Five minutes later, I break the news to Tamsin.
‘What? Who? Me? Are you joking? Really? I’d love to!’
I can’t stop smiling. ‘The downside is that you have to make Mawgan look like a fairy princess.’
Tamsin grins wickedly. ‘That’s not a downside. I’ve been waiting to get my hands on those eyebrows since we were in primary school.’
Phew. What a relief. Cal has made his train to Penzance after all. I get a delayed message while I’m walking back to Poldark Cottage. That’s a huge load off my mind. It’s late morning now and the cosy sitting room is crammed with people. The bridal party and their entourage occupy every inch of space so that I can barely open the door. Lily’s parents can’t stop beaming even though Jade is barking orders at just about anyone. The bridesmaids – including a gleeful Mawgan – are giggling and sipping champagne from mini bottles through silver straws.
Standing behind them, armed with her toolkit of brushes and a jaw-breaking grin, is Tamsin. Lily’s make-up artist has created a look for Lily and her bridesmaids, which Tamsin has, amazingly, even adapted to suit Mawgan.
Stripped of her Tango tan, Mawgan now has a natural pale golden glow. Her dewy foundation is enhanced with a creamy blusher and subtle eye shadow that brings out the colour of her eyes. Tamsin has somehow managed to work a miracle on her over-plucked eyebrows too. The slinky column dress in a cornflower blue shows off her figure, enhanced by a fresh flower in her hair and a beautiful posy of Cornish flowers in dusky rose, pale peaches and creams. She looks sophisticated yet natural; chic yet innocent.
It’s weird. Seriously weird … and very disturbing. And somehow, a tiny part of me feels a teeny bit sorry for Mawgan who has been de-Mawganned. It’s almost cruel, like pulling the claws of a sabre-toothed tiger.
‘Wow. You all look stunning.’
The photographer shouts over the giggling. ‘You look a-mazing! Now, be careful, ladies. We want you to stay perfect for the pictures.’
Mawgan smirks and throws a small and satisfied smile at me and seems about to say something but we’re all cut off by a collective gasp from bridesmaids and entourage.
Lily descends the narrow stairs into the room with her dressmaker holding up the train.
Jade starts hyperventilating at the sight of her biggest asset. ‘Oh my God. You look breathtaking, darling.’
For once I agree with Jade. Lily doesn’t look like a mere mortal. She’s a goddess. Her pale gold dress is simple but beautifully cut, with long fitted sleeves, an embroidered bodice and a nipped-in waist that shows off her tiny figure to perfection. Her hair is loose and crimped into soft flowing waves, all set off by a circlet of Cornish flowers in bud. She looks like a medieval princess from a painting.
The silence is broken and everyone bursts into applause.
‘You look amazing,’ I tell her when I can eventually get a word, almost afraid to get too close to her.
‘Thank you.’
‘Ben’s very lucky.’
Jade looms next to my shoulder. ‘So is Lily,’ she cuts in. ‘They’re both very lucky to have each other. They’re the perfect couple, aren’t you, Lily?’
‘Yes, I’m very lucky,’ Lily echoes.
‘Is there anything else you need? Anything at all? I’m going down to the ceremony area to double-check everything’s on schedule but if you need me – for anything at all – please call me.’
‘Oh, don’t worry. We will,’ says Jade.
Lily flashes me a smile. ‘I’m fine. I trust you and Kilhallon.’
Lily winces as Jade takes her elbow. ‘Lily, darling, the photographer wants to take some shots in the cottage garden.’
‘See you at the glade,’ I murmur but Jade has already swept Lily away into the giggling chaos of the bridal party.
After checking with Rachel that everything’s running smoothly at last, I dash up to the house to change but not before trying to get hold of Cal for a quick word on his progress. His mobile goes straight to voicemail but I don’t leave a message because I don’t think it will help. It’s no use me panicking or getting upset; I’m going to have to keep my focus on today and hope he turns up at some point, but I can’t help feeling disappointed.
‘Still no word from him? I bet his train’s delayed or cancelled. I heard they had a signal failure at Tiverton Parkway.’
With this helpful statement, Polly enters the kitchen and dumps a handbag on the table. She’s wearing a coral shift dress and a little black cardigan with a matching fascinator in her freshly styled hair. Her make-up knocks years off her but she’s still the Polly I know and love, so I can’t be too cross with her for her less-than-positive news about the trains.
‘He might still make it, you know. I’m sure he’s doing everything he can.’
‘He made the train. I got a delayed message while I was walking back up here but I’m not sure how the journey’s going.’
‘Fingers crossed.’
I force a smile. ‘Wow, you look lovely. That dress suits you and the make-up’s great.’
She glances down at her outfit. ‘Tamsin’s a miracle worker. I don’t look too “done”, do I?’
‘No, you look fantastic.’ I hug her.
‘Didn’t want to let Kilhallon down and you never know where the photos might end up. Can’t have Mawgan Cade or anyone round here saying I looked like a bag of rags.’
‘You look stunning.’
‘Hmm. Your turn now, madam. Tamsin’s on her way up here after finishing Lily’s lot. Come on, get a move on.’
‘I don’t think I have time for much pampering. We’re running late.’
‘Yes, you do. Sit down. Oh look, here’s Tamsin.’
She taps her watch and I realise it’s half past one. In ninety minutes the ceremony starts. Polly makes me a cold drink while Tamsin sets to work on my nails. She’s doing a super quick-dry nude varnish that will dry while she does my make-up.
My phone beeps.
‘That could be Cal!’
‘Don’t you dare touch that phone until your nails are dry,’ Tamsin orders.
‘Wait.’ Polly turns on my phone and shows me the screen.
‘It is Cal. He says the train’s running an hour late but he’s still hoping to make it as long as there aren’t any more hold ups … but he still has to make it from Penzance to Kilhallon. What if there are no taxis? It’s Saturday and they’ll be so busy with holidaymakers.’
‘Keep still, hon!’ Tamsin orders.
Polly holds a drink with a straw to my mouth. ‘If he makes it home, he makes it home. If not, then there’s nothing we can do and anyway, we’ve done the hard bit already. It won’t make a scrap of difference to the wedding now if Cal’s here or not.’
But it will make a difference to me. I’m desperate to hear every detail of what happened with Esme, and see for myself how Cal feels. I won’t rest until I see him with my own eyes so I can judge.
‘How did he sound when you last spoke to him?’ Polly asks me, while Tamsin applies a final topcoat in swift, expert strokes.
‘OK. He’s seen her but his battery was dying and he’d forgotten his charger. I don’t really know. I hope he’s not worse for it.’
‘Nothing you can do now, my bird. Nothing any of us can do.’
‘Can you please keep still and shut up for one minute?’ Tamsin pleads. ‘I need to finish your face and if you hadn’t noticed, we’ve got a wedding to go to in less than an hour.’
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
After all the drama of this morning, I can hardly believe I’m finally ready. With half an hour to go to the start of the ceremony, my windswept hair is tamed with a crystal clip, I’m wearing the new blue dress I fell in love with and had to buy, despite the price. My make-up has even made me look like an actual wedding guest, rather than, according to Polly, ‘a scarecrow who’s spent the morning being dragged through a hedge backwards’. Polly has gone to help Rachel who’s at the wedding glade, ready to greet and usher the close fa
mily to their seats and make sure everything looks perfect. Tamsin has re-joined the bridal party for any last minute touch-ups. Picking up my bag, I make my way downstairs and hear someone walk into the kitchen.
I hurry down. ‘Cal!’
‘No, it’s me.’
Isla meets me in the kitchen. She’s elegant in a pale-green vintage silk tea dress and her cheeks are glowing softly. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her look more beautiful and I try to hide my disappointment.
‘The door was unlocked so we walked in. I wanted to thank you for the amazing job you and Cal have done for the wedding. We’ve had a look round and I wouldn’t recognise the place from when Cal first came home.’
‘We should thank you for persuading Lily and Ben to have their ceremony here.’
‘I did wonder if I’d handed you all a poisoned chalice. Lily and Ben can be hard to pin down at times and I heard you had some ups and downs along the way. It’s Jade and Addison who are the real tough nuts. Have they been a terrible pain in the arse?’
I don’t know how to reply to this but my face must give my feelings away.
‘Hmm. I thought as much. You deserve a medal for dealing with them but on balance, I’d hoped that the wedding would be a good thing for Kilhallon.’
‘It has been. The publicity’s been great … on the whole. We’ve had tons of bookings and attention. Thanks.’
‘Hmm. Kind of you to be so tactful. I wonder if Cal feels as grateful.’
‘I’m sure he would if he was here.’
She raises her eyebrows. ‘Last minute glitches to fix?’
‘Not at Kilhallon. He’s been to Greece to find Esme.’
‘Esme? Oh … I … I hope everything’s OK between you?’ I could kick myself. I remind myself that Isla knows nothing of Cal’s experiences in Syria and that he trusted me with the full story. It’s too late now. I must tell her something.
‘It is. Esme’s a young girl. He met her in Syria and he’s gone out to Greece to meet up with her in a refugee camp. You know Cal … when he needs to do something, there’s no stopping him.’
She frowns. ‘Cal? I – I think so. Yes, he does what he wants, no matter who it affects … but to go so far away now? That must have been a nightmare for you.’
Damn it, I wish I hadn’t even told Isla this much about Cal but how can I lie to her when Polly and Tamsin know he’s gone away and where. It’s too late to keep the truth hidden, even if no one but Cal and I will ever know the whole truth. ‘We’ve managed with Polly, Kit and Rachel and all our friends. We’ve coped and it was important to Cal that he went to see Esme. He did offer to stay but I didn’t want to hold him back or make him stay here when his heart was somewhere else.’
Isla stares at me.
‘You know him better than me, Demi. You’re more in tune with Cal than I ever was.’
‘I wouldn’t say that. I don’t think I’ll ever know him totally.’
‘If we knew someone totally, it would be a boring life.’ She smiles. ‘I’ll wait for Cal to tell me more about this little girl, if and when he wants to. I’m only now getting over the shock of finding out that Kit is his half-brother. I knew Cal’s father was a rogue but not that he’d actually fathered another son.’
‘How did you find out?’
‘Robyn told me earlier this year and I was as gobsmacked as she was. When I met Kit at the shoot last autumn, I’d no inkling so I can’t imagine how Cal reacted when he found out. I keep racking my brains to see if I noticed a resemblance between them but I can’t say I did.’
‘Once you know, you can tell.’
‘I’ll have to go and say hello later. It must have been a hell of a shock for Cal.’
‘You could say that, but they’re both slowly getting used to it. He’s been writing a feature about the floods and working on his book so he stayed on to help us.’
‘There’s so much I’ve missed while I’ve been away.’ She puts her hand on the back of the chair to steady herself.
‘Are you OK?’
She sits down quite heavily and is very pale. ‘Yes. Could I have a glass of water, please? I feel wobbly.’
Wow. I never thought the news about Esme and Cal would have such an effect. While I fill a glass I spot the clock. Twenty-five minutes to the ceremony. No Cal yet and I don’t think there will be. He must have been delayed further. It was a long shot to even think he’d make it. He knew he wouldn’t and so did I, deep down. Never mind, we’ll manage but it would have been so good to have him here.
‘Thanks.’ Isla takes some sips from the glass of water and a few calming breaths.
‘Are you OK? I hate to leave you but I ought to go to the ceremony. I can’t leave Rachel to handle everything and Lily might need me. Shall I find Luke?’
‘He should be here any minute. He stopped over in the yard to chat to Polly … and I’m fine, honestly.’ She gives me a weak smile. ‘I may as well tell you. I’m pregnant.’
‘Wow … that’s amazing. Congratulations.’
‘I came to share the news with you and Cal while we had a few moments’ quiet but I can tell him later when he gets here.’
‘If he gets here. His train was running late.’
‘He will. Eventually. Demi, he would never let you down.’
But he let you down and went away, I think. He put his love for people in general before his love for you and you were the love of his life. I don’t expect any special treatment, an ordinary being like me, not against the rest of the world.
‘You’re perfect for him, you know.’
‘What?’
‘You and Cal. You should hold on to what you have here, with every ounce of strength.’
My skin tingles with discomfort at Isla’s words, but I laugh them off. ‘We’re doing our best, though it might finish us both off to keep Kilhallon running.’
‘I didn’t mean Kilhallon, though you’ve done an amazing job to make it a success.’ Isla reaches for my hand and rests hers on it. ‘I meant you and Cal. You should never let each other go. You can handle his moods, you brought him back from the dead – or at least, you brought him back to life.’
‘Yeah.’ I laugh again but Isla takes my hand.
‘I’m sorry if I’m embarrassing you. Maybe my hormones are making me slushy but I wanted to say it while we’re on our own. You and Cal are a far better match than Cal and I would ever have been.’
‘We’ve only been together for a year, and even then, we’ve only just moved in together.’
‘Doesn’t matter. What does matter is that you’ll never find each other again if you fall apart now. You let him go to Greece. I’m not sure I would have been so understanding about him leaving just at this moment.’
I smile, remembering how jealous I once was of Isla, and how I would have killed to be in her place. Maybe she’s right and maybe she’s only being over emotional, I don’t know, but my stomach is swirling and my throat is swelling.
‘Thank you for being so nice but I’m not thinking beyond the next hour for now. I can’t wait to see Cal. That’s all I want now.’
She smiles and let’s go of my hand. ‘I know.’
‘Isla?’
Luke appears at the door, a worried frown on his face. Despite the anxious expression, he’s looking well. He’s tanned, he’s put some weight on and it suits him. He taps his watch face. ‘We’re going to be late. Are you OK?’
‘Isla isn’t feeling very well,’ I say.
His face falls and he rushes to her side. ‘No? Poor love. Feeling sick again?’
Isla kisses him. ‘I was but it’s passed now. Demi’s helped me. I’ll be fine in a few minutes. Don’t fuss.’
My phone beeps but it’s only a text from Rachel, asking me to join her and the wedding celebrant in the wedding glade. The falconer has already arrived and has Boris the owl ready to deliver the rings.
I pick up my bag. ‘Sorry, I have to go now. You’re welcome to stay here as long as you like and I’ll see you at t
he ceremony.’
‘Thanks for looking after her,’ says Luke, sitting down next to Isla and taking her hand.
‘I’ll be OK in a moment. Thanks.’
‘A pleasure. Come and find me if you need any more help.’
Grabbing my phone, I leave Kilhallon House and make my way to the wedding glade, knowing this is one of the last moments of quiet I’ll have today. I pull my wrap around my shoulders. There’s a decent breeze but nothing to blow the tepee over.
The parking area is crammed with vans and trucks while guests’ cars roll in down the track to the makeshift car park. Women in elegant dresses hold on to their hats as they pick their way down the track to the wedding glade. There are men in designer suits, open neck shirts and pointy shoes; little girls in their new dresses and boys in bow ties, their hair stiff with gel. As I walk, I try to spot the arty, actor types from the local friends and relations. I imagine Lily and Ben getting nearer to the moment when they’re going to ‘tie the knot’, if not legally, then for all intents and purposes.
But mostly I think of Cal because despite what Isla’s said, I know she came to tell him her news, not me. She must have been as disappointed as I was that Cal was away, though she seems happy enough with Luke and he’s definitely crazy about her.
I don’t know how Cal will react when he hears Isla is pregnant. Will he be happy for her or think of what might have been, if only for a moment? Will he wonder ‘what if’: what if Isla’s baby had been their child? Or will he be too wrapped up in the life of a different child, Esme?
I’ve known him just over a year. She’s known him his whole life and no matter what she told me about us being perfect for each other, I don’t think either of us know him completely. Or if we ever will.
I push those thoughts aside. Kilhallon’s big day has come and I need to focus on this moment for now.
Wow.
From the top of the slope, the whole wedding glade is spread out below me. The tepee is a canvas fairy castle, its twin turrets topped by pennants fluttering in the breeze. Guests are taking their places in stripy deckchairs in candy colours. Flowers in jars hang from the shepherd’s hooks and mark the path down the grassy ‘aisle’ that leads to the willow arch.
Confetti at the Cornish Café Page 23
