Page 80 of A Winter Wedding Adventure
Turning from the window to regard him, she asked, ‘What about your future? You’ll be back in Salzburg in the summer, and then what?’
But he flashed her a tight smile. ‘I’m sure I’ll… land on my feet somewhere. Maybe I was holding onto Alessandra and her circle in Naples. I really was a hopeless teenager, trapped in my own fears and insecurities, but—’ He shrugged. ‘Things change. I have the chance to make more of my music career and I’ll see where it takes me.’
She nearly regretted asking, when the answer was so clearly, It won’t take me to you.
‘Thanks for teaching me to chop wood and reminding me that sometimes, the solution is as simple as switching off the fridge.’ He stared at his knees for a moment, spots of colour on his cheeks. ‘And, you know, the sex.’
She gave him a shove. ‘Do not thank me for sex!’
He held up his hands in surrender. ‘It was kind of life-changing. I had to say something.’
Kira’s chest hurt. The pressure on her lungs was similar to being at altitude, but there should have been plenty of air in this room. It was Mattia and his wild ability to bring feelings up to her pores.
She patted his shoulder. ‘Maybe you just needed an older woman,’ she said as lightly as she could, hoping his hearing wouldn’t betray the churning in her stomach.
Hauling herself to her feet and ignoring his doubtful snort in reply, she fetched her water bottle and took a long sip, glancing at her watch. Eight fifteen.
‘I should get ready,’ she said, shaking off the lingering effects of Mattia on her system. ‘The wedding’s in just over six hours. Hopefully, not enough time for anything else to go wrong.’
‘You look great!’ Ginny said as she squeezed Kira in a hug. The chirpy wedding planner wore a two-tone dress in baby blue and turquoise with a belt and heels and a diamond stud winking in her piercing. She was in her element, directing museum staff to rearrange furniture and checking – and double-checking – every last detail. She looked great. She was the real wedding planner. And yet…
Kira was some kind of wedding planner too – her own kind. And she did look good. She wore a pair of neat trousers and a patterned, silky blouse that Mattia had helped her pick out – that did not require decorative knots to finish the look. Ginny must have also bought her outfit in Mayrhofen, since their luggage was ruined.
Kira wasn’t wearing make-up. Mattia had silently dissuaded her with a hand gesture, his fingers at his neck. Although she’d scowled at him, the memory of the last time he’d seen her with make-up – seen her applying it poorly – and the knowledge that he thought she was fine without had lightened her mood.
It was difficult not to feel optimistic, now the wedding was on track after so many obstacles. There was only a light sprinkle of snow coming down – just enough for Alessandra’s superstitions. The reception could take place in this historic farmhouse, under the low, wooden ceilings strung with pine boughs and holly, a roaring fire in the old, whitewashed stove.
It was perhaps more rustic than Alessandra had imagined, but Kira rather liked the charming building, its wooden balconies discoloured with age and many, many marriages in its history.
Ginny counted off on her fingers. ‘I’ve checked on the caterers, Andreas is sorting out transport and Sophie’s at the church performing CPR on the decorations— Oh fuck, that was a poor choice of words!’
‘It’s fine,’ Kira assured her.
Ginny clutched her arm. ‘And I’m under strict instructions not to let you lift anything with those hands!’
Although the scrapes had scabbed over, Kira’s fingertips were still tender. ‘I know my limits,’ Kira insisted drily. ‘You can tell Andreas to back off.’
Ginny’s eyes widened. ‘I could never! Anyway, I do have a job I need you to do.’
Of course she did, which was how Kira found herself spending the morning asking Carla and Joe and anyone else she could find what music to put into the wedding playlist, now they had to do without both the string quartet and the DJ.
Andreas had found a trumpet player and a clarinettist among the mountain rescue volunteers and, from Mattia’s reports, the music for the ceremony was all arranged, but it was a big job ensuring hours of music for the reception – and making sure the sound system at the museum worked when required.
At lunchtime, Andreas appeared with an enormous tray of bread and cheeses, pickles, grilled vegetables and cured meat.
Ginny shoved bites into her mouth and chewed while she worked ceaselessly on her tablet, stylus in hand. ‘Where is Rhys?’ she asked, her mouth full.
‘Right here,’ Kira’s old friend mumbled from the opposite side of the room, where he was topping a piece of bread with grilled courgette.
‘Oh, Christ, I didn’t see you there!’ Ginny exclaimed, her hand on her chest. ‘You’re always so quiet!’ Kira saw her lips moving and suspected she was adding under her breath, For someone so tall.
His eyes lingered on Ginny, his expression grim, while Kira made her way over to him. With a nudge to his shoulder, she said, ‘It’s good of you to step in.’
‘Don’t tell me you’ve come to terms with this wedding stuff too, now? I’m only here today because of everything that’s gone wrong.’
‘The photos will be fine,’ she said, cutting through to what she knew must be his concern. ‘They understand you don’t know anyone. The bride is the one in the white dress. The groom is the one with a fancy steel watch with a blue face. It will all be clear at the ceremony.’
His expression suggested he didn’t share her confidence. ‘I’ll take the photos, but then I’m just sending them over. I don’t want any commentary. And I’m never doing this again. Someone will have to explain that to the tenacious woman in the office at I Do.’
