56. Chapter Fifty-Six
Chapter Fifty-Six
May was cradling a glass of champagne, watching the band, when Cillian appeared beside her.
‘We pulled it off,’ he said. ‘Luke and Nick laughed when they saw where their wedding was going to take place.’ He grinned. ‘Luke admitted he’d been a little suspicious when he heard about the delivery of the wood chip and wondered if we planned to hold it in the manor gardens.’
May lifted the glass in a toast. ‘Alice and Kitty were thrilled, too.’ She returned his grin.
‘Alice said she knew something special was happening, because of all the sly grins she and Kitty were getting.’ She gestured with the glass at the sand and the sea.
‘She hadn’t thought of the beach, and declared it the perfect idea.
’ May resisted adding how she’d been right all along.
She’d lost any interest in scoring points off Cillian, or anyone for that matter.
‘Your reading was a surprise too,’ Cillian said.
May turned to him and frowned. ‘Are you cross? Nick and Alice said you might be. Only, when they showed me the lyrics I agreed with them that they were perfect for a wedding, this wedding in particular.’
‘I’m not cross,’ said Cillian. ‘You read them beautifully.’
‘I’d like to hear you sing them one day.
’ May turned away and kept her eyes straight ahead.
The fairy lights strung up around the makeshift dance floor glittered in the evening light.
The beach had taken on a dream-like quality, which she was sure had nothing to do with the three glasses of champagne she’d drunk in quick succession.
‘I’ll sing them for you tonight, if that’s what you want?’ Cillian’s voice was soft, tentative.
May looked at him again. The breeze tugged his curls, and his eyes glistened in the soft yellow lamplight. Her heart skipped. ‘I’d like that,’ she said, her voice muffled.
As the band struck up their version of “Go Your Own Way”, Cillian grinned and held out his hand.
‘It would be rude not to,’ said May, taking his hand.
They joined the mass of bodies who’d rushed to the wooden dance floor.
Cillian pulled May into his arms, and she giggled as he spun her around before taking her hand and placing an arm across her back.
She let him take control, moving her in time to the music without bumping into the dancers around them.
A wonderful sensation of being carefree and young washed through her.
Perhaps, despite all the mistakes she’d made, life might hold more opportunities than she’d thought.
The song drew to a close, and as the band struck up the first bars of “You Make My Dreams”, a cheer went up. May was pulled from Cillian’s arms by Alice, Kitty, Margot and Maz.
May laughed breathlessly as Alice spun her under one arm, Kitty clapping along and Margot shimmying with unexpected enthusiasm.
Maz grinned, her bright lipstick smudged as she twirled in her sandals, trying to keep up.
The wooden boards bounced beneath their feet, the rhythm infectious, the voices around her loud and cheerful.
For once, May forgot herself. She threw her arms up into the air and danced and laughed until her cheeks ached and the muscles in her legs strained in protest.
Luke, Daniel, Nick and Cillian joined the women, and they formed a circle, taking turns to step into the middle for a solo.
When Cillian’s turn came around and he executed an impressive moonwalk and hip thrust, May burst into laughter, sobering up quickly when Kitty pushed her into the middle of the circle.
For a moment her mind went dangerously blank, then she closed her eyes, focussed on the music and shimmied her way around the circle to cheers from her friends.
Alice was next, walking like an Egyptian until Margot took her place, surprising them all with moves that probably should have been accompanied by a pole.
Daniel’s move had doubtless last been seen on a 1970s dance floor, and Nick and Luke locked hands and tangoed their way around the circle, causing the group to double over in a fit of giggles.
When the song ended, the band didn’t pause before easing into something slower.
With some reluctance, the circle disbanded.
The crowd let out a collective whoop as the first strains of “Harvest Moon” sounded.
May was surprised to see Daniel reach out a hand to Maz, and suspected the gesture was more for Alice’s benefit than his own.
Margot rushed off to pull Jack from the chair he was happy sitting in, and Sylvie and Solly joined the dance floor, staring lovingly at each other as Solly took his wife in a ballroom hold.
Nick tried to grab May to join him and Kitty. ‘Oh no,’ she said, half-laughing, half-protesting as she ducked to avoid him. ‘I’m too hot. I need to sit this one out.’
Before she could escape the floor, Cillian was there, his hand outstretched, his curls damp with sweat. He smiled softly at her. The raucous laughter of moments before was gone, replaced by an intense gaze studying her. May’s chest tightened, and a lump formed in her throat.
‘Dance with me,’ he said simply.
Her body betrayed her before her brain could object.
She slipped her hand into his, and he drew her close, one arm strong around her waist, guiding her into a gap on the dance floor.
The chatter around them faded, and all May could hear was Neil Young’s voice, the soft brush of Cillian’s breath against her temple, and the pounding of her own heartbeat.
She dared to look up. His eyes were fixed on hers, the edges crinkled in that lopsided smile she’d grown so fond of. And suddenly, it was clear. Somewhere between the chaos, the rumours, the laughter, and the fights, she had fallen for him.
‘May,’ Cillian murmured, his voice almost lost in the music, ‘I’ve wanted to do this for so long.’
Before she could ask what he wanted to do, his lips found hers.
The kiss was tender at first, almost cautious, as if he were waiting for her to pull away.
May didn’t. She pressed closer, her fingers curling into his shirt, the world blurring as the fairy lights shimmered and the waves whispered against the sand.
Around them, the dancers spun on, but for May, time itself paused. Only when the song ended did she open her eyes. Her cheeks flushed as she realised they were the focus of everyone’s attention.
‘About bloody time!’ shouted Jack, and everyone cheered.
Cillian laughed. ‘Well,’ he said, ‘at least none of this lot are going to go to the papers.’
‘Yes,’ said May, ‘I suppose that’s something. You know, now we’ve made such a public show of ourselves, I don’t see any reason to stop.’ She tilted her head up, found his lips again, and fell back into their private world.