Chapter 29
29
Holly couldn’t move. She had misheard, surely? She had to have misheard. Sienna couldn’t possibly have commented on her and Faye’s weight, could she? Who in their right mind would do that? Holly looked to Faye, hoping she could get some confirmation that she wasn’t going insane, but Faye’s head was under the train table, trying to find something she’d obviously dropped.
‘Here, let me grab that for you,’ Sienna said, bending to the floor and reaching out to pick up whatever it was Faye had dropped. A moment later, she was up again and placing a keyring on the table while Faye was still struggling to get out of the gap and stand upright. ‘The doors are opening. Don’t worry, I’ll go hold them. You two just make sure we haven’t forgotten anything.’
With that, she darted off to hold the train doors open while Faye gathered her items. Holly remained standing in the aisle, still unable to move.
‘Did you hear what she just said?’ she asked, keeping her voice low so as not to be overheard by Sienna. Not that it was likely. She was already miles away, and there were plenty of people between them.
‘What? About keeping the doors open?’ Faye asked. ‘Thank goodness. Still, we’d better hurry. Sorry about that. I tell Gavin off for always dropping things, but sometimes I’m just as bad.’
‘No, it’s not… I meant… Never mind,’ Holly said. ‘I’m sure it was nothing.’
A few minutes later, they were in the taxi driving up towards the venue, and Holly was trying to push the thought from her mind. The train had been braking, and other people were standing up to get their bags too. There was a good chance she’d completely misheard. Although what Sienna could have possibly said that sounded so similar, Holly wasn’t sure.
‘You actually have to make an effort, you know,’ Holly heard Jamie’s voice ringing in her ears, that and the comment about never liking any of Giles’s girlfriends, never giving them a chance. That wouldn’t be the case this time. She was going to get to know Sienna properly. At least that way, she’d know any judgements she made were fair and would have hard evidence to come back to Jamie with.
‘Look, deer!’ Faye said, pointing out the window.
‘Lots of deer.’ Sure enough, a small herd was grazing in the fields.
‘It’s stunning, isn’t it?’ Sienna said. ‘Just stunning.’
‘It really is,’ Holly replied. Much to her surprise, she could feel a slight heat building in her eyes. Growing up, she had never imagined this type of life for herself. Security – that was where her dreams ended: marriage, a house, children, and a steady job that meant the bills were paid when they came through each month. Never had she dreamt of a life like the one she had: a successful business owner, with a new possibility of travelling abroad for work – if this thing with Fin’s friend worked out.
With a jolt of guilt, Holly realised she still hadn’t got his number from Fin. Somehow, the engagement had knocked everything else out of kilter in her life and she couldn’t even remember important things like that. But this evening, she would get on top of it. Still, she couldn’t complain about life. She had a friendship group she would put her life on the line for and moments like this, where she was whisked away to an enchanting corner of the country ready for a weekend of luxury. A weekend Sienna had arranged for them. She would bear that in mind the next time she thought she heard her say something mean. Mean people didn’t do such nice things, did they?
‘Thank you,’ she said, needing to voice the moment. ‘Thank you for arranging all this. It’s lovely.’
Sienna beamed. ‘Oh, I’m so glad you like it. I know this type of thing can be a bit unique. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but I just knew that you were the type of girls who would be on board with it. And everyone loves a weekend when you leave looking even better than you arrived, right? That’s what every bride-to-be needs.’
Holly’s feeling of elation stuttered slightly as she cast a glance at Faye, who shrugged, clearly as confused about the statement as Holly. Was it a subtle dig about her weight again? Sure, Holly had put on a few pounds over the last couple of years, but she had needed to after all the weight she’d lost after Evan’s death. This time, she was going to get some clarification as to what the hell Sienna meant, yet as she opened her mouth, Faye let out a squeal.
‘Are you serious? That is amazing!’
‘Isn’t it phenomenal?’ Sienna said.
‘Wow. Oh my God. I’ve never seen anything like it.’
Distracted by the sudden exclamations, Holly turned her attention out the window. The air hitched in her lungs. She was used to beautiful buildings. There was no shortage of them in the Cotswolds. No shortage even in Bourton itself. But this wasn’t like the buildings she was used to. This wasn’t made of Cotswold stone, or beautiful red bricks, or any stone at all that Holly could tell – not on the outside, at least. The outside of the building was made from dark timber. But it was the angle at which it was arranged that was most mesmerising. The wood flowed out and in, in an almost concertina-like manner or ripples, caused by a pebble in a still pond. Lead tinted glass windows, also at similarly curved angles, broke up the mass of wood, and as Holly stared at the feat of architecture, she could help but think that the shape reminded her of something. Though what that was, she couldn’t quite work out. Not until Faye spoke.
‘Looks like a spaceship,’ she said.
‘That’s what it is,’ Holly said. ‘Yes, you’re right. It’s like a wooden glass spaceship.’
‘It’s an incredible building,’ Sienna said. ‘Apparently, the inside is even more extravagant than the outside. But I couldn’t find any pictures of it online. They are so exclusive, they don’t share things like that and you have to sign a document saying you won’t share images on social media. I can’t wait to see it, though.’
The building was a far cry from the stereotypical English manor you’d expect a spa weekend to be held in, but as long as the pool was clean and the food was good, Holly wasn’t going to mind at all. In fact, for the first time since she had accepted the invitation, she was actually starting to feel excited. Very excited.