in the clubhouse changed from a frantic beat to ‘The Power of Love’ by Frankie Goes to Hollywood. It was a perfect song for a chilly, moonlit night and there was nobody around. Just Kathy and Edward.

Kathy clutched her cloak around her, causing Edward to frown.

‘Are you cold? Sorry, I didn’t think.’

‘I’m fine,’ she told him, her teeth chattering as she spoke.

‘Come here,’ he said softly, drawing her close to him.

Edward grabbed the sides of his cloak and wrapped them around her, his arms encircling her. But he didn’t let go, didn’t release her. They were standing close to each other, so close that Kathy could smell his woody-scented aftershave.

Her heart hammering, Kathy forced herself
to look up at Edward. He was staring down at her, a soft smile playing on his lips.

‘I think I got it all wrong,’ she told him. ‘I got so muddled.’

‘You should have remembered what I once told you,’ he said, his arms pulling her even closer. ‘Once I set my mind on something, I never waver. I always get what I want.’

‘And what do you want?’ asked Kathy, now a little breathless.

Edward bent
his head down to meet hers, their lips tantalisingly close.

‘You,’ he said.

Then he kissed her, on and on, until her doubts finally disappeared.

KATHY WOKE UP
on Sunday morning with a start.

Various snapshots of the evening came flooding into her mind. Edward kissing her in the moonlight. A taxi ride of which she didn’t remember very much. Kissing Edward on every step leading up to her flat. Edward peeling his Batman suit off.

Kathy sat bolt upright and stared down at the empty space next to her in the bed. Had he
crept off ashamed at having spent the night with her? Was he now bitterly regretting sleeping with her and thinking up excuses never to see her again?

‘Good morning,’ said Edward from the doorway.

He had a towel wrapped around his waist.

‘Hello,’ said Kathy, drawing the duvet up to cover her naked body.

‘Hope you don’t mind but I just grabbed a quick shower. I smelt of that damn rubber suit
and wanted to get clean. By the way, is there something you want to confess to me?’ he asked with a smirk.

Kathy blushed. She hadn’t faked any of her orgasms
if
that’s what he was getting at. Edward drew out a packet of Rolos from behind the door.

Kathy sighed in relief. ‘Oh, that! Well, the chocolates are only small.’

Edward handed the tube of chocolates to Kathy who ripped open the packet.
She offered him the first one but Edward shook his head.

‘That’s not what I’m craving this morning,’ he said in a husky voice.

He let the towel drop on the floor and suddenly Kathy lost all interest in the chocolate.

Maggie was cooking a healthy breakfast of dry-fried eggs and grilled bacon without the rind when Gordon came into the kitchen.

‘Smells good,’ he said, giving her bottom a quick
squeeze.

‘Cheeky,’ said Maggie, but she was smiling.

‘What are we up to next weekend? We’ve no plans, have we?’

‘Not that I know of,’ Maggie told him, flipping the eggs on to the plates.

‘Good.’

Maggie suddenly realised he was grinning at her. ‘What?’

Please Lord, not his mother coming to stay.

‘I’m taking you to Blackpool. There’s a special dance on. Thought we could trip the light fantastic
in the Empress Ballroom.’

Maggie stared at him in amazement. ‘You mean it?’ she finally managed to blurt out.

‘Of course,’ he said, taking her in his arms. ‘We’d planned to go, hadn’t we? All those years ago. But Lucy came along and that was that.’

Maggie threw her arms around him. ‘I can’t believe it.’

‘You’d better start thinking about what to wear,’ said Gordon, pinching her bottom.

Maggie
bit her lip. She’d have to start going through her clothes after breakfast. And then go shopping after that, probably.

‘Come on,’ said Gordon. ‘Breakfast is getting cold.’

He added the bacon to their plates and took them over to the small table.

Maggie brought over their mugs of tea and sat down. She was just reaching for the ketchup when she spotted her passport propped up against the salt
and pepper.

‘What’s that doing out of the safe?’

Gordon shrugged his shoulders. ‘Thought you might need it.’

‘For what? Blackpool?’ she giggled.

‘Well, you know how strict those American customs chaps are these days.’

Maggie blinked at him. ‘American who?’

He reached out and took her hand. ‘I thought that if we didn’t disgrace ourselves in Blackpool that I should take you to New York.’

‘New York!’ said Maggie, her voice several octaves higher than normal.

‘There’s a ballroom just off Broadway where I can show you off to those American fellas. Show them what they’re missing.’

Maggie’s mouth opened and closed but her brain had shut down.

‘I thought we could fly out on the twenty-seventh of this month. Christmas will be over and we can be back in time for Violet’s wedding on
the thirty-first.
What
do you think? We could even try a bit of ice skating in Central Park.’

Maggie finally came back to life. ‘I’m wondering who are you and what have you done with my husband?’

Gordon nodded and smiled at her. ‘Does that mean you’re not against the idea?’

Maggie leapt up and rushed around the table to cover her husband’s face in kisses. Gordon grabbed her around the waist
and sat her down on his knee, despite her protestations.

‘You’re as light as a feather these days,’ he told her.

‘I don’t believe it,’ she said. ‘When did you plan all this?’

‘It’s been on my mind for a while. The mortgage is nearly paid off and we’ve scrimped and saved for so long. Besides, I want to have some fun with you before I collect my pension and Zimmer frame.’

Maggie took her husband’s
face in her hands. ‘I love you,’ she told him.

‘I love you too,’ he said, giving her a peck on the lips. ‘Now, let me have my breakfast, otherwise I won’t take you to Tiffany’s.’

Maggie ate her eggs and bacon with a huge smile on her face that morning.

Lucy stopped and drew a deep breath.

‘I can’t make it,’ she said.

Todd held out his hand. ‘Come on,’ he said. ‘You know it’s worth it.’

It was the same every Sunday morning. She would be fine going across the flat expanse of Regent’s Park but by the time she got halfway up Primrose Hill, she was exhausted.

‘I can see Kate Moss,’ said Todd, dragging her up the last steep bit of the hill.

‘Liar,’ she told him, but his words did cause her to speed up a little.

Then they were at the top and, as usual, ‘their’ bench was free. Lucy
sank on to it, grateful for the seat and looked at the view.

‘It’s always worth it,’ said Todd.

And he was right. It was one of the best views in London, from looking down on to London Zoo in Regent’s Park and then further out to Canary Wharf, the London Eye and the Post Office Tower.

‘You’re a hard taskmaster,’ she told him, pulling her coat around her.

Lucy couldn’t believe it was winter
already. Where had the year gone? One minute she had been fat, unhappy and lonely. Now she was slim, happy and having the time of her life in the greatest city in the world. University was incredible and her designs were flowing thick and fast.

And she had made some great new friends. Including Todd. He was only a friend, she knew that much. He had dropped her hand once he had finished dragging
her up to the top of the hill. There had been no kisses, no moves made.

But she was sure going to miss him when he went back to Canada for Christmas.

Edward had finally managed to take his hands off Kathy for long enough for them head out for a Sunday roast at the local pub.

‘I’m famished,’ said Kathy, attacking her roast beef with gusto.

‘Must be all the exercise,’ he told her with a wide
grin.

Edward watched her cheeks redden but she was smiling. She was beautiful when she smiled. He knew this was it for him. He couldn’t love anybody else as much as Kathy. The past twenty-four hours had been a revelation and he was hooked for life. People said food was an addiction but as far as he was concerned, Kathy was his drug of choice from now onwards.

‘No pudding though,’ Kathy said.

‘Nope. We’ve only got a stone and a bit to go.’

‘I want to look good for Violet’s wedding.’

He put down his knife and reached out for her hand across the table. ‘You always look good,’ he told her.

She smiled back at him and he knew she had been worth waiting for.

Kathy was a class act. And he was determined to ensure that she knew it too.

‘WAR IS OVER
,’ sang John Lennon over the shop speakers. Not in December it’s not, thought Violet as she got bumped and shoved from all directions. The shops were packed with workers desperately trying to get their Christmas shopping done in their lunch hours.

It was a hideous time of year to try to organise a wedding. Sebastian’s mother had suddenly become overwrought with
the wedding plans and had decided to hand over the organisation to Violet.

‘After all, dear,’ she had said at the weekend, ‘it is your wedding.’

Nice of you to remember, Violet had been close to saying. But she hadn’t. She’d kept quiet, becoming ever more cross with herself.

Now she had some huge wedding extravaganza to co-ordinate, as well as the normal Christmas mayhem. She was becoming increasingly
snappy, especially with Sebastian who wasn’t putting in any effort to either Christmas or the wedding.

‘What have you thought to buy my parents for Christmas?’ he had asked that morning.

‘No idea,’ she had replied, slipping on her new winter coat.

‘You’ll have to get a move on. Time’s running out.’

‘Well, here’s a plan,’ she had snapped back. ‘Why don’t you think of something and buy it yourself?
You’re quite capable. Besides, I’ve got far too much to do. Unless you want to make two hundred sodding wedding favours instead?’

He had marched out of the front door, slamming it behind him. Violet knew she would have to apologise later but it would have been nice for him to make a bit of an effort for once.

On top of everything, they appeared to have invited most of Sebastian’s family for
Christmas dinner and, to add insult to injury, Sebastian had banged on about the Christmas cake and how she’d left it too late. But Violet wasn’t planning on baking a heavy fruit cake. She didn’t like it and why should she have to make something she wasn’t even going to eat?

She made her way out of the crowded shop and found the pavements equally packed. Needing refuge, she made her way up the
small alleyway to Gino’s delicatessen. But the queue was snaking out of the shop and down the street. Violet decided to head back there after work.

Back at her desk, she found Wendy was also having a nervous breakdown over Christmas.