Page 36 of Strawberry Kisses

Chapter Sixteen

Patrick

We joined the queue for the buffet, which was laid out on long tables down one side of the barn. It was a huge spread that included platters of fresh pizza from the van, fresh bread, cold meats and fish, huge bowls of salads, little quiches, some sticky chicken kebabs, and a million other things. The caterers had really gone all out, and everything looked amazing.

Except for the coleslaw because I’d always had a deep-seated hatred for things drenched in copious amounts of mayonnaise, and for me, drenched equalled any amount of the stuff.

Connor and I filled our plates, and I nearly had to drag Connor away because he looked like he was two minutes away from trying to shove food into his cheeks like a hamster.

There were several long trestle tables laid out across the barn with benches running on either side that we’d decorated with some flowers in old jars and colourful knitted pom poms Mum had made. There was no allocated seating, so we found a space at the end of one of the tables with Mary, Lou, Izzy, and Orla and her husband Cian. Their three daughters were seated on the other side of them, chatting with some other kids about their age. The barn was filled with the warm burble of chatter, laughter, and happy eating.

I found myself falling deep into conversation with Lou, who I hadn’t seen since we were both in our early teens, about baking and desserts. We ended up swapping recipes, and I gave her a few tips while she talked me through making drip cakes, which I’d never had a chance to try before. There wasn’t really much call for elaborate cakes in a restaurant kitchen, but now I was itching to try one out just for fun. I’d experiment on Connor; he wouldn’t object to having more cake to eat. And maybe it would be something I could do for the five-year celebration that Ben had been muttering about throwing for the restaurant.

As the meal was starting to wind down, I leant across to Connor. “I’m going to finish the cake,” I whispered. “I won’t be long.”

“Do you want a hand?”

“No, it’s fine. You don’t have to. I don’t want to drag you around.” He’d been chatting with Izzy and Mary about make-up, and I didn’t want to drag him away when he seemed to be having fun, but he’d already swung his leg over the bench and was standing up.

“What if I want to help? Come on, Chef. Let’s go finish a cake.” I smiled, shaking my head and giving in instantly. I wasn’t going to win.

As we headed out of the barn, I found the head of the caterers and mentioned to them about the cake. They nodded and said they’d wait to put the puddings out until we got back. There were plenty of people milling around—chatting, getting seconds, or grabbing drinks from the little makeshift bar we’d built in one corner. The barn had turned out to be the perfect venue for a gathering like this. It would be perfect for a wedding reception too if anyone else in my family decided to get married.

When we got back to the kitchen, Connor and I got straight to work. I grabbed us a couple of aprons that I’d packed, directing him to retrieve the cake and chop some more fruit while I melted some chocolate in the microwave to pipe onto the top. No matter what some people said, it was easy to melt chocolate in a microwave. It was a hell of a lot easier than a bain-marie for a small amount. You just had to keep an eye on it. Besides, I wasn’t doing anything fancy with it like tempering. I just needed some for decoration.

“How’s this?” Connor asked, pointing at the little pile of carefully sliced strawberries, each slit in several places so they could be easily fanned out. “Is that enough?”

“I think you’ve done enough to feed an army.”

“You said to slice the strawberries, but you never said how many.” He stuck his tongue out, then popped a strawberry into his mouth. My tongue darted out to wet my lips, remembering the sensation of his fingers on them when he’d pushed the strawberry between my lips last night. He picked up another one, pressing it slowly into his mouth, his eyes locked on mine.

I broke my gaze away and swallowed. I was never going to be able to think of strawberries the same way again.

Quickly filling a little piping bag with the chocolate, I hurried to finish the cake. There was still some whipped cream left over from last night, so I added some little swirls on the top along with the chocolate lettering, the strawberries, and some meringue pieces from a little tin I’d brought with me. The cake was slightly old-fashioned in design, but I knew it was something Mum and Da would love.

And Connor too.

“All set?” Connor asked, putting the last of the bowls and knives into the sink. I’d take care of them later. “It looks fucking amazing, babe. They’re gonna love it.” He reached up and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “Good job.” My fingers automatically reached to touch the place he’d kissed, wanting to cherish the sensation. “Don’t worry. I didn’t leave a mark. This lipstick is a fucking godsend. Apparently, it’s even blowjob proof, but I’ve never tested it.”

I nodded, even though I wasn’t worried about that at all. My cheek was tingling, and I wondered if that would always happen when Connor kissed me.

I picked up the cake, carrying it carefully in both hands. Connor had two of the trays of spare cake, which we’d decorated last night, and there was another one in the fridge that someone could grab later if we needed it.

Slowly we made our way back to the barn. Connor quickly handed the trays off to one of the catering team, swapping them for two birthday candles—a seven and a zero—and a lighter. Connor placed the candles carefully into the cake I was holding, then lit them. I raised my hand to shield the tiny, flickering flames. I hoped they wouldn’t go out before we reached Mum and Da. The cake was a joint wedding and anniversary one, but my family had always insisted on birthday cakes with candles, no matter how old you were.

Mary had obviously been watching for us because as soon as she spotted me, she began to sing.

“Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you…” I joined in and so did Connor, and soon the whole barn was full of singing and cheering voices. I wove my way through the crowded benches to where Mum and Da were sitting. Both of them had huge grins on their faces, and there was even the shimmer of tears in Mum’s eyes. I put the cake down in front of them, in a hastily cleared space, while Connor snapped a couple of photos.

One of the caterers appeared with a knife, and once everyone had finished singing, I handed it to Da. “You have to blow out your candles and make a wish first.”

“I don’t think I need a wish. I’ve got everything I could ever want.” But he dutifully closed his eyes and blew out the candles while a lump rose in my throat. I’d never heard him sound so happy, and it made something churn in my chest. It suddenly struck me how much I loved my family and how much I wanted to treasure each and every one of these memories. I’d missed out on so much by hiding from them, but I wasn’t going to do that anymore.

Mum wrapped her hand around the knife handle, and Da wrapped his fingers around hers as they cut into the cake.

“Thank you, love,” Mum said. “It looks gorgeous.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Speech!” someone yelled; I didn’t know who. But soon a couple of other people were calling out. I ducked out of the way, taking Connor with me, and weaving back to our seats as Da stood up, glass of wine in hand. Everyone cheered.

“I hadn’t planned on giving a speech,” he said, his Devonshire burr suddenly stronger. “So you’ll have to forgive me for ramblin’. But I do want to say that I’m so happy to be surrounded by so many of my family and friends here today and to see you all enjoying yourselves. I’ve been married to this amazing woman for fifty years, and why she’s still putting up with me is a mystery only God knows, but I’m glad she is because I’d be lost without her.” He looked around the room, a wide smile on his face, and when he spoke again, he sounded almost choked up. It made the lump in my throat tighten. “I’ve been blessed with not only an amazing wife but five amazing children, who I love very much. I know we drive each other crazy sometimes, but I think that’s what families are supposed to do.” There was a little chuckle from some of the tables and some fond nods from some of the guests. “Cara, Imogen, Orla, Mary, Patrick… I love you all so much. It’s been my greatest joy to be your father, and you’re all my greatest achievement, although I won’t lie and say that having a winner in the National in ’96 wasn’t a close one.” I chuckled and shook my head because I still remembered that day like it was yesterday, even if I had only been five at the time. “I also want to take a second to welcome Connor into our family. Meeting your boyfriend’s family is hard enough, but when it’s this lot, well, I reckon it’s a damn sight more challenging. But we’re so happy you could be here today, and we’re hoping we haven’t scared you off.”

Beside me, Connor smiled and shook his head, but I saw his eyes were shining with tears. I felt my own eyes prickling too. God, I wanted this to be real, and with every passing second, I wanted it more and more. It was like an unbearable weight on my chest that I didn’t know how to shift.

I reached out and interlaced my fingers with Connor’s, squeezing his hand tightly in mine. He looked over at me and smiled as warm and beautiful as ever. And just for a moment, as his eyes met mine, I felt something shift between us as if something had finally slotted into place.

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