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I grin and nudge Elizabeth with my elbow. “I mean it. Don’t listen to him, he’s only teasing.”
“No, he’s not,” Mack says. “And I’ll be checking.”
“Checking what?”
“Whether you’ve had sex.”
“May I ask how?” Elizabeth asks.
“I’ll be able to tell,” Mack states. “So be warned.”
She blows a raspberry and picks up her fork. He gives me a look that says,I’m not joking.
“How many glasses of champagne have you had?” I ask him suspiciously.
“I haven’t touched a drop.”
“He’s had four,” Sidnie replies. “He was very nervous, bless him.”
“I might need a snooze after dinner,” Mack says.
“We’ll have a little lie down together.” She whispers something in his ear, and he laughs.
“You are too fucking happy,” Elizabeth complains. “It shouldn’t be allowed.”
I chuckle and tuck into my starter. The vegetarian option is mushroom bites stuffed with walnuts, spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes, a creamy butternut squash linguine with fried sage for a main, and vegan cheesecakes for dessert, but there are seasonal fish and meat alternatives for each course too, like grilled chicken and salmon with lemon.
Elizabeth and I make polite conversation during the meal, chatting about the yacht, the food, and the guests, but I can sense she feels as awkward as I do. It’s as if we have so much to say to each other that we can’t get the words out, so in the end we talk about stupid things, like how tasty the chicken is, and don’t Victoria and Evie seem happy? In the end I give up and accept that whatever Mack’s wishes, things aren’t going to magically right themselves over dinner. Maybe later, when we get some time alone, we’ll be able to talk.
Ultimately, though, what am I expecting she’ll say? I know she’s still planning on going to England. So there’s really nothing to discuss. Mack has good intentions, but it doesn’t matter how much he pushes me to alter the situation. Elizabeth is the one who’s making the rules, and unless she changes her mind, things are going to stay the way they are whether he likes it or not.
*
Elizabeth
I can’t believe Mack put me next to Huxley for dinner. I’ll have words with him about that later. I’m annoyed that he’s trying to force the issue. What good will pushing us together do now? It’s only going to make us more miserable.
Huxley is his usual polite, charming self, but things aren’t going to go back to the way they were. We’ve slept together. He’s been inside me, for fuck’s sake. Without a condom. You can’t forget something like that. I can’t, anyway, and judging by the way he’s quieter than usual, neither can he.
Eventually, I feel I have to say something, so I murmur, “You’re quiet today.”
“I’m thinking about my speech,” he says.
“Oh, I’d forgotten about that. Have you written it down?”
“Nah. I’ll make it up as I go.” He smiles. His light-gray eyes rest on me, and it feels as if they’re curtains hiding all the things he wants to say. I so want things to go back to normal. I open my mouth to ask him if he’s forgiven me, but at that moment Cameron calls for quiet and announces that it’s time for the speeches, and Huxley gets to his feet. He’d previously taken off his jacket, but now he slips it on and does the top button up.
“Welcome, everyone,” he begins, “to the wedding of one of my very best friends, Mack Hart, to his beautiful new wife, Sidnie. I’m Oliver Huxley, and I’ve known Mack since his first year at our high school. We’ve been rivals for as long as I can remember, so it’s kind of nice to have it confirmed that I am, in fact, the best man.”
Mack groans as there’s a ripple of laughter. “Is this what we can expect from your speech?”
“Oh, there’s plenty more where that came from,” Huxley says enthusiastically. “But I should add that I’ve been instructed to keep the speech smut free, so if I come across any innuendo, I’ll whip it out immediately.”
Sidnie dissolves into giggles, which makes the rest of us laugh.
“Don’t encourage him,” Mack says wryly.
Huxley grins. “I looked up some etiquette on being a best man, and apparently I should start with some embarrassing tales about the groom. My problem is there are so many to choose from!”
