‘I haven’t sorted that yet,’ said Cleo. ‘Having it next December is as far as we got.’
Serenity blew out from between her lips. ‘You sort this one out,’ she told Ruby. ‘She wants a December wedding and hasn’t booked it yet? Good luck.’
Ruby giggled.
‘Do you think I’ll get somewhere?’ Suddenly Cleo felt the urgency.
‘If you’re flexible with days you might, but don’t leave it much longer.’
‘Can I help you choose somewhere?’ Ruby asked.
‘You know what?’ She touched a hand to Ruby’s long hair, almost the same shade as her own. ‘I’d really love that. We could make this our project. I’m going to need a lot of help as I’ve got way too much to do as usual. My fault, I keep saying yes to things.’
‘Like the market.’
‘Do you mind me doing it?’ Cleo asked when she got the feeling the reminder had jolted something for Ruby.
Ruby shook her head and got straight back to dress discussions with Serenity as though she was a mini wedding planner. They looked at gowns with beading, lace, tulle, those for a fuller figure, others for the petite bride, some for women who were an hourglass shape. They waded through white, cream, blush pink and champagne dresses and Cleo was none the wiser as to what she wanted to go for.
Serenity swooped in with the offer of a glass of fizz but Cleo turned it down in favour of treats at a café very soon.’ She tried to gauge whether Ruby was getting fed up or not but she seemed more animated than she’d been in a long while. Cleo would have to thank Amelia for the very simple suggestion of making a day for her and Ruby, just the two of them. It was obvious when you thought about it, but Cleo had needed someone else who wasn’t involved to point her in the right direction.’
‘OK, Ruby, I think it’s time to move on and look at bridesmaid dresses.’ Ruby’s smile warmed Cleo’s heart.
They went through the bridesmaid dresses on display, Serenity explaining that plenty were hired or they could be specially made if needs be. There were so many colours, some gorgeous, others hideous, although Cleo was thankful Ruby didn’t voice her opinions of those too loudly but instead shared a little smile and moved on to the next.
Ruby’s enthusiasm grew when they saw the midnight-blue dress hanging at the end of a collection. It had a scoop neck, lace and tulle, beading, and Cleo knew from the little girl’s reaction that it was exactly what she was looking for.
‘How about we go buy some bridal magazines from the kiosk we just walked past?’ Cleo suggested to Ruby. ‘We’ll buy a big notebook too, and then we can sit in a nice café, drink hot chocolate and make more plans.’
‘Mum said I wasn’t to badger you all afternoon, what with the market stall.’ Ruby’s gaze dropped from the dress to the floor. ‘She told me to call her if you had to get back.’
‘The market stall is in good hands,’ Cleo assured her. She thought Prue knew the deal but she clearly hadn’t listened to Dylan properly. ‘You’re stuck with me for the rest of the day, Amelia and Kaisha have the Garland Street markets covered, and we’ll go home on the train together. But only when we’re ready.’
Before they left the boutique Cleo booked another appointment for January, on a Saturday so Ruby could definitely come along too, and Serenity told her, ‘Promise me you’ll book your venue before I next see you.’
‘I’ll make sure she does,’ said Ruby, making Cleo share a smile with Serenity at how beyond her years the little girl sounded. The Ruby who’d always been so amenable and had loved Cleo from the start was still in there somewhere, she just knew it.
They picked up four bridal magazines, plenty to leaf through in the café, and Ruby found a pretty A4-sized notebook plus a pen with a big fluffy pink topper on the end for them to use to make their plans.
Ruby had already scribbled plenty in the notebook by the time Cleo brought over their order of hot chocolates topped with a swirl of fresh cream and a bowl of marshmallows on the side.
‘This magazine is all about themes,’ Ruby told her as she flipped through the pages pausing when something caught her eye.
‘Colours, you mean?’
‘No, themes,’ she said with exaggerated impatience. ‘There’s something called rustic, what’s that?’
‘Darcy’s wedding was rustic, casual too, and very beautiful.’
‘You could have a garden wedding.’
‘In winter?’
‘Or romantic, or vintage. Why don’t we brainstorm venues?’
Cleo’s laugh nearly blew the cream from the top of her drink as she lifted it to her mouth. ‘Since when do you use the word brainstorm?’
‘I heard Dad talking with someone on the phone the other day.’
