The guests had been corralled in here after the second attempt. And they had begun to raid the bar.
Glasses clinked. Laughter rang out. DJ Vortex was playing techno and swigging from a hip flask.
Ralph had vanished somewhere, talking about ‘Plan C.’ He had promised a new location where Maddy and Adam could finally say vows without interference from the weather, or the arch, or whatever cosmic joke the universe had queued up next.
But the woman in question wasn’t anywhere in sight. Eva wasn’t sure what had become of her.
Adam didn’t seem too worried. He was drinking beer with some guys who looked exactly like him.
‘This wedding is going feral,’ Jen said, sidling up, her eyes flicking nervously towards the situation. Kelly’s hat was totally askew. Mary’s dress was slipping down over one shoulder while Hannah tried to correct it, only to give up.
Eva looked at her assistant. ‘You’re right. I’ve completely fucked up this job.’
Jen’s brow furrowed. ‘What are you talking about? None of this is your fault. You’ve done everything you can to satisfy the bride.’
God, if only.
Eva shook her head. ‘I did something bad, Jen… I kissed her.’
‘Kissed who?’ Jen asked, looking around.
The words came out in a rush. ‘Maddy. The bride. Before the wedding.’ Eva’s heart thudded at her confession. ‘And now she’s missing, and everyone else is just drinking as if nothing happened, and I don’t know what to do.’
Jen’s mouth opened, then closed. ‘Eva… Oh, Christ. What the hell hashappenedto you?’
‘I don’t know,’ Eva said. Her fingers dug into her palms. ‘I didn’t plan it. I didn’t want it to happen. But it did. I did it. And now she’s out there somewhere, maybe freaking out.’
Jen rested a reassuring hand on her shoulder. ‘It’s okay. I mean, obviously, it’snot. But it will be, probably.’
Eva sighed dryly. ‘Thanks, Jen, I’m so glad we had this chat.’
Jen tutted. ‘I don’t know what you expected. Did you think I’d say what you did was all right?’
Eva shook her head. ‘I know it’s not.’
She glanced around at champagne flutes being refilled. The absurdity of it all made her want to cry and laugh at the same time.
‘You’re the wedding planner,’ Jen said. ‘It’s your job to fix problems. Andyou’rethe problem. So, find her and fix what you’ve done and get that bloody woman married, would you?’
Eva nodded. This was what she needed. Someone to put her in her place and tell her to get on with her job and stop being chaotic and uncontrolled. She needed to get her shit together.
And that started with finding Maddy.
Forty-Three
Maddy had left the kitchen. Wandering aimlessly felt marginally better than sitting amongst gossiping caterers, even if she had no idea where she was going. Other than up.
The upper floors of Hawthorne Manor smelled of furniture polish. Maddy ran a hand along the bannister as she walked, letting her fingers brush over the carved wood.
From somewhere beneath her, she could hear the guests laughing and drinking, music thumping. Toasting to a wedding that hadn’t happened. Maddy wasn’t part of it. She wasn’t the bride anymore. Not really. Not at this very moment. Because as far as she knew, the wedding wasn’t going to be rescued. So long as she never found Ralph, or anyone else who could tell her it was back on, it was Schrödinger’s wedding. Until then, Maddy might be a bride, or she might simply be a woman in a silly dress.
She stopped outside a window, looking down into the garden she’d fled earlier. The sunlight slanted across the lawn, now dotted with pieces of paper and strewn petals. It looked so much nicer without a wedding taking place on it.
Footsteps echoed behind her.
‘Maddy!’ Eva’s voice called.
Maddy turned, eyes wide. Eva had found her, face flushed, hair slightly out of place. Her hands were raised, empty, a gesture of peace.
