Five

After satisfying their appetites with juicy roast beef, Yorkshire puddings, pakoras, and chicken tikka masala, disco divas and smooth movers headed back downstairs to the pub’s main floor for the evening’s festivities.

Sat in a corner, Alex laid her head on her boyfriend’s shoulder, a champagne-fueled buzz pushing their earlier argument to the back of her mind. She nibbled the chocolate icing curls on her second cupcake. A third cupcake, a peace offering from Mark, tempted from a plate balancing on her lap. His arm rested happily along her shoulder, the two of them captivated by Freddie’s superhuman efforts on the dance floor.

Brimming with more energy than a double-shot Americano, Freddie was giving two of Naomi’s sari-wearing aunties a dance clinic, showing off his fluid moves during The Jacksons’ “Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)”. To his left, Simon unapologetically thrashed about, but his lack of rhythm and punchy movements repelled fellow revelers, concerned for their safety.

Lucy squeezed through the crowd, carrying a pudgy baby dressed in a lavishly beaded white dress.

“Wow, wedding favours sure have changed.” Mark gave the sprog a wide berth.

Lucy bounced the little one in her arms. “Ha! Meet Jasmine, Naomi’s niece. Isn’t she adorable?” She thrust the baby in Alex’s face. “Smell her. I could just eat her up!”

“Erm, thanks, but I’ll stick to the cupcakes.” Alex didn’t budge.

“Well, at least hold her. See what it might be like for you and Mark to play happy families.”

Alex scrunched up her nose and popped a piece of the third cupcake into her mouth. Lucy stared back at her, a wriggly Jasmine dangling over Alex’s lap. “You’ll never know unless you get some practice in. Go on, she won’t bite…”

The DJ segued from the King of Pop into “Let Go for Tonight” by Foxes. Alex perked up, her foot tapping anxiously to the beat. “No, but she’ll probably puke on me.” She handed her crumb-sprinkled plate to a passing server and dabbed her lips with a napkin.

Mark laughed and snaked his hand around his girlfriend’s waist. “Lucy, you know better. If it’s not furry and meowing, Lex isn’t interested.”

“We should dance before the DJ switches to ABBA again.” Alex’s eyes darted past Lucy, blinking rapidly at the guests flailing about and throwing shapes behind her friend’s back. Several pairs of abandoned Jimmy Choos and studded Valentino pumps littered the perimeter of the dance floor.

Lucy’s shoulders fell. “I know, it’s your favourite song. Go. I’ll return Jazzy to her mum and meet you there.”

Mark barely had time to loosen his tie before Alex kicked off her heels, grabbed his hand, and pulled him into the pack of gyrating bodies. No surprise, Freddie and Simon were bouncing around in the centre.

“About time, ya wallflowers.” Freddie yanked Alex away from Mark, twirling her into his chest. “Hey, Sparkly Girl! To quote that glitter pixie, Kylie Minogue, ‘Your disco needs you!”’

He smooched her cheek and released her back to Mark, the three of them joining Simon’s pogoing spree, jumping up and down and singing the lyrics at the top of their lungs. Lucy, now free of Jazzy, invaded their huddle. Even the bride and groom joined in, dragging Harry in their wake.

Alex beamed at her friends—everyone who mattered was here. She threw her arms around Mark’s neck, her hips rocking in time with his. She would’ve been perfectly happy for the moment to go on with no end in sight, all her fears and worries temporarily lost to the music. If only you could live within a song, a perfect little bubble where love ruled and the lyrics sang out your most heartfelt feelings, a musical haven where work commitments couldn’t steal away your boyfriend, leaving loneliness and frustration in his place.

The DJ mixed into a slower tune, perfect for a romantic clinch on the dance floor. Parched from their marathon dance-off, Freddie and Simon dashed to the bar while Harry snatched Lucy’s hand before she could slip away. Alex stepped back into her heels.

“Ooh, this one’s an oldie. Must be for the parents.” Mark pulled Alex close as they swayed together on the dance floor. He kissed her tenderly as if he had all the time in the world.

Taking a breath, Alex explained, “It’s the Cars, ‘Drive’…”

Mark smirked. “You and your ol’ musical cheese. Good thing you’re cute with it.”

“This song’s not cheesy, it’s beautiful.” She smiled, feeling safe in his arms. “So, what do you think?”

“About what, this song?”

“Not the song, silly.” She licked her lips and played with the hair at the nape of his neck.

“Oh, you minx!” Mark’s eyes fell to the plunging v-neck of her dress. “Maybe I should disappear for weeks on end more often.”

“Don’t you dare.”

“Is this a hint? Time to sneak away…” His whisper gave in to his lips kissing their way down her neck as his fingers dug into her waist, pulling her closer.

“Tempting—” Alex gasped as his tongue slipped along the nape of her neck. Warmth surged through her body, flushing her cheeks. “But Naomi would kill us.” Her fingers disappeared into his thick hair.

“No, she wouldn’t. She’d understand.” His mouth claimed hers again, his tongue daring her to leave everyone behind.

Alex welcomed his challenge, losing herself in the moment and erasing all thoughts of Naomi and cheesy love songs from her mind.

Mark broke free first, quick breaths leaving his lips. His eyes, full of need and want and impatience, didn’t stray. With an impish grin, his hand swept over her bottom as he pushed his hips into hers.

Woah. Mark was ready—now. “You don’t waste any time, Mr. Keegan.” Alex’s eyes danced around the pub. “Okay.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, but you haven’t answered my question.”

“The answer’s always yes.” He blinked slowly, his eyelids heavy with anticipation.

Alex laughed. “No, Mark, I meant…what do you think about all this?”

“Lovely ceremony. Smashing party. Bit too much ABBA.” His mouth returned to her neck. “Can we go now?”

“That’s not what I was asking…”

He tilted his head to the side, searching her face for clues.

Alex chewed the corner of her bottom lip. “What do you think about us…getting married one day?”

His eyes popped open, twice their size. “Ah, okay. That’s not what I expected. Where’s this coming from? The first of your friends gets hitched and you’re overcome with fuzzy feels?”

“No.” She scrunched up her nose. “It’s been on my mind for a while now…”

“Really? You’ve never mentioned it, although I did overhear you and Lucy, ages ago, something about marriage after thirty? So, what’s that—six more years of dirty, unwed sex in our future?” He gently nibbled her earlobe as he pressed hard against her again. “I say, bring it…starting now.”

“Mark!”

“What?” He laughed. “Don’t play all innocent with me, Sinclair. I know better.”

She tugged on his shoulders. “Be serious for a minute. We love each other, right?”

“Right.”

“Well, don’t you want to be committed—officially? It’s the obvious next step.”

“Yeah, but it’s a step that people rush into for the wrong reasons. I think a lot of couples do it because things ‘get stale’, but that’s not us, is it? We’re happy. We keep each other on our toes, and the sex is amazing.” He nuzzled her neck, breathing her in and delivering soft kisses towards her décolletage. “If it ain’t broke…”

Her eyebrows squished together. “If it ain’t broke, then…why wait?”

Mark lifted his head, his eyes scanning the small dance floor. “Well, for one thing, we’re both crazy busy. Can you imagine? Organizing a wedding while working your attachment?”

“My attachment ends next week.”

“Already? Christ, this year’s been a blur. Who’s to say the National won’t pick up that play? Wouldn’t it make more sense to establish our careers first, while we’re young and everything’s happening, and then get married?”

While everything’s happening? For you, maybe. Alex stifled a frown as Tom and Naomi danced slowly past. “We can do both. If it’s important, you find a way.”

“Lex, does this have anything to do with our argument earlier?”

“No…” Alex pulled back with a squint.

“Because me being away for long stretches won’t magically be fixed by a wedding ring.”

“It’s just…we’re so busy looking after our professional lives, our private lives could use some TLC, too. You said it yourself on the bus—we need to find a balance between the two.”

“That’s true…” Mark sighed heavily. “But to be honest, Mouse, I’m not ready to get hitched. I mean, I will be, one day. Marriage is great, and my parents had such a happy one.” He smirked, and drew her closer. “In the meantime, Vespa rules, right? Hop on, hold tight, and remember to enjoy the ride.”

The ride, the never-ending ride towards…what? Where were they headed? One day was a destination impossible to navigate, off the edge of the map, and how could she plan for one day when this past year she never knew if he was coming or going…or staying? Panic rose in her throat as tears threatened her makeup. She lowered her head to Mark’s chest, glancing sideways at Harry and Lucy nearby, engaged in friendly conversation while locked in a dance floor embrace.

Mark lifted her chin with his hand and looked into her eyes. Alex blinked several times, unable to erase the weepy evidence. “Mouse, I know my news today threw you for a loop, and it seems like we’re never together, but things will get better.” His hand tightened around her waist. “Don’t worry. I’ll sort out flights for Newfoundland, and you can come visit, okay?”

Those large brown eyes beckoned, so hopeful, so persuasive—impossible to resist.

The twinge in Alex’s chest didn’t budge. As she nodded, a grin nudging her freckles betrayed the unwavering quiver in her stomach.

“That’s my girl.” He smiled.

The DJ picked up the pace with “Happy” by Pharrell Williams and Mark squeezed Alex’s arm. “Yes! My request—finally.” Freddie and Simon showed up out of nowhere, bouncing beside Mark in a display of giddy solidarity. Alex stepped away, raising an imaginary glass to her lips. Mark nodded and dove into the abyss of sweaty revellers, the music engaging his body fully. Squeezing through the crowd alone and skirting the grabby hands of Tom’s drunken uncle, the smile fell from Alex’s face.