Chapter 22
I suppose when you’re planning a last-minute wedding, your hands are sort of tied when it comes to the decision-making.
They were lucky to get a booking here – I think they said they took the first available cancellation – so they’re lucky to still have a choice of food.
I don’t suppose I’m bride-minded at all, because I would just pick something, but not Cordelia, oh no, she still wants to try the food, even though we’ll be having it in a matter of days.
I wonder if they would extend this privilege to everyone, or if perhaps they’re getting special treatment because of Jake’s link to Arty.
Oh, and not content with choosing their own food, Andy and Cordelia have invited me and Jake along to help.
‘I’m starving,’ Andy says from his seat next to me. ‘I’ll probably say yes to anything.’
‘No you won’t,’ I say with a laugh.
‘What do you mean?’ he asks, smiling slightly.
‘You can be such a picky eater,’ I remind him.
‘Sometimes,’ he concedes. ‘But that’s what’s great about having you around. You’re like a human bin. All of the things I don’t like, you’re happy to have. Like pickles.’
‘Oi,’ I reply, giving him a playful shove, although that is true, I’m always happy to take people’s pickles.
I notice Cordelia looking over, clearly uneasy with the familiarity between us, but we’ve been best friends for years. We can’t forget all our history, the things we have in common, our inside jokes.
The waiter appears with the first round of dishes, saving us from a potential awkward moment.
Cordelia leans forward, clasping her hands. ‘Wonderful,’ she says. ‘Shall we dig in?’
Andy pokes at something seafood-looking and frowns.
Cordelia winces. ‘Buzz!’
‘What? I’m just checking it’s dead,’ he jokes.
‘This looks real nice,’ Jake says politely, picking up his fork with interest. ‘What is it?’
‘Sea bass ceviche,’ Cordelia tells us.
‘What’s a ceviche?’ Andy asks.
‘It’s raw, right?’ I check.
‘Oh, boy, no thank you,’ Andy says, pushing his plate away dramatically.
‘It’s not raw, you plebs,’ Cordelia corrects us. ‘It’s marinated in citrus juices which essentially cooks it without heat.’
‘That sounds raw to me, Tink. Sorry, no can do,’ Andy tells her.
Cordelia shoots me a look, like that one is on me, but there’s no way Andy was going to eat it.
‘I’m a traditional bloke,’ Andy reminds her.
‘I didn’t realise only eating beige food was a tradition,’ I joke.
‘This is a wedding, not a takeaway,’ Cordelia says. ‘You have to at least try it.’
‘I’ll try it, what are we having?’ JJ asks, plonking herself down at the table. ‘Sorry I’m late.’
Cordelia looks at her like maybe she wasn’t invited anyway.
‘Sea bass ceviche,’ Jake tells her as he picks at his portion.
‘Oh, yum,’ JJ says. ‘One of my favourites.’
‘Someone who appreciates class,’ Cordelia says. ‘Perhaps I should be marrying you.’
‘Which reminds me – did you get everything sorted?’ JJ checks.
‘What do you mean?’ Cordelia replies.
‘I thought I overheard you on the phone, trying to get something sorted in time for the wedding – it sounded important,’ JJ says.
I shoot her a look. Obviously, it was me who overheard Cordelia on the phone, and told JJ all about it, and Cordelia probably knows it.
‘You heard too, right, Whit?’ JJ checks.
Okay, well, Cordelia definitely knows now.
‘Oh, erm, maybe,’ I reply.
‘What’s that?’ Andy asks her.
‘Oh, no, it’s nothing, just a last-minute gift I’m trying to sort,’ Cordelia tells him. ‘Thanks for ruining the surprise, girls.’
She shoots us a look but, I don’t know, I’m not buying it. She’s definitely up to something.
‘You’ll have to tell us later, when Andy’s not around,’ JJ insists. ‘Maybe we can help.’
‘Maybe,’ Cordelia says plainly.
Something sharp flickers in Cordelia’s eyes when she looks at me, like she knows exactly what we’re doing and she’s not impressed.
‘Y’all have picked a beautiful place to get married,’ Jake says warmly, trying to take the chill out of the atmosphere. ‘And I like the food.’
‘Thanks, Jake,’ she replies. ‘But I’m guessing we’ll have to go for something simpler.’
‘They do a buffet,’ Andy says.
‘A buffet?’ Cordelia squeaks back at him.
‘I love a buffet,’ Andy replies.
‘So long as the food is beige,’ I tease.
‘Or I could do the fish and chips,’ he protests. ‘If you want seafood.’
‘Yeah, he loves seafood when it’s battered,’ I point out. ‘So do I. Actually, I saw a couple eating it, it looked great.’
‘Fish and chips,’ she repeats slowly. ‘At my wedding.’
‘Our wedding,’ Andy reminds her with a smile.
Okay, now she really doesn’t look happy.
‘I want this day to feel elevated,’ Cordelia says, dropping her shoulders like a stroppy kid.
‘And I want people not to be hungry,’ Andy replies.
There’s a beat of silence.
‘You could always do both,’ Jake suggests. ‘Fancy starter, hearty main. Best of both worlds.’
Arty Morgan chooses this moment, when things are kind of frosty, to turn up at our table.
He pauses when he sees us, eyes lighting up.
‘How is everyone doing?’ he asks. ‘Oh…’
His face falls when he sees what we’re eating.
‘Not my cup of tea,’ he says with a laugh.
‘I kinda like it,’ Jake says. ‘I was just trying to get Whit to try it actually.’
I shoot him a look.
‘Aren’t you always saying you want to try new things?’ he reminds me.
‘She’s more likely to say that in the bedroom than the kitchen,’ JJ jokes – thankfully Arty laughs.
‘Yeah, no, I do want to try it,’ I say, playing along with Jake. Well, I did say I’d do whatever it takes.
‘Open wide,’ he says, offering me a bite from his fork.
I take one for the team. I open my mouth and I eat it and…
‘You know what, that’s quite nice,’ I admit.
‘See, I know you better than you know yourself,’ Jake says with a smile.
‘You really do,’ I tell him, leaning over to plant a big, sloppy, low-key fishy kiss on his cheek.
‘Aren’t they adorable?’ Arty says to the table. ‘Perhaps one day we’ll be hosting your wedding.’
‘We’ll definitely be going for the buffet,’ I point out.
‘Now there’s a girl after my own heart,’ Arty replies. ‘Enjoy your food, I’ll let you get back to it.’
We chat as we wait for the next dish to arrive – Andy has requested a buffet taster, and I really hope he wins this one.
JJ tries a few more times to get Cordelia to open up. She definitely knows we’re on to her, whatever she’s up to, and you can tell she’s not happy. Poor Andy though, he’s oblivious. He loves her, he trusts her; he’s not even contemplating that anything might be amiss.
I can’t leave him to it, can I? Don’t I have a duty to protect him, as his friend?
But from what? I don’t even know, and he’s a big boy; this is his decision.
Perhaps if I knew what was going on, and it was bad, then okay, maybe I could get involved, but right now it just seems like sour grapes from the girl who realised too slowly that she should have given her best friend a shot at being something more.
I don’t know what is going on with her but it’s something… and I’m sure it’s worse than simply disagreeing over the food.