Page 71 of Merrily Ever After
It certainly was. A shiver ran down my spine as I put down a bowl on the floor for Otto. Two weeks and three days to go before the wedding. Time was flying by.
Otto had hoovered up his portion by the time I took my seat at the table again and he flopped contently at Astrid’s feet. I topped up everyone’s glasses and tucked into my own dinner.
I loved the kitchen at Holly Cottage. Cole had kitted it out last year after the room had been flooded. It wasn’t huge, but it was cosy and warm and currently smelled delicious. The spotlights had been turned off and we were eating by fairy lights, which I’d wound around the curtain rail and across the tops of the cupboards, plus three Winter Wonderland candles glowed on the table, giving off theirwarming scent of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and a hint of sweetness from orange oil.
‘To us,’ said Cole, raising a glass. ‘Thanks for joining us.’
‘Dinner with two of our favourite people?’ Astrid remarked, wiping a splash of gravy from Fred’s chin. ‘We’re the ones who should be doing the thanking.’
‘I’m glad I didn’t eat too much at lunch.’ Fred speared a chunk of beef. ‘This is hitting the spot.’
We wouldn’t normally have been entertaining on a weeknight when we had work in the morning, but Cole and I had had a few hours off this afternoon to sort out some wedding jobs and it seemed a good opportunity to catch up with them both.
‘Thanks, it was a team effort,’ said Cole, adding a second helping of slow-cooked beef casserole to his dad’s plate and flashing me a smile. ‘Hardly cordon bleu, but it’s warm and hearty and good for a cold winter’s night.’
I smiled back. The two of us were ridiculously smiley. Things between us were better than ever. We probably looked cheesy with our permanent smiles, but so what? Life could be tough, but right now, we were madly in love and enjoying planning a future together. And since I’d had that talk with Lydia, I felt far more confident about becoming Mrs Robinson on Christmas Eve.
‘Team is a very generous description,’ I said, laughing. ‘Cole is a far better cook than I am, but I’m happy to be his assistant and learn from him.’
‘Then you complement each other perfectly,’ replied Astrid. ‘Which has to be a good foundation for a marriage. And I agree with Fred, this issehr lecker.’
‘Which means delicious,’ said Fred, earnestly earning himself a pat on his hand from Astrid. ‘All sorted for the wedding now, are you?’
Cole and I looked at each other and nodded. We’d had a productive afternoon and had nailed most of the items on our to-do list.
‘Almost,’ I said. ‘The theme is simply Christmas party. We want everyone to have fun, enjoy the magic of Christmas, no big formal speeches, no standing on ceremony.’
‘And all our wedding music is going to be Christmassy too,’ Cole added, drumming his fingers on the table. ‘We’ve made a playlist of some of our favourite songs and we’re hoping everyone is going to join in and have a sing-song.’
‘Song sheets will be provided,’ I said. ‘So, no excuses.’
‘Noted,’ said Fred. He cleared his throat. ‘Lalalalalaaaah.’
‘Thanks, Dad.’ Cole pretended to block his ears. ‘I won’t be calling on you to do a solo if you don’t mind.’
‘Who’s your best man?’ Fred asked his son.
Cole took a sip of his wine. ‘I’m not having one.’
‘And I’m not having anyone to give me away either,’ I added.
We’d discussed this at length. It was a bit unorthodox, but we decided that it was our wedding and therefore we should do it our own way.
‘All our guests are just as important as each other, so you’ll all be part of the ceremony.’ I’d had an idea for making this happen using candles, but I was keeping it secret for now.
‘That said, we would like both of you to be our witnesses and sign the register with us,’ Cole said, looking from Astrid to Fred.
‘We’d be delighted,’ beamed Fred. He stood up and clapped his son’s back in a manly hug and then kissed my cheek.
Astrid was on her feet too, kissing us on both cheeks.
‘Ach mein Schatz,’ she said, her eyes shining with tears.‘I am so happy to seeyouso happy. I am looking forward to this wedding very much.’
‘Steady on, old girl,’ Fred teased, offering her his handkerchief. ‘What are you going to be like on the day, if you’re crying just thinking about it?’
‘I will be the happiest old lady in England and any tears will be joyful ones,’ she declared, dabbing her eyes and then lifting her glass. ‘Let us drink to the happy day.Prost!’
Fred raised his. ‘That means—’
