‘Are you ready, darling?’ Her dad crooked his arm for her to take it. ‘It’s not too late to change your mind!’
Sophie laughed and looked behind her at Emma, who was dressed in a white organza dress and ballet pumps, and Theo, who held her hand, looking proud in a miniature version of his dad’s grey suit. ‘I think it’s definitely too late to change my mind, Dad!’
She linked her arm through his and together they walked through the arch-shaped doorway into the church. As the organ began to play the bridal march, she felt a swell of joy deep inside her. Without her realizing it, this was the moment her life had been building towards. Her perfect moment.
As they walked down the aisle, she smiled at distant relatives from either side of their families, various friends and numerous work colleagues. As she drew level with Mark Bailey, she leaned towards him. ‘I can’t believe you made it on time,’ she hissed. Mark flashed her a dazzling white smile and winked.
Further down the aisle, she passed Amy, Emily and Melissa, all crying openly as they looked towards her, causing a lump to catch in Sophie’s throat. Finally, she reached Steve, who had watched her with a wide, proud smile from the moment she had walked through the door.
She drew to a halt beside him and automatically reached for his hand – his smooth, reassuring hand, which had supported her through the good and the bad times of their life together. ‘You look beautiful,’ he told her, before turning to give Emma and Theo a tiny thumbs-up.
The service was simple and short but what took Sophie by surprise was just how emotional it was. There had never been any doubt about their commitment to one another, but actually saying the words in front of all their loved ones was a powerful and moving experience.
As they walked down the aisle together, she was still fighting back the tears. She looked up at Steve as they emerged into the sunshine and could see that he was the same. ‘Why didn’t we do this ten years ago?’ She reached up to kiss him and they held each other for a few seconds before the rest of the congregation burst out of the church behind them, led by an overexcited Emma and Theo. ‘Mummy and Daddy are married!’ cried Emma, waving her posy of flowers in the air and dancing from foot to foot.
As they greeted everyone with delighted smiles and kisses, Sophie felt a hand on her back. ‘Congratulations, lovely Sophie.’ She turned to face Amy, who looked extraordinarily stunning in a simple, pale green silk dress that perfectly complemented her tumbling auburn mane and her vivid green eyes. Sophie always thought it ironic that Amy looked so much more Irish than her.
‘Thank you. I hope that wasn’t too difficult for you…’ Sophie motioned towards the church. The last wedding they had all attended together had been Amy and Nick’s. She knew the memories would be looming large for Amy today.
Amy shook her head, giving Sophie a tight hug. ‘Still worrying about everyone else, even on your wedding day.’ She pulled away and gave Sophie a stern look. ‘Today is about you, Soph. You and Steve.’ She glanced at Steve. ‘Whatever lies ahead, you need to focus on today and remember how happy you are.’
Sophie frowned, wondering distractedly what Amy meant. ‘I will. Where’s Emily? And Melissa?’
Amy held Sophie’s gaze for a second before replying. ‘They’re both here.’
‘Is everything OK, Amy?’ Sophie searched Amy’s face, instinctively sensing that something was wrong.
Amy nodded emphatically. ‘Everything’s fine. You just make sure you enjoy every minute of today.’
‘I will,’ Sophie turned away as Emma tugged at her dress. ‘Come on, Mummy! We need to have the boring old photos done so that we can go and eat cake!’
As they posed for the photographs, Sophie watched the guests milling about in the grounds of the church. Mark Bailey had one hand in his trouser pocket, no doubt feeling for his mobile phone, while with the other he shook hands and posed for numerous snaps. She sometimes forgot just how famous he was these days. It seemed only five minutes since he had asked her to help him set up his fledgling company. What a lucky break that had been for her.
And a lucky break for Melissa too, who had turned her life around when she joined them. She watched her now, standing with Emily, yet never taking her eyes off Mark. Melissa thought Sophie didn’t know about their relationship but of course, she did. She had known for a long time, thanks to the rumour-mills at work. Nothing stayed secret for very long.
But she was waiting to see if Melissa would tell her herself and the longer it went on, the more she wondered why she had never discussed it with her. She hoped Melissa didn’t think she’d be angry. The opposite was true. But she did worry about Melissa. Worry that she would get hurt. Mark was a wonderful man but he wasn’t the type to settle down. He wasn’t even the type to settle for one woman. He didn’t mean to be cruel but he couldn’t help himself.
Beside Melissa, Emily looked tense and exhausted, much as she had for the past ten months. Sophie felt her heart clench in sympathy for her old friend. She had been under such a huge strain for so long and she didn’t have anything like the level of support Sophie did. She just hoped that Jack would make a full recovery so that Emily could try to move on with her life. It was as if she was stuck in limbo until he was better.
At that moment, Amy’s nanny, Dean, brought Megan and George over to stand with Amy. Sophie smiled to herself as she caught the look in Amy’s eye when she saw him approaching. She watched the way her face lit up and how she flirtatiously twirled a strand of hair around her finger as they spoke to each other.
‘Stop it.’ Steve leaned down to kiss her, his eyes crinkling with amusement.
Sophie beamed up at him, adopting her most innocent expression. ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about.’
‘You, Mrs Montgomery, are matchmaking. Don’t try and deny it.’
‘I’m not really.’ Sophie looked back over at Amy and Dean, who were both bending down to talk to the children. ‘But you have to admit, they make a good couple.’
Steve followed her gaze and gave a reluctant nod. ‘OK. Maybe you’re right. He’s actually a great guy. She could do a lot worse.’
‘I’m so pleased for her. She deserves to find someone nice. They all do…’ Her eyes moved to Emily and Melissa, who both looked thoroughly miserable. ‘I just want everyone to be as happy as we are.’ She reached up and kissed Steve tenderly. ‘After all that we’ve been through, it feels like we’re invincible. There is nothing that could come between us now.’