Epilogue
EPILOGUE
A YEAR LATER
The extravagant Christmas decorations bejewelling the York streets made the perfect backdrop to the wedding, as Mum and I once again travelled together in a smart car, sipping champagne. But this time, a year later, how different it was. This time, instead of feeling exhausted and defensive, waiting for the criticism I had come to expect from Mum, I was relaxed and happy and more than able to call her out if she slipped too much into old habits. My next task was to have her keep her opinions entirely to herself, on at least one of the following subjects: my hair, my nails, my make-up, my clothes, my shoes, my food choices…Ah well, Rome wasn’t built in a day, and at least she approved of my boyfriend.
We had spent the morning getting ready in her suite at the Grand Hotel in York, with a vast flock of people around us. There was someone for everything: her hairdresser, Linda, three make-up artists, the outfit designer and her seamstress and two photographers and a journalist from Hello! magazine as well as Mum’s PA and a representative from Mayfair Mews to make sure everything was in corporate colours, so to speak. But Mum had insisted that it should only be her and me in the car, so we gave our last smile to the camera out of the window, then sat back with relief.
‘I wonder how Douglas and Alexander are getting on?’ I said, smoothing my elegant cranberry silk dress over my knees.
‘They’re probably only just getting dressed,’ said Mum, a smile rubbing off the edge in her voice. ‘Those Knight men are ridiculously laid-back.’
‘And very good for both of us,’ I added. ‘Who’s with them? Not the army we had, I bet.’
‘Not a bit of it,’ she replied. ‘They conceded to one photographer, but otherwise it’s Alexander’s PA Hetty making sure they look presentable. Mind you, Theo knows what’s what, so he won’t let anything go wrong; smart boy, that.’
I smiled. Thanks to Theo, Blakeney Hall was now not only home to Heathcliff the donkey but also a kitten that had been found sopping wet and lost on the riverbank, and named Moses, as well as – temporarily, Alexander assured me unconvincingly – an owl that needed regular attention and was spooked by the comings and goings at the sanctuary.
‘Home is much more peaceful for her,’ insisted Theo. ‘She’ll definitely go when she’s better.’
Privately I thought she’d still be firmly in residence long after I moved in just before Christmas; that was an owl who knew a good thing when she saw it, and I related to her completely.
‘Do you feel nervous?’ I asked, slightly doubtful that Jacqueline Honeywood ever felt nervous about anything.
She turned from the window to look at me.
‘I do and I don’t. I think I’m more excited than nervous, and I can hardly believe that at my age – still undisclosed to anyone but you and the vicar, darling – I’m getting married.’
‘I think most people are surprised it’s wedding number one,’ I said, grinning cheekily. ‘They always expect you to have done the full Liz Taylor and for Douglas to be at least your eighth husband.’
‘It’s not for want of offers, as they well know,’ she replied tartly. ‘But I am extremely discerning.’
‘I know, and Douglas was worth waiting for.’
‘Exactly. And darling…’
She hesitated, unusually for her.
‘What is it, Mum?’
Her words came out in a rush.
‘I just wanted you to know that, however much I love Douglas, you will always, always be the most important person in my life. And you always have been. It was fun this morning, with all the fuss, but I so wanted it to be just the two of us in the car. There’s something I want to ask you, and something I want to give you.’
She reached for my hand, and I took hers willingly – what on earth it could be?
‘Firstly, I want to ask you if you would do me the honour of giving me away today.’
I gasped, tears springing to my eyes.
‘Oh Mum, of course I will. I’d love to. Thank you.’
I saw her shoulders drop as the tension left them; she had been nervous about asking.
‘Wonderful. I should have asked you sooner, but the vicar said it didn’t matter, you just have to stand up when he gives you the nod and follow his instructions. And this is what I wanted to give you.’
She produced two small jewellers’ boxes and handed me one. I opened it to find a ring, with two pink stones entwined in the delicate curves of the metal.
‘It’s stunning,’ I said.
‘I have the same one,’ said Mum, opening her box to show me. ‘They’re made of white gold and the stones are pink sapphires. Two of them for you and for me. We love these Knight men and I know we’ll be with them for the rest of our lives, but I wanted to affirm at the same time my commitment to you, my darling daughter. I thought we could wear them on our right hands, as I’m sure your left ring finger won’t be far behind mine.’
I was speechless now, grasping for a tissue as my eyes were filling so rapidly with tears that if I wasn’t quick, my exquisitely applied make-up would soon be a mess. Mum grabbed one as well and we both dabbed frantically at our eyes as I stumbled out my thanks and love for her.
‘I love it, I do, and I will always treasure it. Thank you.’
We hugged tightly, finally interrupted by a discreet cough from the driver who then said, ‘We have arrived at the church.’
He stepped out of the car, but, to my surprise, the door at the pavement side did not open; instead, the opposite door opened and Jess, one of the make-up artists from Mayfair Mews who had been at the house, slid into the car.
‘I thought we would probably both need a quick touch-up before we went in,’ said Mum, ‘so we’re a few minutes early for Jess to do her magic.’
I laughed.
‘Pure Jacqueline Honeywood, brilliant.’
As soon as we were declared both picture-perfect and suitably late, the chauffeur was given the nod and opened the door for us to get out. I went first, then stepped aside to let Mum pass as a bank of flashes popped to capture her at her most happy and her most beautiful. And she did look beautiful. She had shunned a traditional wedding dress – ‘ anyone can dress up as a bride, darling’ – in favour of a style and colour that suited her much better. She wore a knee length dusky rose shift dress with a stunning fitted cranberry velvet jacket which came to mid-thigh and was hand embroidered with spikes of rosebay willowherb for London and white roses for Yorkshire.
When she decided they had enough photos, she turned to take my hand and we walked together through the wooden lychgate of the church, then along the uneven path to where the vicar was waiting to greet us.
‘How wonderful to see you!’ he said, his face lit up with an enormous beam. ‘I don’t think Lingfoss has ever seen so many people, and St Josephine’s’ – he gestured up at the Norman stone church – ‘hasn’t had such a large congregation in all its thousand years.’
‘Thank you for your warm welcome,’ said Mum, surprising him with a hug. ‘Douglas did so want the wedding to be here, and I know it hasn’t been easy doing all the preparations with us coming and going to London all the time.’
Looking slightly starstruck, if vicars are allowed such whimsies, he smiled again.
‘Well then, if you’re ready?’
The ceremony was perfect and afterwards, when even more photos had been taken, we travelled the short distance down the road to Blakeney Hall, where the reception was being held. I would barely see Mum for the rest of the day, but the fact that she would be busy with everybody else no longer mattered; I knew, I thought, looking for the millionth time that day at the new ring shining on my finger, that no question marks remained over our relationship, or her love for me. As the arrangements for the day had been wholly handed over to an incredible team of wedding planners, there was nothing left for me to do but enjoy myself, and having walked in between Alexander and Theo, how could I do anything else?
The house was, once again, decorated to celebrate both love and the festive season and it looked spectacular. There was a tunnel made of entwined willow branches smothered in thousands of warm golden lights leading to the front door, with a deep red carpet to walk along. The door itself had been dressed with gigantic swathes of oversized baubles in the wedding colours of rose pink, cranberry and gold and in the entrance hall – clear now of its muddle of coats and shoes – stood no fewer than seven Christmas trees. They were covered in sparkling decorations and lights and had piles of wrapped presents underneath them. In the Great Hall, the fireplace was the focus. On the mantelpiece stood dozens of pillar candles with evergreens wound among them and cascading down on either side of the blazing fire. The tables were dressed with rose pink cloths, more candles and fragrant arrangements of white roses, red berries and rosebay willowherb, which was past flowering and swathed with gorgeous fluffy seeds that some enterprising florist must have found a way to preserve for the occasion. A string quartet up on the minstrels’ gallery played Christmas music.
The first half hour passed in a whirlwind of hellos and congratulations as I hugged and shook hands with almost everyone at the wedding – or that was how it felt – but I took time to enjoy the rest of the evening. I was glad that I hadn’t had to organise it, but the team had done an amazing job. The food was delicious, as I had expected, and also in the wedding colours, with a first course of baked beetroot and goat’s cheese, a second of melt-in-the-mouth salmon with creamy potatoes and wild mushrooms, and a pudding of gold dust and rose petal sprinkled chocolate, cinnamon and pear mille feuille, followed by cheese. The string quartet played throughout the meal then, after a pause for the short but witty speeches – including one from Mum, I was surprised and delighted to see the young band who had played at the engagement party take their place on the minstrels’ gallery once more and bring all their youthful energy and talent to the room, getting almost all the guests up and dancing. All the cast from Mayfair Mews had made the journey up north to be there, even Lucinda, the actor who had been none-too-subtly edged out of the show by Mum for daring to challenge her queendom.
‘Fallon, you look ravishing ,’ she greeted me, bumping her cheekbone to mine to avoid any danger of lipstick transfer. ‘You must take after your father. Not the handsome groom, one assumes?’
‘Definitely not,’ I said, stifling a laugh, then seizing my opportunity as I saw Coco and her mother nearby. ‘But Lucinda, you must meet Estelle Knight and her daughter. They’re huge fans of the show.’
‘Skilfully done,’ said a voice next to me, as I moved away.
‘Constance!’ I hugged her. ‘It’s been ages. I saw you in the church and I was so hoping we’d find each other here.’
‘Quite a do my brother and your mother have put on,’ she said, raising her glass to me and promptly having it topped up by a passing waiter in a sparkly rose-gold waistcoat. ‘I must say, I could get used to this.’
‘I don’t believe it for a second,’ I said. ‘You’d miss your muddy fields too much. Is your son here, by the way? I’d love to meet him.’
‘Seb? Yes, he’s here, came over specially. He’s been deep in conversation with your Sam every time I’ve seen him. I even spotted them holding hands, so who knows – maybe he’ll be tempted back from Japan, and we’ll have another wedding on our hands!’
‘Oh, that would be lovely!’
‘And talking of weddings, you and Alexander can’t be too far behind your parents?’
I looked over to watch him as he chatted to Theo and Hetty. ‘I don’t know Constance – I hope so.’
She snorted.
‘Of course you won’t be. Good thing too. Good for both of you and for Theo. And how does it feel with Theo?’
‘Incredible. I mean, I always liked him, which helped, and he liked me, but we’ve got something beyond that now. I’ve still been up and down to London a lot, and he still calls me “Fallon” – I don’t know if that will ever change, and I don’t mind – but there’s a different feel to our relationship. Honestly, Constance, I am beginning to feel like his mum.’
‘Of course you are. The times I’ve seen you together this past year it’s been obvious, and it’s done both of you the world of good. Nice to see him back in school and doing so well. You’re moving up here for good soon, I hear?’
‘That’s right, in a week’s time. The Yorkshire arm of the business I started has taken off, so Sam’s going to take over most of London, with Talitha and a new hire. I’ll be down every so often but mainly running the northern office – it’s so exciting.’
‘You’ve worked it out well. Not thinking of giving Theo a little brother or sister?’
I must have looked taken aback, because she quickly apologised.
‘Sorry, none of my business.’
I laughed. ‘It’s okay. We’ve talked about it…Can I just say, “watch this space”?’
‘You don’t have to say anything at all. Oh, look, I think the bride and groom are about to head off. Do you have any duties to perform?’
‘Only saying goodbye.’
Alexander came over and we walked together through the tunnel of lights to wave our parents off; not in an old banger with tin cans hanging from the back, of course, but in Douglas’s vintage Aston Martin. Once the car had turned out of sight and the other guests had rushed back inside out of the cold, Alexander pulled me close to him for a kiss. Much as I enjoyed it, I shivered.
‘We’d better get back inside,’ he said, taking off his suit jacket and draping it around my shoulders. ‘It’s only going to get colder out here.’
As he spoke, a snowflake spun gently past him, to land on the drive and disappear, but it was soon followed by another, and another. I held out my hands and laughed for pure joy.
‘Oh, Alexander, it’s beautiful! What a perfect end to the day!’
‘Actually,’ he said, reaching into the pocket of the jacket. ‘I was hoping for an even better way to end it.’
And right there, in the middle of a snowstorm, he held out a small box.
‘Fallon, you’ve made me happier than I ever dreamed I could be. The way you love me, and love my son, hardly feels real, and yet here you are. I love you, Fallon: will you marry me?’
A wave of shock and joy almost overwhelmed me as, for the second time that day, I gladly took an exquisite ring, this one for the fourth finger of my left hand, and gasped out my answer: yes!
‘Three stones,’ I said, looking at the diamonds and ruby. ‘One for each of us in our new little family. It’s perfect, Alexander, thank you.’
‘I’m afraid I didn’t ask your mother’s permission, but I couldn’t imagine her saying no,’ he said with a grin.
‘She’ll be thrilled,’ I said. ‘Oh, Alexander, I’m so happy.’
He kissed me again, then said, ‘There’s just one person left, and I know how happy he’ll be too.’
‘Theo doesn’t know?’
‘Only that I was going to ask you, but not when, and we have his very enthusiastic blessing. Shall we go and tell him?’