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‘And you’re really okay about it?’ Beth sounded doubtful.
‘I’ve never been more certain about anything in my life. Marriage is hard enough without compromising on love, too.’ She bent down and placed the shoes in front of Megan, ready for her to step into them. ‘The minimum anyone should expect in life is to be adored, and your father no longer adores me. And I certainly no longer adore him.’
Beth frowned. ‘That’s the key to a happy marriage? Adoration? Not love, or trust, or respect?’
Connie held Megan steady as her daughter shuffled into her shoes. ‘The happiest relationships I know are when the two people adore each other. Simple as that.’ She nodded to where Lily was removing the wedding dress from its bag. ‘Does Will adore you, Lily?’
Lily blinked for a moment, and then nodded. ‘He does, yes.’
‘See?’ Connie stood up and smiled at Megan. ‘No need to ask if Zac adores you, my darling. It’s evident for the whole world to see.’
Megan’s expression turned dreamy. ‘You’re right. He does. Just as I adore him.’
Connie cupped her daughter’s cheek. ‘Which is why the wedding is back on and hasn’t been cancelled. Anything less than adoration and it might have been the end of things. But you two are made for each other, and I predict a long and happy marriage. It’s nothing less than you deserve, my darling.’ Connie turned to her eldest daughter, noticing for the first time her missing glasses. She looked different, less serious. ‘That just leaves you, my love. Can my clever, hard-working, loyal daughter ever allow herself to be adored, I wonder?’
Beth raised her eyebrows. ‘I’m not the adorable type.’
Doris looked up from her knitting. ‘That Matt chap might disagree.’
Connie frowned at her mother. ‘What Matt chap?’ And then a horrible thought occurred. ‘Surely you don’t mean Matt Hardy?’ Oh, no, please say it wasn’t Matt Hardy?
Doris smiled at Beth. ‘I saw the way he looked at you yesterday when he rescued me.’
Connie was dumbfounded. ‘You remember getting lost on the moors?’
Doris gave her daughter an admonishing look. ‘I have dementia, not amnesia.’
‘Right, yes. Sorry, Mum.’ Connie’s head was reeling. She rubbed her temples, wondering if it would be bad form to take a quick swig of gin.
Doris smiled at Beth. ‘I’m not so far gone that I can’t spot two people falling in love.’
Love? Connie swung round to face her daughter, who was blushing furiously. ‘You’re falling in love with Matt Hardy?’
‘He has very nice arms,’ Doris said, resuming her knitting. ‘I’ve always liked a man with strong arms.’
Connie’s mortification threatened to take her legs from under her. ‘Beth, darling. I had no idea. If I’d known—’
‘Really, Mum, it’s fine.’ Beth seemed as mortified as she was. Her hands came up in defence, as if to stop the onslaught she knew was coming. ‘You were drunk, I get it. No harm done. Let’s just forget it ever happened.’
‘But there’s no excuse. I’m so sorry—’
‘It’s no big deal, really.’ Beth backed away, wobbling on her high heels, as they sunk into the plush carpet. ‘We’re not even dating.’
Connie paused. ‘Why not?’
‘Yeah, why not?’ Megan echoed, heading over to Lily, who was holding the dress open, ready for her to step into. ‘The man’s crazy about you. Am I right, Grandma?’
Doris nodded. ‘Smitten.’
Connie turned to Beth. ‘And are you crazy about him, too?’
Beth looked flustered. ‘I wouldn’t saycrazy, as such… attracted, sure. But crazy? I’m too practical to be crazy about anyone.’ Her defensive words didn’t match her flustered body language. She looked like she didn’t know what to do with her hands, or where to look. One moment she was clutching the front of her bronze-coloured dress, the next she was fiddling with her loose curls. Her normally contained daughter, who was always so together and work-driven, was finally unravelling. And the cause, it seemed, was Matt Hardy.
Connie went over and took her daughter’s hand. ‘Darling, you’re a Lawrence. Crazy is what we do best. If there’s even a spark of interest between you, then you owe it to yourself to explore that. Let go. Let yourself be adored, be a little crazy. You more than deserve it. What’s the worst that can happen?’
Beth rolled her eyes. ‘Are you kidding me?’
‘Okay, then what’s the best that can happen?’ She could see the cogs whirring in her daughter’s mind, as Beth allowed herself to imagine a life filled with love and promise.
