57. Chapter Fifty-Seven
Chapter Fifty-Seven
‘I’m sorry to interrupt.’ Alice tapped Cillian on the shoulder.
He tore his eyes away from May, embarrassed to have been caught acting like a love-sick teenager. He couldn’t help it. Now he’d found her, he never wanted to take his eyes off her.
‘Sorry, Alice. We’re not being particularly sociable, are we?’
Alice’s smile lit up her face. ‘Oh, don’t worry about that. We’ve all been wanting this for you both for ages.’ She flicked Cillian’s arm. ‘Everyone else could see how perfect you are for each other. We’ve just been waiting for the pair of you to catch up.’
May laughed, her cheeks glowing. ‘I wasn’t even sure I liked him!’
‘Whatever you say,’ said Alice with a wink.
‘Anyway, I won’t keep you long. I wanted to say to both of you how grateful we all are for everything you’ve done.
The wedding is perfect.’ She gazed around at the happy dancers, the soft lights.
‘To have pulled this off with everything you’ve both had going on is something of a miracle. ’
‘I’m so pleased you’ve enjoyed it.’ May hugged her sister tightly.
Cillian nodded with satisfaction. The relationship between the two sisters was back on steady ground.
‘There’s one surprise left.’ Cillian checked his watch. ‘Actually, we’d better round everyone up and head to the water’s edge.’
‘What’s this about a surprise?’ asked Luke, strolling over, his tie hanging loose around his neck.
‘You’ll have to wait and see.’ May linked arms with him. ‘Hey, isn’t it cool we’re now related?’
‘Oh yes,’ said Luke with mock solemnity. ‘There’s nothing I’ve wanted more than an annoying little sister.’
‘And May can be particularly annoying,’ said Cillian, unable to stop himself stroking her back as he grinned down at her.
‘You’ll miss me when I’m gone,’ said May lightly.
‘Gone?’ Luke frowned.
‘I’m going to finish my degree,’ May said, glancing from Luke to Cillian.
A moment of panic threatened Cillian. They were to be parted already?
And then relief flooded him. He was free to go wherever he wanted.
The tours, the managers, the headlines, none of it had a hold on him anymore.
He could choose his life. He could choose her.
He gazed at May, who held him with a questioning look, one that suggested she would be just as keen to stay as close as they could, however messy or unconventional it might be.
‘That’s brilliant news, May,’ said Luke warmly.
‘Thank you.’ May turned to him. ‘There’s a lot to sort out, but it’s good to have a plan.’
‘Anyway,’ said Alice, eyes shining. ‘I thought you said there was one last surprise, Cillian?’
‘Oh yes.’ Cillian cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted instructions for everyone to make their way to the sea.
The wedding party spilled across the sand, skirts gathered up and shoes dangling from fingertips.
The tide was low, the night air still, and fairy lights strung from driftwood poles cast soft pools of golden light that melted into the darkness.
Children shrieked as they raced each other to the shoreline, their laughter carrying over the hushed waves.
Cillian picked up a fire torch and held it aloft, waving it in a wide semicircle above his head.
From somewhere out at sea, a flare answered.
A beat later came the sharp crack of ignition, and the first rocket screeched skyward.
It burst with a bang that sent people ducking and squealing before scattering pink and gold across the sky.
More followed, filling the heavens with colour – greens, silvers, brilliant reds that shimmered against the water. The crowd broke into applause, couples huddling together, friends linking arms, gasps and laughter mingling with the thunder of each new firework.
Cillian pulled May in front of him, wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder. She relaxed against him, her head tilting to the side so that her hair brushed against his cheek.
‘I love you, May Tyler,’ he whispered, his voice almost drowned by the next explosion.
She turned in his arms, her eyes glinting with every colour of the rainbow as they reflected the lights in the sky. A slow smile spread across her face.
‘Do you know what, Cillian McDonaugh?’ she said. ‘I think I love you too.’
Their lips met just as the fireworks reached their grand finale. The sky split open with a shower of colour, the dark cove illuminated in bursts of brilliance, and the crowd behind them cheered.
For Cillian, there was only May – her kiss, her smile, her hand clutching his shirt as though she never wanted to let him go.
And in that moment, he understood he’d never been happier, nor more certain of the life he wanted to build. He’d thought his previous life had been one big adventure. Standing in Saffron Bay with the woman he loved in his arms, Cillian knew the real adventures were only just beginning.
* * *
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Jessica Wilson doesn't believe in Christmas miracles. Ten years ago, the festive season took everything from her, and she'd happily skip December altogether. But with three boys to think of, she's determined to give them a perfect family Christmas in their new home of Saffron Bay.
Then the council threatens to close the village community centre, and Jessica must pull off the impossible: a spectacular Christmas market on the beach, organised in just three weeks.
Worse still, she's stuck working with Charlie Hughes, the infuriatingly cheerful local woodcarver who derails her every carefully colour-coded plan.
Yet Charlie is hiding a heartbreak of his own.
As the fairy lights go up and the village rallies round, Jessica begins to see there's more to him than wonky Christmas trees and terrible timekeeping.
But with the market days away and a storm brewing, it will take nothing short of a miracle to pull it off.
And that's before either of them dares to risk their heart...
Luckily, Saffron Bay has a habit of delivering exactly what people need.