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They had spent their time on Friday afternoon planning every part of the meal in careful detail, from the hors d’oeuvres to the fish course, from the main meal to the desserts and the petit fours. Millie experienced the familiar wriggle of excitement that every professional chef feels before the preparation of a celebratory feast, and she knew that if she managed to pull it off, Imogen and Alex’s wedding would be one of the major achievements of her professional life.
Her thoughts briefly lingered on the telephone conversation she’d had with Claudia the previous afternoon.
‘Hi Claudia, it’s Millie.’
‘It’s great to hear from you, Millie, and I have to say I’m more than a little envious that you’re over there soaking up the Caribbean sunshine whilst the UK is submerged under a cloud of incessant gloom. I don’t think it’s stopped raining since you left.’
‘How are you feeling?’
‘My doctor informs me that my leg is mending nicely, and he has congratulated me on taking his advice to rest for once, but I would much rather be in my kitchen whipping up a soufflé. I’m bored, Millie!’
‘Claudia, erm… I’ve got a favour to ask you.’
‘Ask away, darling! I owe you several!’
Millie had already provided Claudia with regular email updates about the incident with Imogen’s wedding cake, and the subsequent amendments to theChocolate & Confettiitinerary, so she’d given Claudia a quick summary of the events of Friday morning, culminating in a request, more a plea really, for her permission to use the Paradise Cookery School as a wedding reception venue. As Millie had expected, Claudia had been delighted to come to Imogen’s rescue and expressed her envy once again that she wouldn’t be there to join in all the fun.
‘Oh, the poor girl! Her mother must be frantic. I’m more than happy to put the villa at your disposal on one condition.’
‘Of course, anything.’
‘Please, please send me some photographs!’
‘That shouldn’t be a problem,’ Millie laughed. ‘Carla, one of Imogen’s bridesmaids, is a professional photographer. I know she will take the most amazing pictures.’
‘Oh, then maybe I could ask her if I can use a few of them on my website and Facebook page to advertise the villa when Tim and I eventually get around to offering overnight accommodation to the Paradise Cookery School guests next year?’
‘I’m sure Carla would be delighted.’
Before their conversation ended, Claudia had expressed her heartfelt gratitude to Millie, and Ella, for representing the Claudia Croft Cookery School in such a positive way and for being instrumental in turning a tragedy into a success. She promised to sing Millie’s praises to Étienne but did add a stern but well-meaning postscript that she wanted to see Millie make more of her talents now that she had shown what she was capable of.
Finally, to Millie’s delight, Claudia had gone on to suggest that she ask her boss for a week’s extended leave in the run-up to Christmas so she could join her in the Cotswolds to present a segment on the Festive Feast cookery course in the first week of December. Millie had thanked her profusely and promised to talk to Étienne. When she had said goodbye to Claudia, Millie didn’t think her euphoria could climb any higher.
So, the only blot on her happiness landscape that hectic Saturday morning was the current awkwardness between her and Zach. She had met with him the previous evening to thrash out the wedding arrangements but had orchestrated things so that both Ella and Henri had been present at all times to ensure there was no possibility of their conversation morphing into anything more personal than what colour the napkins were going to be.
To Millie’s surprise, there had been no sign of Clio, either on the veranda last night during their briefing, nor was she there helping them set up that morning. Perhaps Clio had seen their discussions as work-related, and it was still early so she was probably catching up on her beauty sleep. Millie certainly had no intention of asking Zach about the reasons for his girlfriend’s absence. She wasn’t sure whether she was relieved that Clio had stayed away or disgruntled that she hadn’t turned up to offer her help when it was all-hands-on-deck. After all, the more the merrier when she looked down at the list of things that they still needed to do.
‘Where’s Clavie got to?’ groaned Ella, slotting her arms through the handles of her canvas bag and stamping her feet in frustration at the taxi driver’s shoddy timekeeping. ‘Denise is supposed to be meeting us at Castries market in thirty minutes – we’re going to be late!’
‘Don’t worry, Mum. I’ll take you,’ Henri offered, dangling his car keys from his index finger and ushering Ella and Millie towards his ancient Fiat.
‘Thank you, Henri,’ smiled Millie.
The journey to Castries was uneventful. Millie took the opportunity to enjoy what would be her last glimpse of St Lucia’s spectacular western coastline, and the picturesque villages that scattered the hillside, before she left for the airport on Monday morning. She truly hoped that she would have the opportunity to return to the island that had made such an impression on her heart, maybe for a holiday, or perhaps to co-present another course for the Paradise Cookery School. Despite the numerous hiccups, it had been the most amazing experience, the best three weeks of her life, in fact.
She was proud of what she had achieved, not only in the kitchen but on a personal level. She had emerged from beneath a veil of despondency that had seemed to stalk her every move since the break-up with Luke. She had been reminded that not only was she an accomplished chef, but that she could also help and encourage others to discover their own affinity with food of all varieties – not just chocolate-inspired. She knew she was back to her Cordon Bleu-trained best and the increase in her confidence felt amazing.
As Henri’s little red Fiat navigated the numerous potholes, Millie continued to meander the corridors of her mind, counting her blessings and the reasons for them: Ella, Denise, Lottie, Henri, Dylan, but the person she had most to thank was there at centre stage. Zach, the most irritating, spiky, generous, handsome man she had ever had the good fortune to meet and, given a different set of circumstances, she knew she could easily have fallen in love with him.
Maybe she already had?
Wasn’t that the reason she couldn’t stop thinking about the way his eyelashes fluttered against his cheeks when he closed his eyes, or how he had dragged her into his arms on the wooden platform high in the trees during their zip lining expedition? She couldn’t deny her body’s reaction when they had shared a goodnight kiss after the meal at his lodge before Imogen and her friends had arrived.
But was it simply physical desire? She doubted it.
Whenever she was at Zach’s side she experienced an avalanche of emotions that she’d never encountered during the time she had spent with Luke. Every single sense sparkled with excitement, her heart filled with a surfeit of happiness, and her lips tingled with the desperate hope that he would kiss her. Those weren’t feelings of mere sexual attraction and she wondered how their adventure would have ended if Clio hadn’t called when she did.
‘Earth to Millie? Are you receiving?’ laughed Henri as he skirted around a coach filling up with recently disembarked cruise passengers to snatch a parking space a few yards away from the capital’s vibrant market. ‘Look, there’s Aunt Dennie!’
