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‘So, your mum, she’s really a registrar? Do you think she could do it? Do you think she could do the wedding?’

‘I don’t know the ins and outs. I’d have to check with her. But assuming Jamie and Fin have got the right paperwork, I can’t see why not.’

Holly’s mind was whirring at a thousand miles an hour.

‘But that still doesn’t help the situation with the venue. They’ve found a place for their family to stay in, but they’re not registered for weddings. Jamie already told me as much.’

Another smile formed on Giles’s face. That sly, slanted smirk that always meant he had another trick up his sleeve. Often, Holly dreaded what it meant because he was bound to be up to no good. This time, however, she was desperate to hear what he had to say.

‘Do you know what?’ he said after an excruciating pause. ‘I might be able to help with the wedding venue, too.’

61

Back at the shop, Holly couldn’t sit still. Unfortunately though, with her arm in a cast, she wasn’t much help when it came to weighing up sweets.

‘Are you okay, love?’ her father asked, coming over to help her out. ‘Why don’t you stay upstairs? I’m fine down here, and to be honest, you’re not that much use.’

Holly shook her head. ‘No, I’m waiting for a telephone call. And I need to stay distracted. I need jobs to do.’

‘Well, to be honest, right now all you’re doing is making more work for me,’ he replied, straightening a jar she just moved.

Holly let out a deep groan, at which her dad stepped towards her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

‘Holly, go upstairs. Please.’

Finally relenting, Holly headed up to the stock room where she sat down, opened up her phone, and looked at old photos of Hope, while wondering if she ought to dock her salary for the day.

At lunchtime, Arthur called up, saying he was going for a break, and she headed downstairs to the till. The summer rush meant it was busy, but even the slightest lull had her checkingher phone. Giles had told her he would ring her as soon as he knew whether his mother could do the ceremony, but he had given her no indication as to when that would be. Half an hour, an hour? That’s what she thought at first, but when three hours had passed and she’d still heard nothing from him, her stomach was a mass of knots. More than once she thought about calling him, or at least sending a message, but she didn’t want to nag. After all, she knew him well enough to be sure he was already doing everything he could. It wasn’t like her pestering would speed anything up.

After her dad’s lunch break, Holly took her own brief one, before heading back upstairs to continue her pacing until three fifteen, when her father called up for a second time that day.

‘Holly, love, there’s someone here to speak to you.’

Holly jumped up from her seat so fast she nearly banged her head on a shelf, but she didn’t stop. Racing across the floor, she took the steps two at a time. What did it mean that he’d come to the shop? It meant that his mother couldn’t do it, didn’t it? It was always better to give bad news face to face. That was what she thought, at least, until she reached the shop floor.

A familiar face was standing in front of the till, but it wasn’t Giles.

‘Maud?’

Holly rushed over and wrapped her one working arm around her old friend, who, just like everybody else, focused solely on the cast and stitches.

‘What happened?’ Maud asked.

‘Don’t worry about that,’ Holly assured her. ‘How are you? I’m sorry I haven’t seen you since the other night. I meant to ring the lodge, but as you can see, I got a bit distracted.’

Maud shook her head emphatically. ‘Don’t be silly. It’s fine, not a problem at all. I was just coming to say that I’m off back to Scotland this afternoon. I’ve got a taxi picking me up in half anhour. And I wanted to give you this.’ She pulled an envelope out of her handbag and held it out to Holly.

‘What’s this?’

‘Nothing, just a bit of what we talked about. Don’t look at it now. Wait till I’m gone. Okay, you know what I’ve told you, but I don’t want any tears, got it?’

The adrenaline Holly had felt only minutes before was suddenly replaced with something else. A heavy weight. An inevitable fate. This was the last time she was going to see Maud.

The thought choked in her throat. Holly could feel her eyes welling up, her breath shallowing in her lungs. How could this be the last time she would ever see her friend? It didn’t make sense.

‘Maud, I don’t know how I can ever thank you for everything you’ve done for me,’ she said, wiping the tears from her cheeks.

‘Don’t be silly, you just have a grand old life. Do you understand? And I want you to know that we are very, very proud of you.’