Page 110 of Wedding Crasher

‘Have fun tomorrow. Last one with just the two of you.’

Emily held on tight. ‘You try to have fun, too, okay?’

She looked up at Marla through suspiciously damp lashes.

‘Just go home and relax. You shouldn’t even be here.’

Emily had remained steadfast in her refusal to slow down, even though the baby was due in just a few weeks. She laughed off Marla’s concerns and patted her bump.

‘I will. This turkey’s almost cooked.’

An icy blast hit Marla as she stepped outside onto the slippery path. She snuggled her chin down into her cashmere scarf and picked her way through the fresh snow to the car as Jonny loaded up the boot with the disco balls.

Inside, she whacked the heaters on full blast and blew on her frozen fingers. The snow on the windscreen melted away, revealing the desolate, boarded-up funeral parlour across from them. It looked particularly sorry for itself against the pretty backdrop of the village snow scene, with the charmingly ramshackle fairy lights strung from lamppost to lamppost. The funeral parlour cowered, as if it had no business being there; much the same way as its owner had felt at the end, thanks to Marla.

She hadn’t laid eyes on Gabe since the day she’d thrown his love back in his face, but Ruth the florist had reliably informed her thatshe’dheard from Dan’s mother’s sister’s cleaner that he’d gone home to Dublin. Marla’s heart had iced over at the news.

Jonny slammed the boot door down and slid into the passenger seat, bringing an unwelcome gust of frozen air into the car with him.

‘Kerist! Dunno about glitter balls, butmypoor balls shrivelled up like walnuts out there!’

He pulled off his leather gloves and clamped his hands over the heater vents.

Marla laughed and patted his satin-clad knee.

‘Don’t worry, still bigger than Rupert’s, then.’

Jonny high-fived her with an evil snicker.

‘So indiscreet, Ms Jacobs! I love you.’

Marla blushed. He was right. Ithadbeen an indiscreet comment, but if anyone deserved it, then it was Rupert. She usually played her cards close to her chest when it came to her personal life. Even Jonny had no clue about her relationship with Gabe.

If you could call it that,she thought, with a heavy heart.

She crawled along the High Street at ten miles an hour to avoid sliding towards the last-minute shoppers and Christmas Eve revellers spattering the pavements.

‘Why the big sigh?’ Jonny asked.

Marla frowned. She wasn’t even aware that shehadsighed.

‘Would you want to spend Christmas Day with my mother?’

Jonny grinned.

‘Just thank your lucky stars that creepy Brynn isn’t here anymore.’

He pulled a macabre face. ‘He’d have brought a whole new meaning to the termstuffing the turkey!’

Marla laughed softly and turned off the radio when she heard the opening bars of ‘White Christmas’, to prevent Jonny from reaching for the nearest sharp object.

‘So, come on then, ladybird.’ He rubbed his hands on his thighs like a market trader. ‘What are you hoping for in your Christmas stocking?’

‘Well … my mom always went traditional with oranges and walnuts at the bottom, but you’ve kinda just put me off.’

Marla eased the car to a stop at a red light.

‘Let me take a wild guess.’ He drummed his fingers on the dashboard. ‘A tall, dark Irish undertaker?’

---