by Agatha Frost
“You should have woken me,” Julia said, resting her hand on Jessie’s shoulder, “but I appreciate you trying to fix it.”
“You don’t seem upset.” Jessie narrowed her eyes as she stepped back. “Why aren’t you upset?”
“Poor thing is in shock.” Sue rested her hand on Julia’s forehead. “She needs some hot, sweet tea. Although it will have to be without the milk, for obvious reasons. Fill the kettle, Roxy!”
“I’m fine.” Julia waved her hand to stop Roxy in her tracks. “It’s not an ideal situation, but there’s no point getting upset about it. Like you said, nobody’s to blame for the fridge breaking. I’ve needed to replace the old thing for years. I bought it for next to nothing from a car boot sale when I first moved in, so if anyone’s to blame, it’s me for being so cheap.”
“I think I’d feel better if you were freaking out,” Sue said as she backed out of the kitchen. “You’re the calmest I’ve ever seen a bride on her wedding day.”
A small part of Julia wanted to let go and have a meltdown; no one would blame her. Women had slipped into bridezilla mode for much less. It might even make her feel a fraction better to scream and throw the cake through the window, but it wouldn’t fix anything. The cake would still be ruined, with her mood joining it. She took a moment to assess the chaos in the kitchen before clapping her hands together.
“I have a plan!” she declared, lightening her tone. “We’re wasting valuable time. Jessie, what’s in the oven?”
“A vanilla sponge for the base tier.”
“Not exactly the fruitcake I had planned, but it’s a good start, and it’s hard to go wrong with a nice sponge.” Julia peered into the oven. “It looks like it’s nearly ready. I’ll get to work on the other tiers. The sooner they’re all baked, the longer they can cool before we try to decorate. If we reduce it to three instead of the original four, it’ll save us time.” She paused and looked around, her eyes landing on the pantry door. “Jessie, look in there for those tubs of pre-made white icing we bought when you were practising. They should still be in date. They just need rolling out. And I think I have some white icing flowers left over from the cake I made for Shilpa’s birthday last week. They should be in a plastic zip-lock bag.”
“Got ‘em,” Jessie called from the cupboard. “There’s about two dozen in here. And there’s an extra piping bag. I can whip up some royal icing for the detail work.”
“Perfect.” Julia glanced above the dead fridge at the cat clock with its swinging tail and swishing eyes. “The wedding is at noon, which gives us under four hours to get the cake finished.”
“I think I’m going to throw up,” Sue groaned.
“We can do this!”
“How long did you spend on the original cake?” Roxy asked.
“Two weeks.”
“I’m going to faint.” Sue stumbled back and wafted herself. “You shouldn’t be worrying about something like this on your wedding day. I bet Barker is still asleep at the B&B without a care in the world. We should be pampering you right now with a glass of bubbly while one of us paints your nails.”
“I’ve never been the biggest fan of champagne,” Julia called over her shoulder as she weighed out white flour for the next tier. “Start getting yourselves ready while I do as much as I can in here. Jessie, get the icing rolled out. It needs to be as thin and even as possible. Make it look like it didn’t come out of a box.”
Jessie cleared a section of the counter and got to work on the icing, while Julia created the batter for the middle chocolate layer. Despite the disarray around her, it was easy for her to slip into her little baking world. The less she thought about the impending ceremony, the less her hands shook as she weighed each ingredient.
Sue and Roxy took it in turns to shower, and it wasn’t long before the loud whirring of the hairdryer filled the tiny cottage. It was so loud that Julia almost didn’t hear the knocking at the door.
“I’ll get it!” she called as she hurried down the hallway, still in her dressing gown.
She dusted her floury hands on her backside and opened the door. The frosty morning air drifted in immediately.
“Flower delivery for a Miss South?” said a young man in a green uniform, his breath turning to steam as he read from an electronic device.
“That’s me,” Julia said, eagerly peering at the van behind him. “They’re my wedding flowers.”
The man smiled, but it was clear he had little interest in anything save finishing the delivery. Turning on his heels, he jogged down the path to retrieve three white boxes from the back of his van. He stacked them on the doorstep before holding out the device for Julia to sign. She wiggled her finger on the dotted line, which caused him to hurry away without so much as another word. Too excited to be bothered by his sullen attitude, Julia scooped up the chilled boxes and brought them inside.
“The flowers are here!” she called, kicking the door shut behind her.
She took them into the dining room, and the trio followed. Roxy’s fiery red mane was still damp, and Sue’s caramel locks were sleekly curled on one side and frizzy on the other.
“I love this part!” Sue squealed. “I remember getting my flowers on my wedding day. They were so perfect.”
Julia peeled back the lid, but her flowers were anything but perfect. She dropped the cover onto the table and snatched off the other two.
“This isn’t what I ordered,” Julia said, her brows dropping as she stared at four bouquets of blood-red roses. “I asked for cream roses, just like mum had at her wedding.”
Sue and Roxy parted their lips, but neither of them seemed able to offer anything.
“Call the company!” Jessie demanded. “Who did you use? I’ll call them myself!”
“I’ve already signed for them.” Julia pinched the bridge of her nose. “I should have checked first.”
She plucked out her bridal bouquet and turned it around in the light. The roses were fresh and fine-looking, but they weren’t what she had envisioned for her special day.
“They won’t match anything,” Julia said as she put the flowers back in their box. “The colour scheme is white and cream.”
“Nobody will notice,” Roxy offered. “Do people even pay attention to colour schemes?”
“Yes!” Sue blurted, causing Roxy to elbow her in the ribs. “I mean, they’re adorable. So, you wanted cream roses? It doesn’t matter. They’re only flowers. It’s not what’s important today.”
“And if they offend you that much, I’m sure Johnny can do some magic on the wedding pictures to turn them cream.” Roxy wrapped her arm around Julia’s shoulders. “You know he’s a computer whiz. Chin up, Julia.”
Julia could feel her mind edging closer and closer to the brink of what she could cope with on the morning of her wedding. She wanted nothing more than to cuddle up to Barker, and for him to assure her none of it mattered, but he was the one person she wasn’t allowed to see today of all days.
“They’re only flowers.” Julia echoed. “Beautiful flowers. I have a wedding cake to finish.”
Roxy and Sue let out relieved sighs as though they had been holding their breath waiting for Julia’s reaction.
“That’s the spirit.” Sue clapped her hands together. “You’ve got the wedding day bad luck out of the way early on. Remember how my hair stylist had food poisoning? It’s all part of the process. I promise, nothing else can possibly go wrong.”
Julia retreated to the kitchen to continue work on the cake. Jessie handed her a cup of peppermint and liquorice tea with a smile. As Julia thought about Sue’s promise, soft drops of rain began to fall from the dark sky.
Chapter Two
Julia had never considered herself a particularly attractive woman. She didn’t dislike what she saw in the mirror, but she had never obsessed over her appearance. She was confident enough to leave the house without makeup, and she wasn’t too concerned about the pounds that had been contributing to her waistline with each passing birthday
. She tried to remember if she had cared in her twenties, but now that she was thirty-nine, her appearance was usually the last thing on her mind.
Julia was happiest when flat shoes cushioned her feet, her curly hair was out of her face, and she was wearing one of her comfortable vintage dresses with an apron over top. If she wanted to wear makeup, it was usually limited to a quick coat of mascara and a berry-toned lip-stain. Occasionally, she would push the boat out to blusher if she looked pale. Fashion trends passed her by without seizing her attention, shopping trips for new clothes and accessories were always at the bottom of her to-do lists, and even when she dressed up for a special occasion, nothing felt better than stripping it away at the end of the night.
Alone in her bedroom, gazing at her reflection, she knew today would not be one of those days. She felt more beautiful than she ever had in all her almost-forty years. The high-heeled shoes weren’t exactly comfortable, and she could barely breathe thanks to the dress’s built-in girdle, but it didn’t matter. Even the heavy bullets of rain pounding against the tiny cottage couldn’t shake her elation. If she could bottle the feeling, she would.
The bedroom door creaked open, and Sue snuck back in from her bathroom break. She had spent the past hour transforming Julia’s face and hair into the pure, perfect vision of a bride, and she had even helped Julia into her dress, but that didn’t stop her from gasping when she saw the finished product.
“Oh, Julia!” Sue clasped her hand against her mouth as tears gathered in the corners of her eyes. “You look just like Mum.”
Julia glanced at the picture of their mother on the dresser. Losing her at such a young age had left Julia with few memories to cling to, and even though she hadn’t been born when her parents married, their wedding pictures were her most treasured possessions. In their pictures, her parents were so obviously happy and in love.
Julia had only ever wanted a wedding that mirrored her parents’ special day. Staring in the mirror, she couldn’t deny that she looked more like their mother than she had ever given herself credit for.
“You can’t start crying.” Julia looked up at the ceiling and blinked rapidly to stem her tears. “You’re going to make me cry.”
“I know,” Sue whined as she scrambled in her handbag for a tissue. “You just look so angelic.”
Sue dabbed at her eyes with a tissue before passing it to Julia. As Julia stopped the tears from ruining her perfect makeup, she turned back to the mirror and gazed at her dress. The structured silk and lace bodice hugged her frame in all the right places before flaring out into a subtle A-line, floor-length skirt with a short train. It gave her body a shape that she had always assumed wouldn’t be possible without years in the gym.
“Barker is the luckiest man in Peridale.” Sue appeared behind Julia and fiddled with the chocolatey curls hanging down from the intricate up-do she had created. “My best work yet.”
Julia glanced at the clock, and her stomach performed a small somersault. She would be heading to the church in fifteen minutes to meet her husband-to-be, and even though it had been less than twenty-four hours since they had parted, she was more excited to see him than she had ever been.
“You should change into your dress,” Julia said, resting her hand on her stomach. “The cars will be here any minute.”
“One last thing.” Sue hurried across the room and dug in the bags of makeup and hair products she had brought with her. She pulled out a slender box and placed it on the bed before opening it. “My veil. I thought this could be your something borrowed. It’s brought Neil and me six happy years of marriage so far. I know you’ve bought your own, so you don’t have to wear it, but—”
“I’d be honoured.” Julia closed her hands around her sister’s. “Thank you.”
Sue looked as though she was holding back more tears, but, as though for the sake of her mascara, she swallowed them back. She slotted the veil’s clip into the back of Julia’s hair and fanned out the tulle fabric, which had similar lace detailing as the dress; it matched like they were created for one another by the same hand.
“There’s your something borrowed.” Sue rested her hands on Julia’s shoulders. “What about your old, new, and blue?”
“Mum’s engagement ring is old.” Julia held up her hand. “And my dress is new.”
“And the blue?”
A smile tickled Julia’s lips as she reached down to pluck up her dress. She hoisted it up to her upper thigh and gave Sue a sudden flash of her blue garter before letting it drop back down.
“Then you’re ready!” Sue chuckled. “I’ll leave you and your dress alone while I get into mine.”
Sue kissed Julia on the cheek before slipping out of the room. Julia only had another thirty seconds alone with her dress before the door cracked open again and Roxy’s head popped in. She scanned the room, double-taking when she saw Julia.
“Wow!” Roxy closed the door behind her, her mobile phone clutched in her fist. “Bloody hell, Julia! If Barker doesn’t want to marry you, I don’t mind taking his place. You look stunning.”
“You don’t look so bad yourself.” Julia looked Roxy up and down. “I don’t think I’ve seen you in a dress in years.”
“Don’t get used to it.” Roxy brushed down the cream fabric. “Although, I’m grateful you picked pretty bridesmaids’ dresses. You could have been a spiteful witch like the rest of them and given us hideous puffy numbers, but I actually feel quite lovely.” Roxy looked around the room again before landing on Julia with a shaky smile. “Where’s Sue flitted off to?”
“Has something happened?”
“No!” Roxy forced a laugh as she made a dismissive gesture with her hands. “Everything is completely fine!”
Julia didn’t need to say a word. She arched a brow and crossed her arms. Roxy’s veneer slipped away instantly; she had never been a good liar.
“There’s a minor problem with the wedding cars.” Roxy patted the phone in her palm. “The riverbank has burst in Riverswick, and the main road is flooded. The Rolls Royces you booked are stuck there.”
Julia inhaled deeply, her fingers drifting up to rub her temples. She could hardly believe something else had gone wrong.
“They can send cars from their other location, but it will take them forty minutes to get here.” Roxy glanced at the clock. “And they’ll be white Rolls Royces, not the black ones you wanted. They’re waiting for me to call back with an answer. I didn’t want to bring this to you, but what do you want me to do?”
Julia stared out the window at the grey fog as thick blobs of rain continued to bounce against the glass. She had been specific about wanting black Rolls Royces to take her to the church. It wasn’t a long drive, but they were the exact cars Julia’s mother had travelled in. She closed her eyes while reminding herself the cars wouldn’t matter once they were married.
“We have cars.” Julia pushed forward a smile to hide her disappointment. “We’ll take my Ford Anglia and Jessie’s Mini. It will all be fine.”
Roxy looked unsure, but she nodded before leaving the room. Julia tore herself away from the mirror and followed. She picked up the bottom of her dress and carefully made her way into the kitchen, where Jessie was busy piping the finishing details onto the cake. Jessie already wore her cream bridesmaid’s dress and her dark brown hair with red highlights was in a similar up-do to Julia’s.
“Nearly done,” Jessie said without glancing up, wiping sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. “It’s not perfect, but it’s the best I can do.”
The lines were wobbly and not up to Julia’s usual standards. It was a pale imitation of the spoiled cake in the fridge, but it was a serviceable wedding cake. As long as people didn’t get too close, it wouldn’t look too out of place.
“It’s perfect,” Julia assured her. “Thank you.”
Jessie huffed, looking up for the first time. Her eyes widened when they landed on the dress.
“Check you out, cake lady!” Jessie laughed as s
he shook her head. “You look so different!”
“Do you like?”
“You look like a bride.”
“Thanks, I guess?” Julia laughed. “That’s what I was going for.”
“But, I mean, a perfect bride.” Jessie waved the piping bag. “Like from a magazine. You look beautiful. I really mean it.”
“You don’t look too bad yourself.”
Jessie smiled and blushed before returning to her task. At one time, Jessie wouldn’t have been seen out of a black hoody, baggy jeans, and clunky Doc Martens, but she had allowed more colour and fashion into her life since turning eighteen. Still, Julia could tell Jessie didn’t feel entirely herself in a dress, no matter how lovely she looked.
A knock sounded at the door, but before Julia could go for it, Sue hurried out of the bathroom, now dressed. She opened it to their father, who was huddled under a large golf umbrella as rain bounced around him.
“Wonderful day for it!” Brian exclaimed, backing into the cottage while letting the umbrella down. “Sorry I’m late. Taxi drivers are striking over their wages all over the Cotswolds. I tried to wait for a gap in the rain to walk, but it doesn’t seem like it’s going anywhere.”
He closed the door and leaned the umbrella against the wall before shaking off a thin raincoat to reveal his three-piece suit. He gazed at Sue and beamed at her beauty, but his eyes drifted straight to Julia when he noticed her at the end of the hall.
“Oh, my baby! Come here. Let me get a better look at you.”
Julia shuffled down the hallway, not wanting to trip over the hem of her dress. Her father held his hands out and clutched her shoulders as he looked her up and down. He gulped as though biting back tears. Sniffing hard, he reached into the inside pocket of his suit jacket. He pulled out a red velvet box and cracked it open to reveal a pair of milky pearl earrings.
“They were your mother’s,” he said with a warm smile. “She wore them on our wedding day.”
“Dad. I—”
