Page 10 of Flowers Go Flying in Crumbleton

‘Who asks an idiot like that to be their best man anyway?’ she said, looking perplexed.

‘No one in their right mind,’ chuckled Murray. ‘Who told you he’s best man?’

‘He did,’ huffed the girl. ‘About eleventy-billion times. Talk about a tiny man on a power trip. Anyway – I’d better get going.’

‘Two secs,’ said Murray quickly, ‘is Milly not coming?’

Damn… did he really have to sound quite so desperate?!

‘She’s here,’ said the girl, watching him closely, as though she sensed gossip in the air. ‘She decided to walk down. Didn’t want to get her dress messed up. I saw her go around the back of the hotel a few minutes before that git turned up. Why? Who’re you?’

Murray glanced towards the entrance of the carpark and a flutter of nerves ran through him. ‘Me?’ he said distractedly. ‘I’m no one. The… erm… the bride… was asking for Milly,’ he added, the fib escaping before he could stop it.

He really had to stop doing that! Still, it was worth it – Milly was here!

‘Okay Mr No One,’ said the girl. ‘Do you want me to text Milly and let her know?’

Murray widened his eyes in horror. ‘No… no need!’ he spluttered. ‘I’ll… erm… I’ll deal with it!’

‘Okay, cool!’ she said, shooting him a cheeky grin. ‘Right, I’d better dash. People to see! Flowers to deliver!’

Before Murray could say another word, he found himself staring at the back of the little pink van as it lurched away across the cobbles.

Well… she was a character!

As he watched the van disappear off towards the City Gates, Murray took a deep breath and willed his nerves to calm down. He had a feeling the sudden fluttering in his chest had nothing to do with his impending best man duties – and everything to do with the fact that at some point in the next few hours, he was finally going to officially meet Milly. If he didn’t wimp out, of course.

But first… he’d better go and save Philip from Josh’s less-than-tender ministrations… and perhaps find a convenient broom cupboard to lock the idiot in until after the ceremony.

Stealing himself, Murray let out a long sigh before heading back into the bar of the hotel. All he really wanted to do was join the rest of the guests. He’d love to grab a glass of bubbly, wander around admiring everyone’s ridiculous headwear, and work on summoning up a bit of courage before chatting up the woman who’d plagued his dreams for a full year and a half. Instead, he had to make sure there weren’t any further Josh-shaped disasters brewing.

‘Murray… got a sec?’

Kendra collared him just as he was heading through the bar.

‘Everything okay?’ he asked with a decided sinking sensation.

Kendra nodded and shrugged at the same time. The young barmaid was dressed in smart black trousers and a white blouse. She’d clearly been roped in as an extra waitress for the reception.

‘Yeah,’ she said hesitantly. ‘Chef just asked me to check with someone… are they really only giving the guests ten minutes to eat each course?’

Murray smirked and nodded. ‘That’s right.’

‘Weird!’ she whispered.

‘I know!’ Murray whispered back.

‘I’ll let Chef know. He’s going to be maaaad!’ she said, with a quick smile. ‘Thanks, Murray.’ She turned and disappeared off towards the kitchen again.

Murray shook his head. He couldn’t blame the chef for double-checking. This wedding was shaping up to be weird through and through.

For starters, the happy couple didn’t want the ceremony to drag on for too long… or the speeches… or anything, for that matter. It was all about romance against the clock.

The entire day was on a tight timetable just so that the new Mr and Mrs Williams could make the most of the discounted flights they’d got their hands on for the honeymoon. Not that there was anything wrong with that… but it seemed a shame to sprint through what was meant to be the most romantic day of their lives just for the sake of saving twenty-quid!

Frankly, Murray couldn’t quite fathom their logic… but then he wasn’t the one getting married. He was just the guy who’d been put in charge of a stopwatch and told to make sure the entire thing was timed with military precision.

‘Okay,’ said Elizabeth, dropping her new husband’s hand the moment they were out of sight of the cooing crowd. ‘That’s got that bit out of the way!’

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