The (Anti) Wedding Party by Lucy Knott

Author:Lucy Knott [Knott, Lucy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781837931699
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

15

‘I’m so glad that’s over.’ Owen is leaning into my shoulder, his warm breath tickling my collarbone, causing my chest to glitter with a delicate smattering of goosebumps. I don’t know when the security guards to my brain decided to take a holiday, they definitely didn’t run it by me, but there’s certainly no one manning the doors, allowing every naughty, unacceptable thought without so much as a background check or payment. It’s incredibly inconvenient.

‘What a waste of a glorious morning,’ I retort back to Owen, trying and failing not to make eye contact. Though I was really in a lose-lose situation. There had been a crumb, a small pang of tightness in my chest watching my beautiful best friend walk down the aisle in her sleeveless, jewel-trim bodice and tulle skirt that camouflages her cast. A hint of a tender pain in my heart at her accomplishing something that I failed to do, an experience that had once again tossed me aside, left me out. Then Owen had nodded at me from his side of the makeshift altar, made the subtlest gesture of pretending to check his watch and I was all in.

Replacing my own bruised ego with the happiness of my very best friend had taken over and my eyes had not once rolled back into my head as I stood and embraced the special ceremony.

‘I mean, I could have been walking the ruins of Pompei, getting up close and personal with people who got turned to stone.’ Owen’s voice is low so only I can hear him as we walk back down the aisle following the newlyweds.

‘Or we could have been taking a death-defying Vespa ride along the Amalfi cliff side in peak Italian traffic,’ I suggest.

‘Either or, would have been far more entertaining than this,’ he states, making my nose fizz with laughter.

‘I can’t believe neither of you forgot the rings,’ Charlie muses when we reach the edge of the garden, ready to make our way across the third-floor terrace.

‘Or push either of us off the ledge during our vows,’ Alex adds as the guests begin standing. She’s leaning on Charlie just so, having opted for no crutches during the ceremony. She hadn’t winced once walking down the aisle, though all her wedding photos are going to depict her with an easy-going lean while she stood opposite Charlie under the archway. Now, though, I see her wince as she tries to dispel a little weight off her foot and onto Charlie’s shoulder.

I’m honestly surprised she hasn’t attempted to cause me physical harm after the last few days.

My body seems to be inching closer to Owen’s as the guests huddle at the end of the path where the four of us have congregated. A cold sweat breaks out on my brow for fear of Charlie Richter-graphing my heart rate.

‘If everyone would like to make their way across to the terrace, please, just follow the garden round past the disgustingly loved up Mrs and Mrs,’ I announce, taking a step away from Owen’s towering frame as the swarm starts to move again.

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