‘We need as many hands as we can get, Macgibbon,’ Kirsten pushed.
Rae must have noticed his hesitation, because she straightened up, forehead crinkling. ‘If you’re needed, go. Everything will be fine here.’
But wouldshe? Really? She’d pretend to be, but he saw that callus opening up on her finger again. Saw the hunch of her spine, like it was growing too tired to hold her up.
It was his job to always say yes, so he did, not without regret. ‘I’ll be back by morning,’ he vowed when he’d hung up.
‘It’s okay. They need you more than we do. What happened?’
‘A cave collapse.’
Her eyes widened. ‘Will you be safe?’
‘Why?’ With the others celebrating the rain lightening to a drizzle outside, he allowed himself a smirk. ‘Worried about me, sweetheart?’
It made him weightless to think it might be true. To think that one person might notice his absence and wonder where he was. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had that.
‘Maybe.’ Sincerity was a raw scrape in her throat.
He wished he could kiss her. He settled for squeezing her hand, relieved when she didn’t pull away. ‘I’ll be fine. So will you. I’ll be back as soon as I can.’
Usually, the adrenaline coursing through him would have him dashing out the door without a second thought, but her weak nod made his legs heavier.
And because he was selfish, he lifted her hand to his mouth, pressing his lips to her knuckles. Her tension buckled, giving way to a surprise he didn’t have time to bask in.
Instead, he chased his responsibility. His purpose – or it had been before she’d hijacked his heart, his mind, his body.
28
The rain continued in intermittent bursts throughout the rest of the evening, light enough that, between them, they managed to get the marquee’s white canopy up so they could at least organise the dining space inside. Rae thought she’d handled the stress well until she stepped out into the dark and realised her entire face throbbed from clenching her jaw all day. She leaned against the fence, the solar mason jars illuminating the entire acre of land in buttery gold. She could see all the way out to the orchard, where the lights twinkled like fireflies.
She was okay, she told herself. The rain couldn’t ruin this. The only problem would be the ceremony itself, and she was sure she’d be able to gather enough umbrellas.
She’d just been so desperate to bring Harper’s vision to life.
Maybe Dad was right. Maybe she’d been delusional in thinking they could host a wedding with no experience and little time to prepare. Rae had just imagined that so many opportunities would come from this. She hadn’t stopped to consider what might happen if they did a terrible job,because failing had never been an option for her before.
Now, it felt more and more likely every day.
She pulled out her phone, feeling as though her chest was wedged between two stones when she found no reply to her last text to Struan. She’d checked the local news earlier and found the cave collapse had been covered, the footage of Struan’s team pacing behind a grave news reporter, hard hats making it impossible to distinguish him from the others. She had no idea what might happen if he was the one sent into those caves, forced into a claustrophobic, unstable space.
What if he was hurt?
‘It looks like every bit the fairy tale Harper hoped for,’ Martha announced behind her.
Rae turned to find her cradling Roderick as she stepped down the wooden porch steps. She stopped at the fence beside Rae to admire the barrels of sunflowers and foliage-covered fences. She was right: minus the rain, they’d managed to make this exactly the magical white wedding Harper had longed for. Harper had rented a wall of wisteria for a gorgeous photograph backdrop, which stood against the side of the house, and the underneath of the marquee’s canopy was decorated with billowing chiffon that, if it didn’t blow down in the wind or get mucky overnight, would complement Harper’s long, shimmering dress perfectly. With less hands available tomorrow morning, Rae hadn’t wanted to risk waiting.
‘Maybe you should ask Harper to plan your wedding, too,’ Rae remarked. Rae and the other local businesses might have brought the venue together, but it was Harper who had known exactly what she wanted – which made the prospect of disappointing her all the more terrifying.
‘If I weren’t a bit of a control freak,I’d consider it.’
Roderick meowed to be let down, so Martha set him on the fence. ‘Don’t poop on the decorations, though.’
‘Let’s just keep him contained for now,’ Rae decided, whistling for Roderick with her hand outstretched. He brushed against her lovingly, a light purr vibrating from him.
‘All this wedding planning made me realise that I actually have something to ask you.’ Martha rubbed Roderick’s whiskered chin as he basked in the shared attention.
‘Well, I’m flattered, but I think Vik would have something to say,’ Rae joked.
