Chapter Thirteen
August 2012
‘How much!’ Lydia gasped at the price of the suit Theo had picked out for his dad’s wedding in New Zealand next month. Theo had refused to go at first, said it was too far, but Lydia had persuaded him to change his mind because she knew if he dug his heals in he’d most likely regret it forever.
‘It’s Hugo Boss, Lydia.’ He kissed her and then turned back to look in the mirror, admiring the cut of the jacket, the material that made him look like a top businessman and a rival for anyone in the game. ‘Don’t you like it?’
Cheekily, her hand grazed across his bum cheeks. ‘You look hot.’
‘Well then.’ He grinned and disappeared back behind the curtain to remove the suit that Lydia still couldn’t get over the cost of.
‘You could always hire one instead.’ She peeked her head around the curtain and raised eyebrows at his torso, naked apart from the pristine white Calvin Kleins covering the essentials.
‘I’ll wear it more than once,’ he insisted.
That was true. He was always in a suit for work, it was just that this was one of the more expensive versions he’d ever gone for. She guessed it’d be worth the investment.
They paid for the suit and then Lydia led Theo to House of Fraser where she’d already seen the perfect dress for the New Zealand September weather: an inky-blue lacy-fit dress with a flared skirt, along with a beaded shrug in case the happy couple wanted photos taken outside.
After an early dinner at a brasserie nearby, they went back to their flat and Lydia hung the outfits in their special carriers at the end of the wardrobe. Theo had already changed out of his work attire and instead of a sharp suit with shirt and tie he was wearing what she loved to see him in, the look he’d had when they first met: faded but good-fitting jeans, a blue and white striped rugby top with the collar neither ironed nor creased, and bare feet as he moved around the kitchen to make them both a cup of tea. She sneaked up behind him as he pulled the milk from the fridge door and put her arms around him.
‘The wedding isn’t far away.’ She kissed the back of his neck as he shut the fridge and shuffled over to the bench top, her arms still round him.
Laughing at her clinging on, he said, ‘Dad’s getting nervous.’
‘I bet he is. How about Natasha?’
Theo put a sugar in his tea, none in Lydia’s as she returned the milk to the fridge. ‘She seems less nervous than Dad.’ He laughed. ‘I thought you women were the ones who got stressed.’
Impressed he seemed to finally be taking a genuine interest in the nuptials, she said, ‘Never. We keep a cool head when we need to.’
They took their tea into the lounge and plonked themselves onto the sofa. Lydia sat so she was stretched out from one end to the other, her feet up on Theo’s lap. ‘I’m not looking forward to the flight.’
‘It’s long, but it’ll be worth it. I can’t wait to see New Zealand, it’s the farthest we’ve been, you know.’
Lydia grinned at him, the rugby boy she’d thought so up himself when they first met but whom she’d started to make a life with. ‘It’ll be a great holiday. And it’s the land of the All Blacks.’ Of course Theo’s rugby team were England, but you couldn’t fail to admire the New Zealand All Blacks whenever they were on the pitch. She’d once asked him if he’d run the other way if one of the larger players came at him. ‘Of course I wouldn’t,’ he’d said and she’d laughed, suspecting it may not be completely true.
‘You should try and get into rugby again,’ she suggested, sipping her tea now it had cooled down enough.
‘I wouldn’t have the time, not with work.’
‘All work no play makes Theo a dull boy,’ she teased and earned herself a squeeze of his fingers around her toes.
‘Maybe someday,’ he answered.
She watched him, totally laid-back against the sofa. Doing something for himself, other than work, would be good for him. And this holiday was a start: a different location, a chance to ski, the opportunity to get out of the daily grind for a while. Her own job was hard work, and some days unforgiving with its demands and deadlines, but she was settled in a position she knew wasn’t something she wanted to take to the next level. It was different with Theo. He was constantly thinking about the next level up, the next gear of his career, and as soon as he attained it, he was onto the next, and the next, and so on. Something in him had changed since he’d left university. At first she’d thought it was his drive and his roaring twenties where he wanted to go for it with work and achieve all he possibly could. But lately it felt as though he was addicted to it in a way that wasn’t necessarily good.
*
A couple of weeks later they took the long-haul flight to the other side of the world and to the dad Theo seemed to get along with much better now there was a separation of so many miles. Theo still didn’t talk much about Graham, but he spoke to him on the phone every now and then and there were regular emails shooting back and forth. Of course, the subject of a best man had come up recently and Theo had been happy to let Graham’s brother do the honours, no animosity or ill feeling between them after the decision had been made.
The happy couple were to be married at a secluded country retreat in a rustic barn that belonged to the main homestead. Arriving at the venue, Lydia was stunned. ‘Wow…just wow. Your dad has chosen well!’ She looked out to the mountain backdrop, the surrounding gardens as far as the eye could see, and when they got inside it was equally as beautiful. Grace was the first to greet them and she rushed at Lydia with an enthusiasm only a bridesmaid could have. She asked how the flight was and barely stopped talking as she raved about everything she and boyfriend Stephen had seen already.
The ceremony was nothing short of beautiful and Theo chuckled softly when Lydia dabbed at her eyes. She told him to shut up. She always cried at weddings, even if she didn’t know the person.
‘You’re such a romantic,’ he teased as they danced together once the speeches had been made, toasts given to the happy couple, and the first dance to the sounds of a band neither she nor Theo had heard of had been and gone.
Faster dancing took over as the evening progressed and Lydia and Grace found themselves doing a rendition ofThe Twist, which was exhausting and Theo, understandably, excused himself to go prop up the bar.
