‘Oh God!' muttered Sarah, sounding anguished. 'What's he doing here!'
‘We asked him to come!' said Elsa out of the corner of her mouth, wondering, too late, if they'd done the wrong thing by ringing him. What if there was a perfectly understandable reason for Sarah not to ask Hugo and they'd only made things worse? 'We thought he should be here. What's the matter?’
Hugo had reached the door of the wine bar, seen the women and pushed open the door.
‘It's just that I never wanted to see Hugo again if I could avoid it,' said Sarah softly, but just loud enough to be heard.
‘Why?'
‘Oh God,' she breathed. 'Too late, he's coming over.'
‘Good evening!' Hugo said, arriving at the table. 'How nice to see you all.' He looked pointedly at Sarah. 'What's all this about a summit meeting?’
Feeling guilty for getting Hugo to come to the wine bar without clearing it with Sarah first, Elsa said, 'A really important client wants to get married in about five minutes flat and, er, we thought…'
‘I know,' said Hugo.
‘How do you know? I thought it was all highly confidential!' said Bron.
‘Didn't Sarah say?' He looked at Sarah again, enquiringly this time. She could only stare at her hand, clutching her wine glass.
Feeling chastised, she turned to Bron and said, 'It was through Hugo I got the contact.'
‘Why didn't you say!' said Elsa. She glanced at Bron. Had they made things completely impossible for Sarah now, or what? Catching the glance, Bron made an I haven't-a-clue face.
‘I would have told you,' said Sarah, feeling defensive, 'if I'd had a chance. We've hardly begun to discuss it.'
‘So why didn't you invite me to the meeting?' he asked. She couldn't tell if he was teasing her or not. This was going to be harder than she thought.
‘I would have done,' she said. 'This was just a preliminary chat. For girls.’
He raised his eyes. 'Oh, for girls! I'd better get another bottle then, and be an honorary one.'
‘I'm not sure you'd make a very convincing girl, Hugo,' said Sarah quietly, glad that they were on safer ground once more, but uncertain as to whether he was still suffering from wounded pride or not.
‘No? You wait and see.' Now his look was frankly challenging.
And as she watched him get up and go to the bar, she realised he was a bit offended with her. Surely he hadn't really minded her turning him down? It was a shame if he had, but it couldn't be helped. Sarah took herself to the Ladies again. Once there she splashed her face with water before daring to look. Not good! Although she hadn't had much, it was obvious she'd been drinking, and what makeup she'd put on that morning had long since disappeared. Her hair had started to turn feral. She exhaled deeply, gave herself a quick lecture involving 'getting a grip' and 'don't be such a wuss' and then searched her handbag for some emergency kit. If only Hugo weren't so attractive, she'd be fine. She delivered the lecture again. She'd be fine, she kept repeating to herself. She was a professional. She'd been taken by surprise, that was all. She was calmer now and back to her professional self. He was a good photographer, they were colleagues, and he need never know what effect he had on her.
Hoping she hadn't spent a noticeably long time doing repairs, Sarah went back to the others, holding her head up. Be dignified, she told herself. Be cool!
‘It's all right,' said Elsa, seeing Sarah's anxious and slightly disapproving face as she surveyed the number of bottles on the table, 'Hugo's going to drive you and Bron home.'
‘And you,' said Hugo. 'However near you live, you're not walking back at this time of night. Sit down, Sarah, you're not going yet.’
Sarah squeezed herself in next to Hugo, thinking at least she had a chance of getting to the door before he did, should she need to make a run for it. She could pick up a taxi easily enough.
‘So.' Sarah decided to take control. 'Have you met Carrie Condy herself?'
‘Yes,' said Hugo modestly. 'Once or twice, through friends of friends. I thought you'd be perfect when Mandy mentioned Carrie was looking for a wedding planner.' He smiled at her.
Oh God – the curl at the corner of his mouth, the crinkle of his eyes… but she must stay in control. 'And I do appreciate it, but you know she wants everything exactly the same as Ashlyn's wedding, including the bloody lych-gate! And it's your fault!' That's it, you can do this, she told herself. Keep it professional and lighthearted. He's a colleague. Just because they'd crossed the line once, it didn't have to affect their working relationship.
Hugo chuckled unrepentantly. 'I know, but I thought if anyone could do it, you could. Anyway, you could always get one mocked up.’
Sarah nodded. 'I've thought of that already, it's the church that's going to knock the whole thing on the head. Carrie just doesn't seem to realise that pretty churches are booked up even if you set aside the whole inconvenient thing about having to have some connection with it, like living in the parish, or it being the groom's parish, or whatever.’
She put her elbow on the table and rested her head in her hand. She suddenly felt overwhelmed by it all.
‘I might just be able to help you there,' said Hugo.
She straightened up again. 'How? Tell me. I've been going mad.' She wanted to remind him again that he'd got her into this mess, it was up to him to get her out, but she knew that wasn't true or fair. It was an amazing favour he'd done her, giving Mandy her name.
Hugo seemed reluctant. 'It might not work, though. Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned it.'
‘Well, nothing much else is likely to work,' said Sarah.
‘Is getting a venue really so difficult?' asked Elsa.
‘Picturesque ones at very short notice are. And not only do you have to have the right sort of church, you have to have an accommodating vicar. There are rules about who can get married where.' Sarah sighed. 'It's not that I'm not grateful for the contact, Hugo, because I really am. But it's going to be jolly hard to do. Especially as Carrie happens to have chosen the same date as my sister. She only told me she was getting married last weekend.' Sarah closed her eyes. That's the real reason why I'm so stressed, she told herself, it's nothing to do with Hugo.
‘Poor girl,' said Hugo, filling Sarah's glass, and sounding almost tender. 'And you can't persuade your sister to change the date?'
‘Not really. The church is booked and she's pregnant.' Her hand flew to her mouth. 'I shouldn't have said that. I've probably had too much to drink.' She took another sip of wine anyway.
‘We won't tell anyone,' said Bron. 'Are you excited at becoming an aunt?’
Sarah bit her lip. 'Well, yes, I will be nearer the time, but I think I've had a bit too much excitement recently.' Too late she wished she hadn't said that and really hoped that Hugo, sitting next to her, wouldn't think that he was part of the 'too much excitement'. He definitely was.
He didn't put his hand reassuringly on her arm as he might once have done, before the 'kiss', and Sarah suddenly yearned for him to. Why was it that those little gestures, which are so disgusting when done by the wrong person, are so lovely when done by the right person. Things like that should be neutral; you should either like the pressure or not. She glanced round the table quickly, hoping no one could discern her weird thought processes.
‘So, Elsa,' said Hugo smoothly, as if he were not sitting next to a madwoman. 'How did you enjoy being a bridesmaid at the last minute? I must say, you looked lovely.’
Elsa blushed at the compliment and it occurred to Sarah once again what a very pretty girl she was. Why was she single? she wondered. After all, she wasn't a hardened spinster like Sarah.
‘I got into it eventually,' said Elsa.
‘That hairstyle is perfect. It really suits you,' said Hugo. Sarah realised how charming he could be and part of her regretted that she'd been so adamant, but then she remembered how charming Bruce had been. Better safe than sorry.
‘And you're up for making a wedding dress just like Ashlyn's?' asked Hugo.
Elsa shrugged. 'I did think it would be a good idea if we could persuade Carrie to actually wear Ashlyn's dress.'
‘I'd rather ask Ashlyn if Carrie could wear her dress than ask Carrie if she'd contemplate having her big celebrity wedding in a "pre-loved" one,' said Bron.
Everyone laughed. Sarah said, 'Even my sister, who's on a really tight budget, although she won't admit it, won't wear a second-hand one. I thought I might get her to wear our mother's wedding dress, but I don't think she will. It's bound to be really dated by now anyway.'
‘I could probably adapt it for her, if she'd like me to,' said Elsa. 'That's how I started out, making things over for people.'
‘Really? That's interesting,' said Hugo. By the way he looked at Elsa Sarah could tell he really was interested. He was very good at all this and Sarah wondered if it was because of his sister; from what he'd said they seemed quite close.
‘Yes. I had a Saturday job in a dry-cleaner's. I did the mending. Then I went to college.'
‘What about you, Bron?'
‘I went to college too.' She seemed to Sarah to sound a little defensive. 'I see hairdressing and beauty therapy as a bit of a vocation.'
‘Oh?' Again, Hugo's attention was total. This seemed to give Bron confidence.
‘Yes,' she explained. 'Lots of people think that hairdressing is only for people who couldn't do anything else. I could have done lots of things, but I wanted to do hairdressing. There's a lot more to it than people realise.’
Bron picked up her glass and luckily the waitress arrived at that moment with a large plate of tortellini.
‘Ah, here's your food,' said Elsa to Hugo. 'Shall we look at the pudding menu, girls?'
‘Oh yes,' agreed Sarah. 'I always look at it. I don't often let myself have one, but I love to read about them.'
‘We could share one,' said Bron. 'What about chocolate tart with a trio of ice creams and fudge sauce?'
‘Oh yes,' said Elsa.
‘Why don't you have one each?' asked Hugo. 'If you like that sort of thing.'
‘Not nearly as much fun,' explained Sarah. 'And we'd be sick.'
‘And fat,' put in Bron. 'Men don't like sharing their food. Roger gets terribly annoyed if I pinch a chip or ask for a spoonful of pudding.'
‘He's probably an only child,' said Sarah.
‘Well, yes, he is,' said Bron. 'But so am I. I don't mind people sharing my meal. I think it's friendly.'
‘I'm an only child too,' said Elsa. 'I'm also pretty relaxed about food. Mind you, my dad has always stolen my chips. I got used to it very young.'
‘I'll order the pudding,' said Sarah. 'Hugo, is there anything you'd like?’
He shook his head. 'I'm happy with this, thank you, but please feel free to share it if you want to.'
‘We wouldn't do that, Hugo,' said Bron. 'That would be very unfair.’
They chatted easily for the rest of the evening, and Sarah finally relaxed. Hugo was good company and regaled them all with amusing anecdotes about some of the weddings he'd been to that Sarah hadn't organised. Finally, as the waitresses began stacking chairs, they felt they really should leave.
Everyone squashed into Hugo's car, laughing and joking. Elsa and Bron got in the back before Sarah could nab a place there.
‘I hope you don't mind being a chauffeur, Hugo,' she said, suddenly feeling guilty for taking advantage of his good nature.
‘I don't mind,' said Hugo. 'I have been a chauffeur in my time.’
As they drove in silence through the night she realised there was a lot about him she didn't know. Part of her yearned to find out more about him as a person, but she knew she mustn't do or say anything that might risk drifting away from their professional relationship. They'd managed to establish their old easy relationship – well, perhaps not entirely, but time would help that.
When he'd dropped off the other girls, they had both given him a peck on the cheek when they said goodbye. Feeling horribly awkward about the whole thing she did the same, a quick rushed peck that was more like a stab, really.
‘Goodbye, Hugo, thank you very much for the lift.’
‘You are entirely welcome, Sarah,' he said.
She walked up to the door of her building feeling wistful. He probably was as nice and as trustworthy as he seemed – he was certainly as sexy. It was a real shame she couldn't trust anybody.