Page 98 of Forgive Not Forget
She wrapped an arm around Katherine’s back and pressed her body into hers as they joined hands, swaying lightly to the music. The warmth of Katherine’s face pressed against hers was like the warmth of the sun. Katherine charged her, challenged her, helped her grow, lightened her mood, and illuminated her life.
She spotted her dad wiping his eyes as he watched them dance, and she smiled at him. Mabel fussed over him and dug a tissue from her handbag. Weeks before, she had felt jealous of Mabel’s closeness with her dad, but now she felt only gratitude towards her. The woman clearly adored him and for good reason. Someone else looking out for her dad was something to be embraced. Mabel was a good sort, and a welcome addition to their family, just as her new pup was. She spied it nipping and clawing at Tom and Abigail in a corner of the room. What had Katherine got her into?
Rebecca caught her eye and winked; Anna sent one in return. A once closed book to her and a frenemy of sorts, she was beginning to open her pages.
“I loved your speech,” Anna whispered into Katherine’s ear.
“That was the intention.” Katherine’s reply tickled at Anna’s ear.
“I didn’t get to make one.”
“Oh, did you want to?”
“No. The speeches are best left to you. Anyway, I’d only bore everyone with what they already know.”
“And that would be?”
Anna pulled herself back and looked at Katherine. “That you are an incredibly sexy, generous, intelligent, and strong woman, whom I adore. What they don’t know is that you are vulnerable yet brave, hard yet soft, challenging yet the easiest person to be around.” Anna slid her hand down to Katherine’s bottom. Her lips found Katherine’s, kissing her passionately as the song drew to an end. Their audience broke out into a fresh round of cheers, wolf-whistling, and clapping as Chris came over the microphone and encouraged everyone onto the dance floor with a more upbeat song than the last. They were soon lost amongst a crowd of enthusiastic, bouncing bodies.
Carrie touched her arm as they finally emerged. “Anna, your dad’s carer has come to collect him and Mabel.”
They made their way outside to find a weary Harry. He reached out his shaky hands to them, and they each held one between their own.
“I couldn’t be prouder of you both, and I wish you all the happiness in the world.”
Anna wiped a tear from her eye and bent down to hug him. “Thanks, Dad.” To know she had made him proud touched her deeply. She had always been true to herself, made her own decisions about her life and how she was going to live it. Even when it had felt impossible to, she had found a way through, and all of it had led her here… to Katherine.
A tissue was placed in her hand as Katherine bent down to hug Harry. She was always one step ahead of Anna.
“You look after each other, won’t you?” he said.
“We will, Harry. We’ll see you soon.”
Anna wiped her eyes and then hugged Mabel, taking the woman by surprise. “You look after him for me.”
“I will, dear.”
They waved Harry and Mabel off under the attentive care of Lucy.
Katherine slipped her hand into Anna’s. “You appear to have warmed to Mabel.”
“If Dad’s happy, I’m happy.”
“That’s what I like to hear.” Katherine tucked a stray curl behind Anna’s ear and pushed her lips against Anna’s.
It was a fleeting kiss, for which Anna was grateful. Anything more and she would have been tempted to drag Katherine away from the party and straight back to Abbey House to devour her.
“Come on, let’s dance some of the delicious cake off our hips.” Katherine pulled her back into the barn and onto the dance floor.
An hour later, and with her body aching from exhaustion, Anna collapsed into the nearest chair to rest for a few minutes. She was grateful her feet weren’t aching too. She grinned down at her Doc Martens. Comfort in life was all a matter of the correct footwear.
Tom bundled a sleepy Woolf into her arms. “Anna, can you take him? Wehaveto dance to this one.”
He and Abigail ran onto the dance floor where everyone, including Katherine and Rebecca, were dancing to ‘Happy’. A smile stretched across her lips as she watched the two best friends, exactly where they should be: by each other’s sides.
Abbey Barn’s first wedding had gone off with a bang, luckily not of the Second World War variety. The room was loud and lively, as it should be, transformed from its rotting, dilapidated shell to a new space where important moments in the future would be celebrated. Even Tom and Gloria were dancing together, the young and the old of Nunswick finally finding peace together.
Anna stroked Woolf’s soft, velvet nose as he slept. What adventures they were going to experience together. A heavy-lidded Moose traipsed over, sniffed at Woolf’s blanket, and flopped sideways onto Anna’s dress. She was too tired to tell him to get off, and truthfully, it only added to her contentment.
Her eye caught Katherine’s, and she stopped dancing momentarily to blow her a kiss. Anna caught it with her hand and blew one back. This was a moment she wanted to remember forever.