Chapter 36 Edith
EDITH
Edith felt like a fairy godmother as she watched Finn walk along the aisle with Rosie holding one arm and Reggie holding the other. The three of them looked stunning in their smart clothes and with their beaming smiles.
Titus was waiting for Finn at the arch, and he was crying freely now, barely trying to wipe away his tears in case he missed a second of his love walking towards him. Edith avoided looking to Titus’ side, where she knew Wyatt was standing — handsome and proud in the afternoon light.
When Finn and the twins reached the arch, he hugged them and then Rosie and Reggie went to sit with their mum.
Finn took Titus’ hands in his and the harpist concluded the song. All was still and calm, as a spell of enchantment seemed to fall over the gathering.
No one moved, and no one spoke as the celebrant, Alex Penhaligon, smiled at them all. A soft sea breeze lifted the edge of their linen waistcoat. Their soft brown hair was tied back with a strip of linen the same colour as their suit and their eyes were as warm as the summer sun.
‘Thank you for coming,’ they said, their voice warm and steady, ‘to join us on this wonderful occasion. Today, Titus and Finn will declare their enduring love and exchange rings to symbolise their lasting promise to be there for each other through thick and thin.’
Humour and tenderness permeated Titus and Finn’s vows, leaving no one unmoved at the ceremony.
Titus said that he wasn’t just marrying Finn but also Thora, Rosie, and Reggie, then Big Barry gave a bark, so Titus had to concede that he was also marrying the chihuahua too.
That made everyone laugh and carried them through the rest of the ceremony with an enduring atmosphere of joy.
Rings were exchanged, despite a temporary charade from Wyatt where he pretended to have forgotten them and then the harpist played again.
After the grooms had shared their first married kiss, the celebrant congratulated them. They posed for photographs and then the guests headed down to the café while the grooms had more photos taken alone together and with their family.
Across the gardens, people were wiping their eyes, smiling at one another, holding hands and hugging, all bound together by love and sunlight.
Finally, the ceremony was done. Edith heaved a sigh of relief.
She still needed to ensure that the rest of the day went well, but the most important part was done.
For months she’d carried the weight of other people’s happiness on her shoulders, and now that it had gone so well, she felt that she could finally exhale.
She watched as Finn and Titus went down to their guests and took a moment to take a mental snapshot of the scene. White rose petals lay on the ground, the ribbons on the archway fluttered in the breeze, and bees and butterflies landed on flowers oblivious to the day’s events.
Tiredness washed over her, so she went to the bench and sat down, meaning to take five minutes before checking on the food.
She wasn’t worried because it was in Pearl and Ellie’s capable hands, but even so, she liked to be at hand in case of any problems. The trauma of seeing a matron of honour bite into her meal at one of the early weddings she’d planned, only to find that it contained gluten had never left her.
Therefore, she always checked and double-checked for allergies, ensuring the food accommodated them properly.
She settled onto the bench, covered her mouth as a yawn emerged, and removed a shoe to rub at her toes. They weren’t even that high, but her toes were throbbing.
‘Thirsty?’ The deep voice reverberated through her chest, and she tensed.
She turned to find Wyatt standing there with two glasses of Pimm’s.
‘I thought you might be thirsty. I know you’ve been extremely busy.’ He held out a glass, and she accepted it, the surface cold beneath her palm and wet with condensation.
‘Thank you. I am, actually. I was just taking five before checking on the food.’
‘And so you should,’ Wyatt said, nodding. ‘It’s been a busy and emotional time. Mind if I…’ He gestured at the bench, and she shrugged.
‘Be my guest.’
‘Ouch!’ He placed his free hand over his heart. ‘So formal.’
‘Sorry. I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just… don’t you have best man duties to attend to?’
‘They’re having more photos done and drinking champagne, so I have time before I make my speech,’ he said.
‘Well thanks for thinking of me and bringing me a drink.’ She sipped the Pimm’s, and the fruity taste made her mouth water. She took another sip, grateful for the refreshment.
‘Well done, Edith. You did a fantastic job.’
‘Thanks. But also, thanks for your help. I thought I was in trouble after the venue flooded.’
‘I did nothing.’
‘I don’t call this nothing,’ she said. ‘And I’m very grateful. It was a wonderful idea to hold the wedding here.’
He smiled. ‘I can’t think of a more beautiful location, to be fair.’
‘It is beautiful.’
She smiled then winced at the throbbing in her feet. She leant over and squeezed her toes again.
‘What’s wrong?’ he asked.
‘Oh… These shoes pinched a bit. I think it’s because my feet were hot.’ She grimaced as she rubbed the skin of the big toe on her right foot. ‘My toes are sore.’
‘Come here.’ He set his glass down on the bench, then reached for her foot and gently placed it on his lap. ‘Which ones?’
‘All of them.’ She shifted on the bench, so she wasn’t twisting her body, and when Wyatt massaged her toes, her body went weak. ‘Oh, god…’
It had been an age since anyone had touched her feet, except for now and then when she went for a pedicure, and that was different. It was formal, awkward at times, and not the same as having her feet massaged by Wyatt.
I should stop this, she thought. I really should. Right now.
But Wyatt knew how to touch her feet and as he massaged the arch of her foot, then rubbed at her small toes, she felt all the tension in her body ebb away. She could easily have closed her eyes and fallen asleep right then and there.
‘Still got it, have I?’ he asked with a crooked smile.
‘I’m afraid so,’ she conceded, wishing it wasn’t true.
‘Shall I do the other one too?’ He held her gaze, and a tiny shiver ran down her spine, as soft as a feather tracing her skin.
‘P-probably better not. I’m likely to fall asleep, and I don’t want to do that.’ A small smile tugged at her lips. ‘I find it far too soothing.’
‘No problem.’ He leant over and got her shoe then slid it back on her foot. ‘Just like in Cinderella,’ he said.
‘What, like the ugly sisters?’ she joked.
‘No, like Cinderella when the prince finds that the slipper fits.’ He rolled his eyes and laughed.
‘But you’re not my prince, are you? So, it doesn’t matter that the slipper fits.’
‘About that…’ His Adam’s apple bobbed. ‘I need to tell you something. It might make you feel even more distant from me than you already do. In fact, it could make you hate me.’
She removed her foot from his lap and lowered it to the grass again. A million thoughts raced through her head as she tried to imagine what he needed to tell her. It must be bad for him to say that.
Was he going to confess that he’d cheated on her while they were still together?
That he had never loved her, and it had been an act?
That he was ill and dying and—
‘Edith!’ He shook his head. ‘It’s nothing bad about us, I promise, so please don’t look so worried. It’s more… It’s the reason I am the way I am, and it goes back to my childhood.’
‘Oh… Right.’ She inclined her head slightly then sighed with relief. ‘OK. Do you want to tell me now?’
‘I do. Today. But… I think we’re needed down at the café. Can we talk later?’
Edith had a moment to tell him to get lost, that she never wanted to entertain another thing he had to say after how he’d behaved recently, but she didn’t.
She loved him too much to dismiss him when he told her he wanted to speak to her.
For years, she’d waited, and now he was offering an explanation.
She had to hear him out, or it would drive her mad.
She had to hear him out and give him a chance to help her make sense of what had happened.
It would, she hoped, help her heal from now on.
‘Let’s talk later then.’ She bobbed her head. ‘I want to hear what you have to say. I hope it will help us both.’
‘I hope so too.’ He stood, then held out his hand, and she took it.
Her foot felt better after the massage, so her shoe was more comfortable, but she still kept hold of him for support as they headed back to the café where their friends were waiting.
She had no idea what he wanted to tell her, but she could wait. She’d waited this long, so a few more hours wouldn’t hurt.