A Surprise Christmas Wedding: from the best selling author of A Perfect Cornish Christmas comes one of the most feel-good winter romance books of 2020

by Phillipa Ashley

  The day flew by and Lottie managed to convince Keegan that the replacement vintage car was even more beautiful than the one she’d originally booked. After a final meeting with the team to run through everything one last time, Lottie made it back to the Bothy around eight p.m.

  She looked out of the window. It was dark but the moon had peeked between the clouds, lighting up garden and grounds, with trees spreading their spiky fingers. A few snowflakes were falling, but nothing had settled yet. The weather forecast had said they might be in for a few inches on the high fells but the valleys would escape. The Firholme snow clearers were on duty, ready to clear the paths, just in case of a light fall.

  She was eating a ready meal in front of the TV when she heard Trevor barking. She went to the window and lifted the curtain. Beyond the garden gate, a torch beam wavered in the darkness and a shape detached itself and ran to the garden gate. A moment later, she spotted Jay, strolling up to the gate to their cottages. As he did so, the porch lights of both houses clicked on automatically, illuminating him. It was too late to pretend she hadn’t seen him so she waved and Jay lifted a hand and smiled broadly. The temptation to run to the door and ask him in was almost overwhelming but she didn’t dare. If he came inside … well, there was a strong possibility that things would go further than a kiss and she wouldn’t get much sleep at all. Reluctantly, she let the curtain drop and contented herself with a message, saying: ‘See you in the morning’ – as much for her sake as his.

  He messaged her back. ‘See you tomorrow. Sweet dreams.’

  She went to bed early, thinking about Jay as she snuggled down in bed. Her dreams would be sweet indeed …

  ‘Aargh!’

  Lottie jolted awake. Rather than sweet slumbers, she’d actually been dreaming that someone was trying to break into her cottage. It took a few seconds to realise that her phone was buzzing from the bedside table. Her first thought was that someone must be ill: her parents – or Steph or the girls. With her heart trying to leap out of her chest, she snatched up her phone and saw Connor’s name on the screen.

  ‘Connor, what the hell?’

  ‘Lottie. I’m outside. Can you let me in?’

  ‘Outside? Where?’ Her sleep-fogged brain was slow to take in the words. ‘I can hardly hear you.’

  His voice was barely above a whisper. ‘Outside your front door.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Here at Firholme. I can’t speak any louder in case I wake someone up. Shit. That bloody dog’s barking now. Please let me in.’

  Trevor’s barks from next door finally got through to Lottie that Connor must be on her doorstep. She grabbed her dressing gown and opened the curtain. Snow was falling on an already thick layer. She could just make out Connor in the darkness. She padded downstairs and opened the door.

  ‘Connor,’ she hissed. ‘It’s past midnight.’

  ‘I know … but ple-ease, can I come in now?’

  He sounded like one of the girls when they were trying to wheedle their way round Steph and she suspected he’d been drinking, but Lottie didn’t have a choice, unless she wanted to risk waking up her neighbours. Trevor had stopped barking but Jay could well be on his way downstairs to see what was going on.

  ‘OK, but only for a minute. Quick,’ she said and let Connor in before closing the door behind him. He stood in her hallway. He was wearing his coat, a scarf and smart shoes but they were no match for a Lakeland blizzard. ‘What are you doing here? You’re soaked and freezing.’ He had a definite whiff of booze about him.

  ‘Tell me about it.’ He rubbed his face with his hands. ‘Jesus, there’s no easy way to tell you this. Keegan knows, Lottie. She knows about you and me and she’s thrown me out.’

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Twelve hours to the wedding

  Lottie’s heart lurched like a ship hitting the rocks.

  Connor continued: ‘She’s threatened not to go through with the wedding.’

  Her hand flew to her mouth. ‘Oh my God. Does she mean it?’

  ‘I don’t know.’ He pushed his hands through his soaking hair. ‘What a bloody mess. I wish I’d told her before.’

  She was almost too shocked to speak. ‘How did she find out?’

  ‘It was Mum who let it slip, actually, though of course it wasn’t her fault.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘There was a photo at home. It was my cousin’s wedding … remember, they had the reception on that big boat on Windermere? I’d forgotten that Mum had a framed group photo on a bookcase on the landing. Keegan went to the bathroom and picked it up. She spotted you in it and asked Mum about it.

  ‘Oh God.’ Lottie could picture the scene exactly.

  ‘Mum told Keegan you were an old girlfriend. She didn’t realise she’d said anything wrong and she was trying to be tactful as it is. She didn’t say we used to live together or anything but it was too late. Keegan managed not to say anything about the wedding, but I could see from her face that she was furious. As soon as she got me on my own, she demanded to know why I hadn’t told her before and exactly how close you and I had been. I had to come clean and say we’d only broken up last year, and that we’d lived together.’ He sighed. ‘That seemed to make her even angrier.’

  Lottie squeezed her eyes shut. ‘No wonder she was furious. We should never have kept it a secret. I didn’t want to for this precise reason!’

  She sat on the sofa while Connor paced around, swearing.

  ‘I am so sorry for this. It’s been a nightmare keeping it under wraps and now everything’s been blown sky-high. I can’t see the wedding going ahead tomorrow or any time.’

  Lottie was angry with Connor for making her stay quiet about their relationship, angry with herself for letting him come back into her life.

  Connor stopped pacing and put his arm around her shoulders.

  She shook him off. ‘Don’t.’

  ‘OK. OK. I was only trying to help.’

  ‘You’ve done enough. I wish you’d never set foot in Firholme or my life.’

  He held up his hands, his eyes full of hurt. How did he even dare to look hurt? Lottie thought, anger hardening into determination. ‘I should have told Shayla right away,’ she said, finally lifting her head. ‘I will tell her, first thing in the morning.’

  ‘Probably a good idea,’ Connor murmured. ‘Because Keegan has already sent her an email.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘She said you’d behaved “unprofessionally”. Yes, I know it was my fault, and I tried to tell her that we’d had a pact.’

  Lottie let out a squeak of horror. ‘Connor …’ she said, reining in the urge to shout.

  ‘That seemed to make her even angrier. She – she – seems to have got some bloody stupid idea that we’re still involved. I tried to tell her that’s not true until I was blue in the face but she won’t believe me. She says we wouldn’t have kept our past a secret if there wasn’t anything to hide. Maybe she thinks something’s been going on since I got back?’

  ‘We both know there isn’t but you’ve lost her trust!’ Lottie was horrified. ‘We both have.’

  ‘I think you’re right – and she kicked me out,’ Connor moaned. ‘I’d had a couple of whiskies … so I couldn’t drive and there’s no way I could get a cab at this hour out here in the arse end of nowhere – even if they could get through the snow so – I walked.’

  ‘Connor!’ Lottie said so loudly, he flinched. ‘Do you have any idea of what you’ve done? Your wedding is tomorrow, you’ve devastated your bride and you could lose me my job and my professional reputation. You need to own this and sort it out right now. With Keegan and with my boss.’ Plus she was convinced he’d had more than a couple of whiskies.

  ‘Now? It’s after midnight. I can’t do anything now.’

  ‘Well, you can’t stay here.’ She was horrified at this new twist of events. ‘No way, especially after what’s happened.’

  ‘Where then? I’m not sure I can make it home in this blizzard.’<
br />
  ‘You are not staying here for the night,’ she repeated, though the sick feeling in her gut was already telling her that every other option was looking impossible.

  She thought about saying she’d lend him gloves and a coat then she looked out of the window. The snow was falling more heavily than ever and it was below freezing. There was every likelihood he really wouldn’t make it home if she forced him to walk back, especially if he’d been drinking. Maybe she could ask one of the staff to let him share their cottage, but who could she wake up at one a.m. without a lot of explanations. Jay … no chance. He and Connor might come to blows.

  She ushered him into the lounge, her mind working overtime. ‘If Keegan finds out you slept here in my house, then the wedding definitely will be off. Look, maybe you could sleep in the café,’ she said. ‘I can get the key. They have sofas.’

  ‘So, do you – and then neither of us will have go out in a snowstorm.’

  She clutched her dressing gown tighter. ‘If that’s what it takes.’

  Water dripped off his coat and trousers, pooling on her carpet. His face was red with the cold and his hair matted with melting snow. It was a wonder he didn’t already have hypothermia. ‘Won’t that cause more fuss than letting me kip in your sitting room for a few hours?’ he pleaded. ‘All I want is the sofa and a blanket. A hot drink would help too. I swear I’ll be gone by first light.’

  ‘If anyone sees you, what will they think?’

  ‘They won’t see me. Trust me.’

  That was the last thing Lottie was prepared to do. ‘Maybe not tonight but you might not be able to get home in the morning.’

  ‘I’ll say that someone brought me up here in a Land Rover at first light. I dunno, I’ll say they had to drop me off early before everyone else.’

  ‘Your wedding suit isn’t here.’

  ‘Well … I’ll say I decided to wear something more practical and left it behind. The way things are, I probably won’t need it. By the looks of the snow, how will anyone get here? How will Keegan and her family make it?’ he said. ‘If the wedding even happens after this shitstorm.’

  ‘I’ll handle the transport even if Keegan has to arrive by tractor. You start thinking of how you’re going to get us out of this mess and placate her.’

  ‘Keegan arriving at the wedding in a tractor?’ Connor laughed. ‘She was bad enough when her first choice of Rolls-Royce wasn’t available so there’s not a cat in hell’s chance of that.’

  ‘That’s the least of my worries now.’ Lottie’s whole focus was on explaining why she’d been the reason behind a lucrative wedding being called off. What if Keegan refused to pay and tried to sue? She’d have to resign.

  ‘OK, I’ll do my best to think of something but for now, can I at least have a h-hot drink and maybe get some dry c-clothes?’

  Lottie stared at him. What a pathetic, whining individual he was. How had she ever fallen in love with him in the first place? However, realising he genuinely was in danger of hypothermia, she decided she had no choice. ‘Go up to the bathroom and get changed. I’ll leave some clothes outside the door. God knows what. Do not come out until you’re ready. I’ll make you a coffee.’

  She’d no idea what she was going to find Connor to wear. It struck her that she’d had to do the same for Jay. He’d kept the poncho for some reason. Then she had a brainwave. She rooted in the cubby hole and pulled out a large towelling robe with a hood and short sleeves.

  ‘I’ve left a robe and some socks outside the door,’ she said.

  A red-faced Connor shuffled into the lounge.

  Lottie would have burst out laughing if she hadn’t been so annoyed. The towelling robe was designed for getting changed after you’d been surfing or swimming out of doors. It reached down to her ankles but on Connor, it was mid-calf. He might not have looked so peculiar if he hadn’t also been wearing fluffy pink socks.

  ‘Do not laugh! I will leave right this minute if you so much as titter,’ he said.

  ‘Don’t tempt me,’ Lottie said. ‘And don’t moan. It’s all I could find that was big enough.’

  ‘Really?’ He curled his lip. ‘If this is your idea of revenge, it’s working.’

  ‘It’s not, but now you come to mention it …’ She hardened her tone, catching sight of the clock and seeing it was past one. ‘There’s your coffee.’ She pointed to the mug on the coffee table. ‘The duvet’s on the sofa and I’ve asked Alexa to wake you at six forty-five. Then you have to be out of here, without anyone seeing you, or I swear, I will bundle you out into the snow, in the robe and socks.’

  She was about to sweep off upstairs when a chilling thought struck her. ‘Um … who else actually knows you’re here?’

  ‘No one yet. I can say I stayed with my best man at his hotel after getting drunk. He’ll back me up. Lottie, I appreciate this might be too much to ask but can you do something else for me?’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Tomorrow morning. Would you speak to Keegan for me? Explain that nothing has happened between us – that it’s been over for a long time.’

  ‘If you’ve explained this already, and she won’t believe you, why should she believe me?’

  ‘Because you’re so genuine, Lottie … people trust you. They always have. Like Mum. She said you went for tea together.’

  ‘Well, only because we literally bumped into each other in Abbott’s.’

  ‘She was singing your praises as usual. Lottie’s looking well, Lottie’s done very well to get a job at Firholme, Lottie’s hair is lovely – I like how it’s grown.

  Lottie laughed it off. ‘You’re pissed, Connor, and your mum never has a bad word to say about anyone.’

  ‘Apart from me.’

  ‘I doubt it.’ Lottie hated the way Connor was coming on to her, even if he was drunk.

  He rested his fingers on her arm. ‘I can’t help thinking that this is a big commitment. Can I do it? I – I don’t have a great track record.’

  ‘Just because we didn’t make it, doesn’t mean you can’t make a go of things with Keegan. She loves you,’ Lottie said, painfully aware of the irony that she was dishing out advice to Connor on marriage and relationships.

  He sank onto the sofa and rubbed his face with his hands. ‘Do you think she does love me? We argue, you know.’

  ‘Doesn’t everyone?’

  ‘Jay saw us a few weeks ago. He didn’t think I’d spotted him and his dog but I had. We were arguing about the wedding and if we were rushing into this but I do love her.’

  ‘Love isn’t about abandoning someone when the going gets tough, when they’re ill or hurting. It’s about making sacrifices, setting your own dreams aside if need be, to help them through a dark time. It’s about not holding on to grudges and bitterness, or thinking “what if” the grass is greener somewhere else.’

  She paused for breath.

  ‘Hmm. I can see you’re still holding on to a lot of anger …’ he said.

  ‘No, I’m not angry. I’m indifferent. Our time has gone, Connor. Feelings I had for you and held on to too long. I can’t tell you to marry Keegan …’ and, Lottie thought to herself, she was sure Keegan could do a lot better. Instead she simply said: ‘Don’t hurt her like you hurt me.’

  ‘You’ll talk to her though?’ Connor pleaded.

  ‘I can’t make any promises.’

  She hurried out of the sitting room, closing the door on him. Upstairs, she let out a groan. She’d like to pretend Connor wasn’t in her house, shut out the fact he was sleeping on her sofa the night before his wedding to another woman. If he got any sleep, that is. She didn’t think she would. As for intervening with Keegan?

  Judging by how angry Keegan must be, Lottie thought that was a sure-fire way to make sure the wedding never took place at all.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Six hours to the wedding

  ‘Hey, Trevor, my feet don’t need a wash!’

  Jay woke to find Trevor poking a wet nose under the duvet and l
icking his toes.

  ‘OK. I’m getting up. What time is it?’ He twisted the digital alarm towards him and groaned. ‘Dude, it’s not even six a.m!’

  Trevor sat by the bed, an expectant look in his eyes. Jay realised he’d have no choice but to exchange his cosy duvet for the cold darkness on the shortest day of the year.

  He’d been having a very pleasant dream about Lottie, and what it would feel like to share the warmth of her body. He’d dreamed of waking up to see her hair spread over the pillow and her breathing softly beside him …

  That kiss the other night had been incredible and made him totally determined to tell her how he felt about her. Just because she’d once loved Connor, didn’t mean she was still in love with her ex; in fact it was a ridiculous idea.

  ‘I really have been an idiot, haven’t I, Trev?’

  Trevor stared at him.

  Jay grinned. ‘Probably best you can’t answer that, buddy.’

  Feeling as if a weight had been lifted from his mind, he threw off the duvet. ‘OK, you win, Trevor!’

  Trevor lifted his head, with a look of astonishment, as if Jay had gone mad.

  ‘Early walk, buddy,’ he said. ‘A quick one because it’s cold and we have a lot to do today.’

  Today was the day he would draw a line under all the doubts and fears, and put his trust in her, as he should have done weeks ago. Today, when the wedding was over, he would ask if they could start again. Maybe his Christmas could be a happy one after all, with Lottie by his side.

  While he pulled on a thick sweater and jeans, Trevor processed the fact that he was actually off for a jaunt and yipped in anticipation. He trotted down the stairs, his tail thumping every newel post as he went. Jay followed, pulling on his coat while Trevor slurped up water from his bowl ready for his outing.

  ‘You won’t be so keen to go out when you see all that snow,’ Jay told him, lacing up his walking boots.