Chapter 1 #2
‘No,’ I say firmly. ‘Absolutely not. I can’t plan a wedding and launch a new career and juggle my singing commitments.
You know how Nancy is with booking me to perform at any gig that will make her agency some money.
’ Nancy is my tough-talking, twenty-cigs-a-day, workaholic agent.
‘It’s way too much already. And there’s no way that I am going to jeopardise my career.
Come on, guys!’ I plead, my hands in prayer.
‘Your wedding is far too important to leave it in the hands of an amateur.’
I’m already flat-out busy flying back and forth between Newcastle, my home town, and Benidorm in Spain, as well as prepping for a new European classical tour with the Royal Northern Sinfonia next spring.
Never mind scheduling in time to meet up with Matteo.
We have yet to spend more than a few days at any one time together.
They consider what I’m saying and with a huge huff, Liam shakes his head. ‘Sorry, babes. You’re right. It’s just we’re desperate.’
‘I know,’ I soothe. ‘You’ll find someone soon. I’m sure of it.’
‘And you will invite Harry Styles to our wedding, won’t you?’ Liam says. His obsession with celebrity never fails to circle back around.
‘No. I will not invite someone I barely know to attend your wedding. And don’t bother asking Matteo to invite him either.’
He has the cheek to act affronted. I fix him with a stern frown.
‘But I still love you so I will ask the Dollz if they know of any planners that might be able to help us at such short notice.’
‘Thanks, babes. You never know.’ Liam sighs hopefully. ‘Miracles always happen at Christmas, don’t they?’
Do they though? We need quite the miracle. We need to find an affordable yet spectacular wedding venue that’s not only near to the previous location but is also available on Christmas Eve – in three weeks’ time! This is not a Hallmark movie. The odds are stacked against them.
‘If anyone can help us achieve a Christmas miracle, you can, Connie, babes.’
Exasperating.
‘Connie. Are you still there?’ Matteo asks me over the phone.
He has called from LA to drop the bombshell that we will have to postpone our honeymoon yet again.
‘I’m so sorry. As soon as this project is finished, we’ll be able to go anywhere you like,’ he says quickly. ‘We can do anything you want.’
Maybe because I’m so exhausted by Ged and Liam and this disaster of a wedding, I immediately well up.
My perfect husband is increasingly too busy to spend time with me.
‘Honestly, it’s fine. I completely understand.
’ I try not to sound too dejected. ‘I’m not sure I’d even have time to go on honeymoon anyway,’ I lie to make him feel better.
I hear Matteo sigh with relief. ‘Thank you. I’ll make it up to you. I promise.’
‘I married a workaholic. Who knew? I’ve slipped down the priority list already. This is what life is like now,’ I joke, but it falls flat.
He pauses and, in that split second, I experience a creeping doubt.
For the first time, I wonder if he regrets rushing into this marriage.
I wonder if I’m a burden to him. ‘I feel terrible but there’s nothing I can do.
If I thought Birdie was demanding, working with Eddie is even tougher,’ he says in a low voice.
‘They are such perfectionists and so stubborn that every time they’re in a room together, they refuse to agree. They are driving me insane.’
I inwardly groan at the mention of his current business partners Birdie (very cold and French) and the friendly Texan billionaire, Eddie, who we met in Vegas. ‘How long until the project comes to an end?’
‘The deadline is a week or so before Christmas. But I’ll definitely try to make it back for Ged and Liam’s wedding.’
He’ll try.
‘Oh… okay.’ My voice is almost a whisper.
‘I miss you,’ he says, his voice warm and enticing. Like being snuggled up beside a crackling fire in the dead of winter, it instantly lifts my spirits and dispels any doubt. ‘How did you get on with the interview for the wedding planner? Any good?’
‘No, unfortunately. We’re running out of options. And time. We have exactly three weeks until the big day.’
‘So, it’s still Christmas Eve they want to get married, is that right?’
‘Yeah. Liam’s family have booked their flights from Australia so there’s no way we can change the dates. And then there’s the issue of Liam’s star sign.’ Ensuring an extra layer of cosmic alignment has been central to the decision-making process. And I thought I had issues with overthinking things.
‘I’m almost afraid to ask,’ Matteo says, chuckling. Fortunately, he skates right over it. ‘Must be tough trying to get a venue at such late notice.’
‘Yep. And without a wedding planner we have very little hope of finding anywhere suitable.’
‘Want me to see if I can pull any strings?’
My soul flips. He is so kind. He’s already doing as much as he can. If I thought I was busy, it’s nothing compared to Matteo the Magnificent (I really must stop calling him that). His work schedule is insane. Insane to the point of not finding time to go on honeymoon.
‘No, it’s fine. Thank you. I’m sure we’ll find a condemned hotel or an abandoned chateau in France somewhere.’
‘I know it’s not ideal, but Birdie’s parents own a chateau on the French Riviera. It has stunning views and a spectacular ballroom. Used to belong to the Rothschild dynasty. I could ask if it’s available to hire.’
‘No. No. I’m certain we’ll find something.
Thank you though.’ My tone is brisk for a reason.
Birdie has been non-stop meddling all month.
She still has her eye on MY husband and will not take the hint even though we are married.
She thinks that Matteo will tire of me like overnight oats or those TikTok bread-free bread recipes made entirely from mashed avocado and shredded cabbage.
And apart from being an extremely successful and talented music producer, disproportionately attractive and his red-hot French ex-lover, with legs up to her armpits, thankfully Birdie is also slightly deranged and borderline narcissistic.
I am pretty certain this is why she is doing everything she can to keep us apart.
‘And did you give some thought to the other thing?’ he asks, sounding almost shy. I swallow hard, taking a moment before I answer.
‘Yes. Yes, I have.’
‘And?’
‘I’ll do it soon. I’m just trying to pick the right moment.’
‘That’s great.’ I can hear the relief in his voice. ‘Flying back and forth is killing me. It’ll be so good to have you out here in LA more permanently. And your dad is more than welcome to visit. We’ll have plenty of room.’
We say our borderline mushy goodbyes. Deep down I know this is the push I need to leap into married life with both feet instead of dabbling in married life, which is how we’ve been so far.
The next logical step is to set up home together.
It will give us a chance to get to know each other properly and for Matteo and me to both honour all the work commitments we have going on.
Plus, Ged and Liam are getting married and will need their own space.
I will live in LA with my gorgeous husband. In his swanky apartment. Far from my friends. Deep breaths. Far from my dad… who needs me. Deep breaths. And not far enough from Birdie who will be constantly buzzing around like an annoying wasp. Deep breaths.
I squash down a rising swirl of doubt.
I can do this.
I can do this for Matteo.
I will tell my dad and get it over with as promised.
I am not looking forward to breaking the news to him that Matteo and I have decided to move in together.
It won’t come as a surprise but the fact that I’ll be moving halfway across the planet from him will.
It only feels like yesterday that we lost my mum and, even though my dad is putting himself back out there, relationship-wise, I’ll still be leaving him on his own.
‘Have you got two minutes to discuss the wedding?’ Ged yells through to me from the kitchen as soon as he hears me clicking off the call with Matteo. ‘We might have had a breakthrough.’
Thank God. They must have found a wedding planner and all will be well. I rush from the lounge through to the kitchen, only to see Ged and Liam putting their coats on.
‘Come on. We have a meeting to attend,’ Liam says, tossing my denim jacket and woolly scarf at me. ‘At The Wobbly Duck, in town.’