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‘I had bad shrimp in Me-hi-co once,’ said Lawrence. ‘I’ve not been able to look at the ocean since. Just the smell of salty air makes my bowels brace.’
‘Anyway,’ said Hillary, pacing up and down the lobby, ‘we’re an usher down. We’ve opened the doors and windows, just to air things out, which I think is wise in the circumstances. Plus, the side chapel is a little damp, so we’re moving a few people and squeezing everyone into the main section.’
‘Well, how long is that going to take?’ asked Vivien.
This was all beginning to feel like a terrible French farce.
‘I have some perfume in my bag, if that’s helpful?’ offered Miranda.
‘That would be great. We’re still letting in a few stragglers who got delayed on the A303, so I think we should just give it five minutes.’ Hillary paused. ‘Worryingly, Mark did eat the prawns at lunch, so we’re all waiting for him to blow, though he claims to have the gut constitution of an alcoholic ox. I’ve come to fetch some hot, sugary tea for Reverend Daniels – he was looking a little overwrought by all the drama.’
‘I’ll need to go up there,’ said Vivien. ‘Didn’t I say? You get what you pay for with these ushers.’
‘We’re not paying them, they’re Josh’s friends,’ said Audrey.
‘My point exactly,’ said Vivien. She picked up a lilac umbrella and marched out into the rain, heading up the hill towards the church.
‘Wait!’ said Miranda, scrabbling around for a perfume spray and handing it to Vivien. ‘You might need this.’
‘If anyone can put things right, Vivien can,’ said Brian, giving Audrey’s arm a reassuring squeeze.
Audrey sat down on the stairs. She wasn’t sure she would remember this day as the happiest day of her life, but it was certainly beginning to feel like the longest.
