Page 24 of Snowy Surprises in the Highlands

8

Bella and Olivia waved goodbye to Bella’s mum who had to get back home to continue with their clear-out. Her parents’ house sale in Inverness was progressing and their offer had finally been accepted for Rowan Cottage at Dunan on Skye, so they had begun to downsize their possessions in readiness.

Bella and Olivia made their way around to the bistro-style café within the grounds of the castle where they were joined by new mum Skye. The café had been created from one of the old stable blocks that stood adjacent to the one that had been turned into holiday lets. In the café, each stall that was once home to a horse now had custom-built benches and oak plank tables. Horse brasses hung on the walls and framed black and white photos of horses that had been a part of the castle staff many years before. It was rustic and quirky through the day but at nighttime, when the place was open as a bistro, the tables were covered in linen cloths and candles adorned the centres, creating a romantic and cosy ambience that Bella very much approved of, partly because she’d subtly had a hand in how they looked too.

The three friends placed their lunch orders for homemade quiche and salad and sat in their little private space drinking prosecco, except for Skye, who couldn’t partake as she was still breastfeeding her four-month-old son. Today, Theo was at home having some daddy and son time, but every five minutes Skye received a WhatsApp message updating her on what facial expressions and noises their son had made.

‘So, you love your dress then?’ Skye asked. Bella had messaged her after the fitting and had gushed about how perfect it was.

Bella sighed dreamily. ‘Oh, Skye, it’s stunning. I won’t want to take it off. I might just live in it like Miss Havisham from Great Expectations.’

‘Only your fella won’t be ditching you at the altar,’ Skye replied.

‘Oh, heck, I hope not.’

‘On a scale of one to ten, how excited are you about the wedding?’ Olivia asked.

Bella tapped her chin. ‘About… a hundred and fifty.’

Skye and Olivia giggled along with her and Olivia added, ‘Seriously, Bells, you will be the most stunning bride. What’s Harris wearing? Please tell me he’s going for a kilt.’

‘I believe so. But he’s keeping everything a secret. He says he’s only going to discuss it with the men involved in the wedding so I’m leaving him to it. He’ll be so cold in a kilt though!’

‘He’s a Scotsman, he’s tough,’ Skye said with a laugh. ‘At least that’s what most Scotsmen will say.’

Olivia took a sip of her drink. ‘I can’t believe you won’t let us throw you a hen party.’

‘Yeah, what’s that about?’ Skye asked, pouting.

‘I just don’t want to bother everyone with another event so close to Christmas. It’s such a lot for people to be taking time out of the festive season for the wedding as it is.’

‘So, let’s have a hen do in October?’ Skye said, as if it was the most obvious solution.

Bella smiled. ‘I’ll think about it.’ She turned to Olivia and changed the subject again. ‘Are you excited for the whisky launch and reception grand opening?’

Olivia nodded emphatically. ‘I really am! Brodie and Uncle Innes are perhaps a little giddier than I am, but it will be great to be selling our own blend at last and to have somewhere stunning to sell it from, thanks to you, Bells. Once again, you’ve done a magnificent job.’

‘Aye, well, the team that worked on it were fantastic. And I hear the gin has been going down a treat with people.’

Olivia smiled. ‘Oh, it has. People seem to love it so much that we’re planning on doing a couple of different lines of flavoured gin. But it doesn’t feel like a proper distillery without our own brand of whisky, so we’re all looking forward to seeing how it goes down. You’re still coming over for the event, aren’t you?’

It was Bella’s turn to nod. ‘Try and stop me.’

Skye huffed. ‘I can’t believe I won’t be here.’

‘Don’t be daft, you’re going on your first weekend way since Theo was born. Have fun and make the most of it,’ Olivia said.

‘Hmm, I’m not sure I’ll be able to relax. We’ve never left him before,’ Skye replied, chewing on her lip. ‘Five months old feels too soon, what if he thinks we’ve abandoned him?’

‘He’ll be fine. Both sets of doting grandparents will be on hand to cater to his every need. Just go and have fun,’ Bella said, hoping to encourage her.

Olivia leaned in and whispered, ‘And lots of sex, because those times are not easy to come by with a little one.’ They all giggled like teenagers.

‘Speaking of going away, what are you and Harris doing about a honeymoon?’ Skye asked.

‘We’re delaying that for a while. I’m not sure how long for but Harris has got a lot on at work with there being a shortage of officers just now, and I have a few new clients in the pipeline so we can’t really afford the time just now. We can go sometime in the future when things settle down a bit.’

‘But if you don’t go right after the wedding, you may never make the time to go,’ Skye insisted.