A Change for the Better? (30 page)

Katie was beside herself with rage, (brought on largely by disappointment but she wasn’t about to admit that), and she was raging to anyone and everyone who would listen. Lucy
, with remarkable diplomacy
, who had been one of the ma
ny
Katie
had offered her frank opinion of her brother too, decided to slip outside when her mobile rang and she saw it was Ben calling!

“Alright Bro, are your ears burning?” she started

“No” Ben sounded
confused, not unsurprisingly, “Why – should they be?”

“God, yes – you haven’t half upset Katie. She’s calling you all the names under the sun now you’re not coming to the wedding tomorrow. Why aren’t you coming?” Lucy asked curiously as she was a little disappointed
that her brother wasn’t coming back
too, but Ben wasn’t listening to her question, he was already in full flow.

“I don’t know why she’s getting so angry. I’ve organised everything I was supposed to and Mo and Bert were fine about it!” he stormed.

“Well, I think she was worried some things might get missed or something” Lucy answered diplomatically.

“Well if I have missed anything I’m sure she can sort it out – or her boyfriend can” Ben said bitterly.

“Huh” Lucy grunted but didn’t get chance to say anymore as Ben continued his rant.

“Anyway she won’t be doing that once she’s back in London - will she? Mo and Bert will have to fend for themselves then – won’t they? Or will she expect us all to pick up everything for her.” Ben paused for breath and Lucy took her chance.

“What are you on about Ben? Why will Katie be in London? She’s got all the renovations at Tolpuddle to do. I don’t think she’ll have time for going to London.” She explained.

“Renovations – what renovations?”
Ben queried, “So she’s selling Tolpuddle House is she?”

“No” Lucy answered, slightly exasperated, rolling her eyes, “she’s not selling it, she’s turning the front half into a coffee shop and a craft centre
and knocking through to the flat at the back
.”

“Oh yes
”
Ben said knowingly, “so he’s moving up there is he? The city lawyer in the sticks”

“Huh – who?”
Lucy said again, this conversation was going very strangely, very strangely indeed.

“The lawyer, Marcus, Katie’s boyfriend” Ben explained

“But she hasn’t got a boyfriend – oh you mean the posh bloke from the fayre, you said that
was who he was
before.” Lucy finally caught up with conversation

“Yes – Katie’s boyfriend, as I said” Ben said as if talking to a child, so Lucy responded in kind

“But
-
he’s
-
not
-
her
-
boyfriend
!”
Lucy said slowly, “
She told me the other week. She told him to take a hike; she wasn’t remotely interested in him anymore.” Lucy finished.

“Oh shit!” That was the last thing Lucy heard as the line went dead. She shrugged, she loved her brother but he was bloody weird sometimes!

The wedding day dawned, bright and sunny, little wisps of white fluffy clouds followed each other across the blue sky
slowly, as if keeping an eye on the proceedings below. Katie got up early and after enjoying her own mug of steaming hot coffee to fortify her for the day ahead, she woke Mo up with breakfast in bed
.
T
wo slabs of toast and honey and a pot of tea with a china cup and saucer.

“After all, it is a special occasion” Katie said, as she placed the tray on Mo’s lap. Mo’s eyes were shining, she looked radiant, just as a bride should, Katie thought, and quickly shoved to one side the little pang inside her that wondered if she would ever get to have that feeling. Today was about Mo, and Bert of course, and Mo deserved this happiness – she’d always put others first and it was time she was centre of attention. Katie had a little surprise for her now whilst they were still on their own. Soon Poppy and Lucy would be descending on them and then they probably wouldn’t have a chance. Katie pulled the little box out of her dressing gown pocket and put it on the tray in front of Mo.

Mo looked up

“Is that for me? But I’m supposed to get you something, you’re the bridesmaid after all,” she said.

“Well, we’re doing things differently today. You’ve done enough for me over the years, Mo, so I wanted to get something just for you, so you know how grateful I am and how much I love you.” Mo squeezed her hand and picked up the little box and carefully opened it.
Inside
was a small silver heart shaped charm to fit onto Mo’s bracelet, but when she looked closer she could see it was in two parts. Katie looked at Mo as she examined the charm.

“One part is for me and one part for you – that way we always have a part of each other, if that’s okay” Katie explained.

Mo looked up with her eyes glistening with tears, “Oh Katie, it’s beautiful, of course it’s okay” she said, picking up one half of the little heart and handing it to Katie, “I can’t believe you sometimes, Katie Kettle. I swore I wasn’t going to cry today and I haven’t even got out of bed and I’m blubbing like a baby –I bet you did it on purpose” she added in her more usual tones. Katie laughed and bobbed a kiss on Mo’s head and winked at her.

“Hairdressers’ will be here in an hour so we’d best get a wriggle on.” She said as she headed out to the kitchen.

Katie was absolutely right that that was the last bit of peace they would have. Ten minutes after Katie left Mo to have her breakfast; she had laid out a selection of breakfast cereals, fresh bread with honey and butter, croissants with strawberry jam and an extremely large pot
of coffee, and ten minutes after that Poppy and Lucy
had bounded through the door, full of excitement but not affecting their appetites in the least. Hairdressers, florists and photographers had swiftly followed as had the chauffeur arranged by Ben, Katie noted, still not ready
to forgive
him. The chauffeur drove them slowly down the main street to the church and it seemed like all the village had come out wave and send their best wishes to Mo. At eleven o’clock exactly they were stood outside the church as the organ struck up the first chord.
Mo gripped Katie’s arm a little tighter but was she was ready to go and they made their way down the aisle to the accompaniment of the organ, played a little haphazardly but enthusiastically by Joseph Stillington, who had been playing the church’s organ for a little under 83 years! In no time they were at
the front of
the church beside Bert and Declan (and not Ben, Katie thought bitterly) and Father Foster began the familiar phrases of the wedding service.

In forty five minutes they were all outside the church again in the sunshine, voices laughing, children running around and cameras snapping away. Katie looked at Mo and thought she had not seen her so happy since Grandpa had died, still she hadn’t seen much of Mo at all for the last four years but Katie was determined that would all change now. She was in Laxley to stay and Mo would be only ten minutes away
at Cheadle. It sounded absurd but she had forgotten how much she loved Mo and how much she loved being with her, it had taken being forced to come back for her to realise all this. If a little voice was nagging at the back of her mind saying how much she had loved being with Ben to
o,
she chose to resolutely ignore it! Katie came out of her reverie with a snap as a giggling Lucy came running up to her. Lucy was dressed in
the
same deep purple satin as Katie as she had been designated third bridesmaid after Poppy and herself.

“Katie, there’s a problem” she announced, followed by a reel of giggles, “something to do with moving the tables out of the marquee onto the grass. They need you to go and talk to someone about it.”

“Moving the tables?” Katie said incredulously, “moving them where?”

“I don’t know” Lucy shrugged, “something about having some on the other side of the bridge as it’s a nice day” Lucy stifled another giggle, Katie wondered if she had managed to get to the champagne already!

“I think they want you to go over and have a look where they want to put them” Lucy continued, a little more seriously. Katie sighed, this was the trouble when you organised everything yourself – you couldn’t take the day off. She may as well go and have a look; they’d only send someone else after her and all the guests were going to be taking photos for a bit longer yet. “Ok Luce, I’ll head over there now. Let Mo know where I am will you? I won’t be long”

“I wouldn’t count on it” Lucy whispered under her breath as Katie set off towards the green. Lucy typed a text and sent
it;
it only had one word –
‘
SORTED
’
.

Then she set off screeching at the top of her voice “Poppy, Poppy, you’ve got to hear this!”

Katie walked towards the bridge at the end of the green, remembering once again the daydreams of her childhood and how the prince was waiting at the other side of the little stone bridge, sword aloft, hair flying in the wind, ready to whis
k
her away on his white stallion.

“Huh” Katie thought, “princes just aren’t what they used to be, there was never one around when you needed one.” She had reached the top of the small slope of the bridge now and she stopped to look over the side into the stream below. The water was so clear she could make out her own reflection in the water. The sun was warm on her back and Katie closed her eyes, enjoying the sensation. She felt some of the tension slip away from her shoulders and she allowed herself for the first time to accept why she was so angry with Ben for not coming to the wedding. Of course, she was bothered that Mo and Bert would be upset but once Ben had sorted everything out he had not left the
m
in the lurch at all. No, the real reason she was so upset was much closer to home. She had been waiting to see him, aching to see him really.
Katie realised how much she had missed being a part of Ben’s life, being close to him. She had fallen in love with him. She couldn’t quite put her finger on when it had happened, but there it was, clear as day, she, Katie Crabsticks
,
loved Ben Wilson with all her heart and now she thought it might break in two all over again now he hadn’t turned up to the wedding, she had to face
the
fact that he couldn’t feel anything for her or he wouldn’t have missed this opportunity to be with her, no matter how busy work was.

Sighing deeply, Katie reluctantly opened her eyes and peered back into the crystal waters below and started suddenly when she realised hers was not the only face peering back at her!

Ben smiled slowly as recognition dawned on Katie’s face about who
se reflection
was looking back at her. Katie felt a slow flush
rise
on
her
cheeks as she felt Ben
must know
everything she had just been thinking
,
feeling vulnerable and exposed by Ben’s sudden appearance Katie went of the offensive
,
turning
round to him and stormed, “So you’ve decided to put in an appearance after all – and take your commitments seriously then?”

Ben was stopped in his tracks momentarily; this wasn’t quite how he’d seen this reunion going.

“Er what?” he managed articulately.

“I said you’ve decided to show up after all. I assumed you had more important things to do, people to see” Katie answered, indignantly, tilting her chin up and swishing her hair in what she thought was an imperious manner. Ben smiled and then grinned,

“No one is more important than you” he said simply. Katie looked at him, taking a
breath to hit back at him, assuming he was about to accuse her of being self-centred, when Ben added very quietly, “Well, at least to me”

Katie felt like someone had punched her in the stomach. “I’m sorry?” she stammered, not daring to look at his face. Ben gently put a finger under her chin and lifted her face to look at him.

“No, I’m sorry Katie, I’m sorry I left without speaking to you. I’m sorry I haven’t rung you and I’m sorry I let you and Mo down, but I couldn’t help it. It would have hurt too much to stay.” Katie leaned against the bridge looking into Ben’s handsome and earnest face,
feeling
uncertain and shy.

“But why?” she asked, “What was going to hurt you?”

“You were” Ben silenced Katie’s response with a finger on her lips. Katie felt a ripple of desire run through her body.