The One That Got Away (23 page)

As I leave the coffee shop my phone rings. I
can see that it is Ben and am glad to hear his voice. “Hi Bella,
where are you?” he says in his sexy voice. I smile hearing it and
reply, “Oh, just leaving the coffee shop by the store. I met an old
friend for coffee, unplanned but interesting.” “Well you can tell
me all about it over dinner. I am starved of you and can’t wait
another minute. I am coming to get you and won’t take no for an
answer. Stay and have another coffee and I will pick you up.” He
hangs up and I smile to myself. He always makes me feel so wanted
and desired. Even from that short conversation I could pick up the
need in his voice. A quiver of excitement runs through me as I
think about what he has in store for us tonight.

Soon I see his car and I race outside.
Grinning at each other we pull away. “You’re taking a risk picking
me up so close to the store,” I say in surprise. Reaching over he
grabs hold of my knee and laughs. “I must be feeling desperate.” I
place my hand over his and say, “I love it when you’re desperate.”
Reluctantly he moves his hands back to the wheel and says, “Where
to for dinner?” The thought of food is furthermost from my mind and
I say, “Home.” Raising his eyes up he laughs sexily. “I thought so
too. Good choice.”

In no time at all we turn into his driveway
and my anticipation grows. Once he opens the front door we race
inside. We are both feeling desperate and laughing we start running
to the stairs taking items of clothing off as we go. Soon we have
left a trail of clothing behind us and burst into the bedroom. Ben
grabs me and throws me on to the bed and rolls over on top of me to
pin me down. “How was your day dear?” he says, a sexy smile on his
face. I trace his face with my fingers and say huskily, “Better now
I’m here.” He leans in and kisses me and then there is no stopping
us.

Much later we venture downstairs to the
kitchen to make some food. Ben opens a bottle of wine and together
we set about making our meal. I already feel so at home here and
can’t wait to move in permanently. The thought of being with him
every night fills me with excitement. He tells me all about his day
and asks me about mine.

Over dinner he asks about my coffee date. “So
who was it that you met up with after work?” Feeling a little bit
apprehensive I say, “Oh it was Tina, Nathan’s best friend Bradley’s
girlfriend.”

His eyes narrow and his face tenses up. “That
was a coincidence. Did you just happen to run into each other?” he
says, looking hard at me. I nod. “Yes we did, although…” I tail off
as though unsure and he looks at me sharply. “Although what?” “Well
it did seem rather pre-meditated if I’m honest. She asked me about
you and told me that Nathan wants me back.” His expression is
furious and I quickly carry on. “I also get the impression that she
was fishing to see if I might go back, because she told me that he
would get a job with Bradley, who is earning shed loads of money at
the moment, and that the only reason he didn’t go was to stay close
to me at the store.” I look at him suddenly feeling worried. Maybe
I shouldn’t have said anything.

He looks at me silently for a minute and I
can see his mind working. Then he says slowly, “And Nathan, has he
contacted you recently?” I blush and lower my eyes. I know he will
be furious that I never told him but I know that I had better come
clean now. Looking him in the eye I say nervously, “Yes, a few
weeks ago.” He looks at me questioningly and the mood is dark and
tense all of a sudden. I say quietly, “The day after the Hen night
he came to the flat.” Letting out an intake of breath he says, “And
what happened?” “He came in and told me that he wanted me back and
that you weren’t right for me and he wouldn’t give up on me until I
was back with him.”

You could cut the atmosphere with a knife and
I almost can’t look at Ben. “What did you say?”

With a deep breath I say, “I told him that I
loved you and would never go back to him. I hoped that he would be
happy but he had to leave me alone.” I look at Ben with trepidation
and seeing my expression his face relaxes. “Come here Bella,” I get
up and sit on his lap. “Why are you so worried to tell me these
things?” he says stroking my hair. I snuggle in further. “Because I
don’t want you to be cross with me and I don’t want any more
conflict with Nathan. You may go after him and it scares me.” He
carries on stroking me and I feel safe with him again. He pulls me
back to face him and his eyes are dark and seductive. “Don’t be
afraid to tell me anything Bella. I need to know and I won’t do
anything to hurt you, remember that. You can always trust me; I
will never let you down.”

I kiss him gently on the lips and hug him
closer to me. “I need to know though, how did he seem to you? I
mean, did he accept what you said to him and leave quietly?” “Yes,
but I don’t think that it’s the end of it. Something tells me that
he won’t give up.” Ben tenses again. “That is why you need to move
in with me. I can protect you and then we can come out into the
open about our relationship. You can move up to Head office away
from him or I can move him if you prefer.”

Moving away
from him I return to my seat and look at him for a long time. “It’s
a big step though. Do you think it’s a good thing to live and work
together?” He smiles and says, “Possibly no, but if it gets too
much you can move back to the other store. I have enough of them
and won’t get in your way too much at work.” Raising my eyes to his
I smile, “Ok then. Let’s try it and see how it goes. The wedding is
next weekend anyway so we may as well start our new life at the
same time as Phoebe and Boris.” He jumps up and lifts me up
spinning me around. “You won’t regret this Bella. I love you and
nothing will ever get in the way of that.”

We decide to leave the washing up and grab
the rest of the bottle of wine and take it to bed to celebrate.

Chapter 32

It is the day before the wedding and I am
travelling with Phoebe up to Harden Hall. We are staying there with
her mother and father and various other relatives and friends.
Boris and his family ironically are staying at the local hotel,
even though Harden Hall is his family home.

I had forgotten how beautiful the place is
and as we sweep up to the front door it takes my breath away.
Looking at Phoebe I can see the excitement in her eyes and she
turns to me her eyes shining.

“
Oh Bella, I
can’t believe I am going to be Mrs. Boris Harden. It’s like a dream
and I feel like a fairytale princess. Laughing I hug her. “I am so
happy for you. Boris is your Prince Charming and I know that you
are going to live happily ever after.”

We run up to the door and a lady that I don’t
know answers it. “Auntie Veronica.” Phoebe squeals and I remember
that this is Boris’s Aunt who lives here. “Welcome darling and this
must be your friend Bella, how lovely to meet you.” She hugs us
both warmly and then offers the same warm greeting to the rest of
Phoebe’s family. “Come on there are refreshments on the veranda. We
can all catch up there.”

As we wander on to the Veranda I can see how
beautiful this place really is. When we came before it was winter
and couldn’t see much, but now I am bowled over by the amazing
gardens that stretch out as far as the eye can see. I remember that
they are open to the public for much of the year and I can see
why.

We sit on some wicker chairs and enjoy a
lovely afternoon tea. There are little sandwiches and various
pastries. There are also scones and clotted cream with home made
strawberry jam. I could sit here forever. I listen to the excited
chatter around me and just relax enjoying the warm sunny day. I
think of Ben and wish that he was here now. He is coming up
tomorrow for the service and then we are staying here together
after the wedding. I hope that he won’t feel too out of it as he
doesn’t know that many people and I will be busy being the, Maid of
Honour. At least I am sitting with him for the meal and my family
are also invited so he will have some people to talk to.

Ben has met my family a few times over the
months but I know that it is not the easy relationship that they
enjoyed with Nathan. He had become like a son to them and his
family were involved in everything we did. It was strange not to
see them anymore and Ben’s family live in Australia so I haven’t
even met them, let alone my parents. I tell myself that it will
take time. They will soon come to love him as I do; he is just not
as open as Nathan. Thinking of Nathan I remember that this should
be the day before my wedding. I wonder how I would be feeling in
Phoebe’s place. It unnerves me thinking of it and I realise that I
am just glad that it is not me. I am surprised but relieved at
these thoughts as I feel that I made the right decision in leaving
Nathan and going out with Ben.

Phoebe interrupts my thoughts and says, “Hey
Bella, come on lets go and find my room and we can unpack and get
organised.” Snapping out of it I jump up and follow her inside.

Phoebe’s room is beautiful. It has a stunning
view of the gardens and is decorated in pretty pinks. There is a
four poster bed and she jumps on it with excitement. “Bella you
must stay in here with me tonight. It’s my last night as a single
woman and I can’t think of a better way to spend it than with my
best friend.” I laugh, “Of course I will, the trouble is though you
need a good night’s sleep and I’m not sure if you will get that
with me here, you do chatter a lot you know.” She laughs and comes
and swings me around like we are children. “I don’t care, who can
sleep anyway? Oh look at my mother!”

She pulls me over to the window and we see
her mother tearing across the garden chasing an errant balloon. It
is a big gold heart and we laugh at the sight. “Look at her, her
heart is running away from her again,” shrieks Phoebe. Laughing I
say, “Phoebs don’t be so heartless, it’s not funny when you lose
your heart.” We collapse on the floor in a heap and laugh
loudly.

There is a knock on the door and Camilla
comes in. “Hey Gals,” she shrieks in her posh accent. “Listen mum’s
the word to Henry about the hen do. I told him that we spent the
night knitting and reciting poetry. The idiot believed me so don’t
enlighten him.” This sets us off again and Camilla joins in.

Soon Phoebe’s mother arrives clutching the
balloon. “This bloody balloon,” she says panting. “I got it to tie
to your bed. Luckily I caught it just in time. One minute more and
it would have gone into the cow’s field and been lost forever.”
Camilla pipes up, “Gosh, I hope it doesn’t go bang on your wedding
night. What an anticlimax that would be.”

We burst out laughing again and Phoebe says,
“I am hoping for a different sort of climax tomorrow night.” Her
mother pretends to hit her and says, “Phoebe, Victoria, Hermione
Wilson. I will not have that sort of language used in the bedroom,
in front of your mother.” We all fall about laughing and then her
Auntie Doreen pokes her head around the door. “Room for one more,
oh and I’ve brought a bottle.” We scream at her to come in and in
no time she pops the cork of her champagne and pours us all a glass
into some plastic glasses that she brought in with it. “To Phoebe
and Boris Harden, may he always have one,” cheers Camilla and once
again we laugh hysterically at the look on her mother’s face.

We have organised a take away to be delivered
this evening and we all spend a fabulous evening eating Chinese and
telling jokes and reminiscing about the past. Its midnight before
we go to bed and Phoebe and I are still chatting well past 1am.
Finally we drift off to sleep and are woken up by Phoebe’s mother
at about 9.30am. “Come on girls, no time to waste. Breakfast is
served downstairs and your pamper team are due at 10.” I grin at
Phoebe and we jump out of bed and follow her mother downstairs.
Everyone is already there for breakfast and we help ourselves to
cereal, yoghurts and juice. Boris’s Aunt has got the caterers in
and they provide us all with a fantastic cooked breakfast and lots
of toast and marmalade.

Then it is all systems go as the pamper team
swoop in and set to work on us all. We have our hair and make up
done and there is lots of girly chatter accompanied by many glasses
of champagne. I help Phoebe into her dress and she looks amazing.
It brings tears to my eyes and I notice that her mother is sobbing
away in the corner. Phoebe is starting to look emotional and I try
to distract her with anything I can think of. The little flower
girls come in and we all have photographs taken together. Soon it
is time for us to leave her and take our places. Giving her a hug I
say, “I love you Phoebs. You look beautiful and I know that you
will be very happy, Boris is perfect for you.”

She can’t speak in case she cries and just
squeezes me hard. Leaving her with her parents I head off
downstairs to wait for her. I see Ben chatting with my family and
head over to see them. His eyes soften as he sees me and the look
he gives me takes my breath away. He comes to meet me and takes me
in his arms. Leaning down he whispers, “You look beautiful Bella, I
love you and can’t wait until later.” I feel the familiar heat
tearing through my body at his touch and would give anything to
take him upstairs right here and now. My mother and father come
over and we pull apart, his eyes teasing me, knowing what I am
thinking. We all stand there chatting until they are told to take
their seats for the ceremony. Watching them go I suddenly feel
nervous. The little flower girls chatter excitedly and I distract
myself by watching them with amusement. It feels quite surreal
standing here as the bridesmaid when I should have been the bride.
However seeing Ben looking so gorgeous reinforced the fact that had
I made the right choice. Then I see Phoebe’s mother coming
downstairs and then Phoebe appears on the arm of her proud
father.