Kathryn Ross - The Eleventh-Hour Groom

Maybe she should try and make herself feel an attraction. There hadn’t been anyone in her life since she had left Jay. She needed to change that, get on with her life. Next time he asked her out, she’d accept, she thought suddenly.

But for the first time ever, Robert hurried away without issuing his usual invitation for a drink. She sighed. Maybe it was just as well. Getting involved with a work colleague could lead to complications.

She picked up the report he had left. Beneath it the manila envelope stared at her, heavily foreboding.

Jay had dropped her briefcase at the reception early this morning. Now it was late afternoon and she still hadn’t got around to looking inside that envelope. Nor had she got around to having any lunch. The day was turning out to be even more hectic than usual.

Wonderful way to spend a birthday, Elizabeth thought as she rushed off to another meeting. Still, at least she could look forward to having a quiet drink with Lucy after work.

The last meeting of the day overshot and it was almost six-fifteen by the time Elizabeth managed to finish.

She raced to the cloakroom to freshen up. Changed out of her work blouse into a sparkly halter neck top. Re-applied some deep red lipstick. Fluffed up her hair and then bent closer to the mirror to examine herself with a critical eye.

Not marvellous, but she’d do, she decided, putting on her black jacket. She picked up her bag with the divorce papers tucked safely inside and made her way out of the building. Nobody was around. Most people seemed to have left early today for some reason.

Lucy wasn’t in the reception, but had left a message saying she was caught up at work; could they meet outside the Mayfair Tower Hotel?

Sounded as if Lucy’s day had been as hectic as hers, Elizabeth thought as she hailed a taxi.

Lucy was waiting inside the foyer when Elizabeth arrived. She was twenty-nine, blonde and extremely attractive. She was also great fun. They had been friends ever since Beth had handled an advertising contract for Lucy’s dating agency eight months ago.

‘Happy birthday, you old codger!’ she said now, reaching to kiss her.

‘Wait until it’s your turn.’ Beth grinned.

‘So how are you?’ Lucy asked casually as they made their way through the busy foyer.

‘Don’t ask.’

‘That good eh?’ Lucy slanted a look over at her. ‘Any news?’

Elizabeth shook her head. ‘Apart from my husband asking me for a divorce, you mean?’

‘Oh, hell!’

‘Never mind. I’m over all that now.’ Elizabeth smiled and linked her arm through her friend’s. ‘In fact I’m so over it that I’m going to buy all the drinks tonight by way of a celebration. What are we doing here, by the way?’

‘Someone told me about a new bistro, so I thought we’d try it.’ Lucy explained airily as she led the way down a corridor.

Elizabeth frowned; she hadn’t heard about a new bistro here.

‘You’re not setting me up on a blind date, are you?’ she asked, suddenly very suspicious as they stopped outside one of the function suites.

‘Would I do that to you?’ Lucy teased, opening the door and stepping back for her to enter the room first.

‘Yes—’ Elizabeth walked into a darkened room with a frown.

‘Surprise!’

Lights flooded over her and a chorus of voices sang ‘Happy Birthday’. She looked around the room in a daze as her friends and work colleagues came across to slap her on the back.

Someone took her jacket; someone else pressed a drink into her hand.

‘Many happy returns,’ John, her boss, said with a grin. ‘Sorry I worked you so hard today.’

‘That’s okay.’ Elizabeth wasn’t sure if she was pleased or horrified by all this fuss. She cringed as she saw the banner saying ‘HAPPY 30’ hanging over the table of food. She had been hoping to keep her birthday quiet.

‘I’ll kill you, Lucy,’ she murmured to her friend, and then had to smile. ‘But, thanks, anyway.’

Then she saw Jay standing at the far side of the room and her heart seemed to do a forward roll. He was standing slightly apart from the crowd. Two secretaries from her office were engaging him in conversation. He raised his glass to Elizabeth as their eyes met across the room.

‘What’s he doing here?’ she asked, horrified.

‘Who?’ Lucy followed her gaze across the room.

‘Jay,’ Elizabeth enlightened her, then fixed her with a level stare.

‘Oh, Beth!’ Lucy looked truly horrified. ‘I’m really sorry,’ she hissed. ‘I didn’t think he’d come, not really—’

‘He’s coming over.’ Beth downed the drink someone had given her in one gulp. It wasn’t wine, it was some sort of punch and it tasted awful.

She noted the purposeful expression on Jay’s face as he headed towards her. He wasn’t going to ask her for those divorce papers, was he? she wondered in panic. Surely even Jay had more sensitivity than to do that at her birthday party.

‘Happy birthday, Elizabeth.’ He stopped next to her.

‘Thanks.’ She tried not to let her gaze wander over the expensive cut of his dark suit, the colourful tie. He looked good, she had to admit, somewhat grudgingly. But, then, he always looked good. ‘At the risk of sounding rude, Jay, why on earth are you here?’

‘Lucy invited me.’ He slid a sideways glance at Lucy. Elizabeth was amazed to notice how her friend blushed as their eyes met. Another conquest, she thought dazedly. How and when had that happened?

‘I presume you are Lucy?’ he asked, dispelling the notion in Elizabeth’s mind that they had already met.

‘Yes, that’s me.’ Lucy gave an apologetic smile over at Elizabeth. ‘I spoke to him by mistake on your mobile phone this morning.’

‘Yes, we had quite a chat, didn’t we?’ Jay said with a grin.

‘Would you like a glass of wine, Elizabeth?’ Lucy asked, changing the subject and obviously desperate to get away.

As she disappeared amidst the crowd, Elizabeth trained her attention back on Jay. ‘You’ve embarrassed her,’ she accused coolly.

‘Oh, come on, Beth. It’s a sad situation if I can’t come and wish you a happy birthday…don’t you think?’ he murmured. ‘Anyway I didn’t like the way we left things last night.’

‘What way was that?’ she asked innocently.

He smiled and his eyes moved over her slender figure. ‘You might find this hard to believe, Beth, but I don’t like being at loggerheads with you.’

‘Don’t you?’ She shrugged. ‘Well it doesn’t much matter any more.’

‘It matters to me,’ he answered softly.

She felt a tremor of awareness race through her body. When he spoke like that, when he looked at her like that, she felt so confused. She battled against the feeling of weakness inside her, the voices that were reminding her how wonderful it had once been to be held in his arms, cradled close, kissed passionately.

‘I’ve brought you a gift.’ He handed her a small black jewellery case wrapped with a gold bow. ‘Happy birthday.’

She stared at it suspiciously before looking up at him with narrowed blue eyes.

‘Well, go on, open it.’ He grinned. ‘It’s not a time bomb.’

She took it and, with hands that were none too steady, flicked back the gold bow and opened the case.

A topaz pendant on a fine gold chain stared up at her from the velvet box. It was a stunning piece of jewellery. One, judging from the name on the box, that he had obviously purchased in the Caribbean.

‘It’s beautiful.’ She frowned, trying to make sense of this. ‘But there was no need for it…’ She snapped the lid shut on the gift. ‘I’ve told you I’ll sign the papers. So you can cut the phoney caring stuff.’

Before Jay could reply they were interrupted by Robert. He pushed a glass of champagne into Elizabeth’s hand and reached to kiss her on the cheek. ‘Happy birthday.’