Rainne was preparing to leave. Kirsty recognised the signs. Unfortunately there was nothing she could do about it. Rainne and Alastair had to sort things out for themselves.
“I’ll make it up to you, you know.” Lake reached for her hand. “About the wedding. I’ll help plan the next one. We’ll make it wonderful.”
She glanced over to where he was driving and smiled. “Yes, we will.”
His answering smile was full of promise. Up ahead she could see the tail lights of Josh’s and Matt’s cars disappear as they turned into the castle driveway. The lights were on in the castle, although the boarded windows and circle of burned wreckage on the lawn made the place less welcoming than usual.
“Guess the power is back on,” Kirsty said. “Caroline is going to go insane fixing this mess.”
“Josh already spoke to me about increased security.”
“With a generator to keep it all running?”
“Two.” Lake pulled up in front of the castle. “And a panic room.”
As they got out of the car, the castle’s front door opened and her mother raced out. Kirsty felt her stomach clench and fear rise at the look on her mum’s face. She rushed to her side.
“What’s wrong? Is everything okay?”
“You need to come with me, right now.” Her mother turned and hurried back into the house.
Kirsty flashed a worried glance at Lake and saw he had his head together with Ryan and Dougal. He caught her eyes and nodded at her. A reassurance. Heart racing, Kirsty followed her mother into the castle.
“Come on,” Margaret said from the top of the stairs.
Kirsty ran up them and followed her mum into the blue guest room. And stopped dead.
“What’s going on?” she said.
Her wedding dress was out of the bag and draped over the bed. Her shoes sat on the floor beside it. Her makeup bag was set up on the dresser.
“Quick.” Her mother tugged her into the room and closed the door behind them. “You need to jump in the shower. Make it fast—we have less than an hour to get you ready.”
Kirsty was rooted to the spot. “For what?”
“Your wedding, silly girl.” Her mother shooed her in the direction of the bathroom. “Get on with it.”
“But how?” Kirsty’s head was spinning as she let herself be herded where her mum wanted her to be.
“Buts and hows later. All you need to know is that Dougal and I took care of everything. We commandeered a snowmobile and picked up supplies. You wanted a Leap Day wedding and you’re going to get one.” She reached up and cupped her daughter’s cheek. “It’s the least you deserve. Now, hop to it. Shower. Time’s ticking.”
Kirsty felt hope surge inside her, but it didn’t feel right. “I can’t get married when Mitch and Alastair are in hospital. It seems like a callous thing to do.”
“Don’t be daft,” her mother snapped. “You think those boys wouldn’t want you to have your special day? You can call them if you’d like, but I know what they’d say. They’d tell you to listen to your mother.”
“But...” Kirsty wasn’t so sure.
“No buts.” Her mother pushed her into the bathroom. “You know I’m right. It’s time to stop waiting and marry that man.”
Kirsty found herself alone with the bathroom door closed firmly behind her. She stood staring at herself in the mirror for a minute wondering what the heck was happening. How could she get married when the castle was a bombsite? All the food would be ruined by now, and she wasn’t even sure if the vicar stayed awake this late.
“I don’t hear the shower running,” her mother shouted. “Don’t make me come in there.”
With a giggle, Kirsty started to undress. Excitement began to froth through her veins. She was getting married. It was actually happening. At last.
Years of performing quick changes on fashion shoots meant Kirsty was ready for her ceremony in forty-five minutes. She’d parted her hair in the middle and left it loose around her shoulders in gentle, spiralling waves. Her lips were a pale pink, to match her cheeks. Her eyes were dark and smoky, in shades of purple to make her dress pop and her green eyes luminous.
Her dress was the same blue/purple of the Campbell tartan. Kirsty had it made for her by a friend from her days as a model. It was a form-fitting fishtail shape that flared out gently from mid-thigh to fall to floor length. It was sleeveless, with one shoulder uncovered, and the other had a large chiffon flower pinned to it, in the exact same shade as the dress. The material came down from the shoulder to wrap around her body, following her curves into the fishtail. She’d matched the dress with simple metallic silver sandals with a high pencil heel and thin straps that wound around her ankle and toes. Drop earrings in silver, two oversized silver bangles around her right wrist and her engagement ring were her only jewellery.
Her mother saw her and covered her mouth with her hands. Her eyes welled up.
“You are so beautiful.” She rushed towards Kirsty, stopping an inch in front of her. “Am I allowed to touch you? Will I ruin the look?”
Kirsty laughed and pulled her mum into a hug. “It’s all really simple. There’s nothing to ruin.”
“I can’t believe you’re getting married,” her mother said on a sob.
“I can’t believe it either. I thought we’d missed our chance to do this today. I keep thinking this is all a dream and I’ll wake up to find my wedding dress was trashed in the raid.”
“This is definitely real, although you might wish it wasn’t when you catch sight of Betty.”
Kirsty narrowed her eyes. “What’s the old witch done now?”
Her mum looked slightly panicked, which wasn’t reassuring. “Forget I said anything. We have more important things to deal with. Like getting you downstairs for the ceremony.” She sniffed back a sob. “I wish your dad was here.”
“The makeup is waterproof, but if you make me cry, I’ll have to get married with a bright red nose.”
Her mum laughed. “We don’t want that.” She stepped back to look up at Kirsty. “I am so proud of you. You’ve been through a lot and look at you now. My beautiful daughter is getting married. In a sleeveless dress.” That set her off again. “After the accident, I never thought you’d show your skin again. I kept telling you nobody noticed the scars but you. I was right, wasn’t I?”
“Aye, Mum, you were right.” She smiled down at her. “Lake likes my scars.”
“Lake loves you.”
Yes. He did. “Now, want to tell me where I’m getting married? Last I checked, the grand room was a dump.”
“You’ll just have to wait and see.” Her mother stepped back, looking gorgeous in her forest-green two-piece suit. “Ready?”
“More than ready.” Kirsty wanted to run into Lake’s arms. She wanted to say her vows, change her name and let the world know she planned to spend every second of her life loving that man.
Her mother led her down the stairs and through the unusually quiet castle. When they reached the closed door to the kitchen, Margaret Campbell paused.
“Here we go.” She squeezed Kirsty’s hand then pushed open the door.
Kirsty heard the music before anything else. Josh sang “The Way You Look Tonight” as she walked into the kitchen. Her gaze took in the spectacular buffet laid out on the breakfast bar. Behind the bar, staff from Dougal’s pub were quietly busy manning the ovens and waiting to serve people. They smiled widely at her when they saw her.
She turned into the dining room and saw Caroline and Rainne, her beaming bridesmaids. They were wearing the tartan dresses Kirsty had made for them. The purple tartan shifts fit like gloves and made them glow. Caroline stepped forward and handed Kirsty her bouquet of irises and roses. It had been stored safely in the fridge and hadn’t fallen victim to the carnage like the rest of her wedding flowers.
“You are beautiful,” she said.
“So are you.” Kirsty gave her a quick hug.
“There’s no flower girl,” Caroline told her.
“It’s past her bedtime.”
“We’ll manage,” Kirsty said.
“Yes, we will.”
Rainne was next, hugging Kirsty tight.
“I am so pleased my brother found you,” she said. “You make him happy. He smiles around you. You’ve shown him what having a loving family means, and I am really proud to have you as a sister.”
Kirsty blinked back tears as she hugged Rainne again. “It will happen for you,” she whispered. “Don’t give up hope.”
Rainne nodded and stepped back. Kirsty reached out and ran her finger over the flesh coloured dressing at Rainne’s throat. It could have been so much worse.
“I’m proud to have you as a sister too, Rainne,” she said and watched as Rainne blink back tears.
Kirsty took a deep breath. This was it. It was really happening. She was getting married. Her smile was so wide she felt like she would burst.
She held on to her mum and followed her bridesmaids through to the new conservatory. The room was packed. Two blocks of chairs, in rows, were filled with smiling faces. The chairs were draped in white, with purple sashes—just as she’d planned.
“How?” Kirsty said.
“I own a material shop, remember?” her mum whispered. “Just don’t look too closely. Nothing quite matches.”
Kirsty ran her eyes over the decorations and spotted the different shades of purple and different patterns in the white.
“It’s perfect, Mum, really. Thank you.” Even the broken and boarded windows had been covered with white satin and purple bows.
Her mother sniffed again.
The music changed as Kirsty fought to take in all the details. The room was decorated with thousands of fairy lights. Through the huge windows she could see the snow sparkle under trees filled with the same lights. Jars with candles lit up the patio outside the room. More jars with candles were dotted around inside, making the place glow.
It was fairyland.
At the front, in the corner of the room, Josh stood dressed in a suit, singing for them. At the end of the aisle, the aging vicar waited. He stood in front of large planters filled with bare branches wrapped in yet more fairy lights.
Kirsty sucked in a breath as Caroline started walking down the aisle followed by Rainne. She watched as her bridesmaids reached the bottom and took up positions to the left of the vicar. And then a figure stepped out from behind the crowd to stand at the end of the aisle. Everything else in the room faded away. Kirsty could only see Lake. And he was gorgeous. He was dressed in traditional Scottish garb, complete with a purple and green Campbell tartan kilt. His broad shoulders were mouth-watering in his tailored black jacket. He was perfect. And he was hers.
“I’ll go sit down. Love you, honey,” her mum said.
“No.” Kirsty hooked their arms together. “You need to walk me down the aisle.”
With a wide smile and tear-stained cheeks, her mother held her head high and accompanied her daughter.
Kirsty couldn’t keep her eyes from the stunning man who waited for her to get to him. His luminous blue eyes glowed with warmth and love as she walked towards him. The closer she got to him the darker his gaze became, making promises he would definitely be keeping later.
“I’m in a skirt for you,” he told her as he reached for her hand.
“It’s only fair,” she said. “I’m in a skirt for you.”
“You won’t be in it long.” His grin was filled with lascivious intent.
“Lake!” Her mother smacked his arm and everyone burst out laughing.
Red-faced, she gave the crowd a finger wave, kissed both Kirsty and Lake on the cheek, then took her place in the front row beside her friends from Knit Or Die.
“If we hurry up we’ll still be married on Leap Day,” Lake said.
Kirsty started to smile until her eyes hit Lake’s best man. Betty McLeod grinned widely. This time at least she’d remembered her teeth. Instead of her usual tartan tent, she was wearing a tent made out England’s flag. The red and white of the St. George’s crosses made Kirsty’s jaw drop.
“That isn’t purple. It isn’t even pretty. I made you a Campbell tartan tent to wear.”
Lake started to laugh, then worked hard to smother it.
“I couldn’t wear it,” Betty said. “I’m a McLeod. Not a Campbell.”
Kirsty pointed at the dress. “You’re not English either.”
Betty huffed. “This is in honour of Lake. I think of the Englishman as the son I didn’t have.”
“And I think of her as the mother I don’t want,” Lake said.
Then, to Kirsty’s disgust, Betty and Lake did a fist bump.
“Can we get on with this?” the vicar said. “I’m usually in bed by nine. I’m so knackered I can hardly stand.” He made a big production of looking at his watch. “It’s quarter past eleven. You’ve got forty-five minutes before this Leap Day is over. You can spend it tying the knot, or you can spend it arguing with Betty. I’ll be over at the food. Let me know what you decide.”
He took a step towards the buffet, and Lake’s hand shot out to stop him.
“Vows. Now,” was all he said.
The vicar grumped, pushed his bifocals up his nose and took a deep breath.
“Dearly beloved, and Betty. We are gathered here today, in the sight of God, to join together this man and this woman. If anyone has any objections, let’s hear them.”
Kirsty held her breath and waited, even though she knew no one could possibly object. When Betty made a big production of clearing her throat, Kirsty shot her a glare.
“Okay,” Reverend Morrison said, “Lake Benson, do you take Kirsty Campbell to have and to hold from this day forward, until death do you part?”
Lake stared at the minister. “Isn’t there more to it? I think you missed a part.”
“Son.” The old, bulldog of a man stared up at Lake. “It’s late. I’m tired and the snow is making my arthritis act up. If you want the long version, wait ‘til the morning. Or spring. Wait ‘til spring.”
Lake took a deep breath and looked at the ceiling while Kirsty giggled. “Fine.” His eyes came back down to fix on Kirsty. “I do.”
There was a loud cheer, which made the vicar grumble and demand silence.
“You’d think they were born in a barn.” He turned to Kirsty. “Kirsty Campbell, do you take Lake Benson...”
“Benson-McLeod,” Betty interrupted. “I’m adopting him.”
The vicar glared at her. “Have you done the paperwork? Do you have proof of name change?”
She didn’t say anything, but her hand gesture spoke volumes. The vicar narrowed his eyes and took a step towards his nemesis.
“Lake Benson.” Lake tugged the neck of Betty’s dress to keep her in place. “Just Benson.”
“That’s an insult, son.” Betty got a calculating gleam in her eye. “How about naming the firstborn after me instead?”
“Done,” Lake said.
“Lake!” Kirsty smacked him with her bouquet as Betty cackled.
He shrugged. “She’s old. She’ll be dead by then. She won’t know what we call him.”
He had a point. Betty kicked Lake in the back of his leg, making him flinch.
“Do you,” shouted the vicar, “Kirsty Campbell, take Lake Benson. Only Benson. To have and to hold from this day forward until death do you part?”
“I do,” Kirsty said, and there was another whoop.
“Great. I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride.” The vicar took a step towards the buffet.
“What about rings?” Lake said.
“Have at it,” Reverend Morrison called over his shoulder as he kept on walking.
“We need a new vicar,” Caroline said.
“Amen to that,” shouted the vicar.
Lake took Kirsty’s hand in his, glaring at everyone as though daring them to move. Nobody did. In fact, they looked like they were more than happy to keep on enjoying the show.
“Kirsty Benson,�
� Lake said, sending a shiver down her spine. He took her left hand in his and pulled a ring from his pocket. He’d wisely decided not to entrust his best man with the rings. “Kirsty, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love for you. This ring has no end, as my love is never-ending. This ring is made to endure the harsh wear and tear of life, just like my love for you. This ring is made of precious metal, as you are precious to me. Wear this ring as a reminder that everything I am and have is yours. My love is eternal. And only for you.”
There was a round of applause and wolf whistles as her blonde warrior put the ring on her finger.
Kirsty felt a tear escape and run down her cheek.
“I think I’m going to puke,” Betty declared.
“Here.” Lake handed Kirsty his ring. “You don’t have to say anything.”
She took the gold band and looked up at the man she loved. “No, I want to.” She took a deep breath and held his hands tight in hers. “Lake Benson. You came into my life and changed everything. You made me feel beautiful and worthy. You made me feel loved and desired. When I met you, I honestly never thought I’d ever be able to get over my past enough to love someone. You helped me to do exactly that. As well as giving me your love, you’ve given me the world. A world in which I’m no longer insecure or afraid. For that, I will always love you.”
She slid the ring onto his finger.
“I need a whisky,” Betty grumbled, and stomped off.
“Time to kiss,” Lake whispered.
“Yeah,” Kirsty said.
He tipped his head towards hers and his lips stole her senses. His strong arms wrapped around her; his hands were flat and possessive on her back. Vaguely, she thought there was cheering and clapping. She didn’t care. She was lost in the man she loved.
And she was married.
On Leap Day.
Their kiss ended far too quickly as one by one their friends and family came to congratulate them. Lake’s hot gaze promised they’d pick up where they’d left off later. Kirsty couldn’t wait.
“Josh Mark Two is missing,” Josh told them miserably, handing them each a glass of champagne at the same time.
Kirsty noted that Caroline looked particularly gleeful at the news.
Here Comes the Rainne Again Page 21
