Chapter 3 #2
‘Don’t worry, they’re all something you’ll love; some very simple,’ added Maggie, leaning in to their friend, evidently reading her thoughts. ‘And there’s nothing that could even remotely be construed as “making a fuss”, I promise.’
‘Mags is right. There’s going to be four separate, totally wonderful, hen celebrations.’ Lark beamed over at her, light from the wall lamp illuminating her blonde hair and creating a halo effect.
‘Four?’ said Florrie.
‘Yep, all with belly laughs guaranteed – as is the norm when us lot get together,’ said Jasmine.
‘We’ve got some great stuff planned, and I swear there won’t be a strippagram in sight.
And none of them have owt to do with Ando Taylor or Lobster Harry, for that matter.
I promise, cross my heart.’ She mimed drawing a cross over her chest with her fingers.
‘You all right, flower?’ Maggie gave Florrie a gentle nudge with her elbow.
‘Uh? Oh, yeah, I’m fine.’ Florrie smiled.
‘Just letting the relief sink in; enjoying a moment to savour it after my afternoon of utter panic.’ Her reply made her friends chuckle.
Taking in their smiling faces and the light-hearted atmosphere around the table, she switched off all thoughts of Dawn and focused her full attention on the conversation.
She listened, her heart growing lighter as Stella shared – with much butting in from the others – that they’d already meticulously planned the days for the hen party celebration events.
It made Florrie wonder when they’d managed to organise everything without her getting so much as a whisper of it.
‘You’ll only find out what we’re doing on the actual morning – or maybe even the night before if we’re feeling generous – but we’ll share important details, like what to wear, anything you might need to bring with you, that sort of thing, well beforehand.’
‘But what if I’m at work, I’ll need notice to organise cover?’’
‘Like we said, it’s all been taken care of.’ Stella gave her a reassuring smile, her eyes twinkling.
Florrie blinked, absorbing it all. They’d really thought of everything.
‘You’re going to love what we’ve got planned.’ Lark beamed over at her, radiating her familiar air of calm. Florrie couldn’t help but smile back. If Lark said she was going to love their plans, then Florrie was in no doubt that she would.
‘Right then, with that said’ – Stella clapped her hands together like she meant business, – ‘the first hen event is this Sunday. So, soon-to-be Mrs Harte, we’ll be picking you and Ed up at eleven a.m. sharp.’
‘Ed?’ Florrie asked, wondering how her fiancé was going to fit in with a hen party. ‘But—’
‘Don’t fret, Ed’s already up to speed with everything.’
This was news to Florrie, he hadn’t breathed a word to her. ‘But—’ she tried again, only to be cut off by Jasmine this time.
‘This one’s our Lark’s idea, and she thought it’d be good to kick off the celebrations with a joint hen and stag do. Mind, Ed’s been sworn to secrecy, so no interrogating him when you get home, okay?’
‘Okay,’ Florrie agreed, feeling more than a little bewildered and wondering what the heck a joint do would involve.
She reassured herself with the thought that if it was Lark’s idea, then it wouldn’t be anything completely ‘out there’.
Stella and Jasmine, however, she wasn’t so sure.
Her mind drifted, thinking it would more than likely be something to do with meditation and yoga, and copious quantities of essential oils and crystals would no doubt be included.
That would be very Lark, not to mention very safe.
Florrie breathed an inward sigh of relief.
She quite liked the idea of having a moment or two’s calm, especially with having Dawn’s arrival to contend with.
Maybe Lark, with all her extra-sensory perception and picking up of vibes from people had already known this?
Florrie wouldn’t be surprised. After all, it wouldn’t be the first time her friend had got a sense of something that would happen in the future.
Such feelings served her well with her business.
Any item that had the slightest whiff of negative energy or gave Lark bad vibes wouldn’t get across the threshold of her shop. It was positive, happy vibes only.
‘And you need to wear comfy clothing, the sort of stuff that lets you move around easily,’ Maggie said, chuckling at Florrie’s increasingly confused expression.
‘Yoga pants and a T-shirt would be ideal,’ added Stella. ‘And some flat shoes – no chunky boots.’
Florrie subconsciously wriggled her toes in her said chunky boots.
‘Oh, and you’ll need to bring something smart but casual to change into afterwards,’ said Maggie.
‘Right,’ said Florrie, her confusion growing by the minute.
‘But you’ll totally love it, flower, and it’ll help you forget your worries about Ed’s mum for a while,’ promised Lark.
The look in her friend’s pale green eyes told Florrie she was being sincere.
It was sounding more and more like her meditation session suspicions were right – for part of it, at least. And having a few hours where she could forget about whatever it was Dawn was plotting couldn’t come soon enough.
‘Too right,’ said Stella, raising her glass of wine. ‘Cheers to us all having a great time on Sunday, lasses!’ A wide grin spread across her face as the friends followed suit and a chorus of ‘cheers’ went up, sending a pulse of happiness through Florrie.