“Gemma, what’s going on?” Amelia shuts the door behind her before rushing to my side. “Are you overwhelmed by emotions? Nerves?”

“No, I’m just being stupid. I couldn’t help thinking about him just now. How this is goodbye, for good.”

“Him? Are you… you mean Jake?” Amelia asks in a shaking voice.

I nod.

Amelia looks at me aghast. “But you haven’t spoken about him in forever, not since…” She searches in her memory for the last time his name came up. “Not since you met Sharon, ages ago.”

“Well, you chided me every time I tried to talk about him. But you were right: he’s married and I’ve no business thinking about him on my wedding day.”

Amelia grimaces and blushes tomato red.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“Ames, don’t say, ‘Nothing.’ You couldn’t look any less nothing.”

“Okay, but promise me you won’t freak out… this is the worst time, really… I probably shouldn’t…”

“Freak out about what? What is it? You’re making me freak out by not telling me whatever the hell it is you’re not telling me.”

“Why don’t we sit down?”

“I can’t. Whenever I try to sit I’m stabbed by the boning—. I hate this dress; I don’t know why I bought it, and if you don’t start speaking soon, I’m going to scream.”

“Okay, okay. But I’m sitting down.” She also takes a flute of champagne and downs it in one sip. “Now, try not to get mad. But I thought it was better not to tell you…”

I narrow my eyes at her. “Not to tell me what?”

“You seemed finally happy, so I didn’t want to stir up useless doubts. You’d finally stopped talking about Jake, and I had no idea you’d just stopped talking about him, but not thinking about him…”

“So what? If you’re about to give me a lecture, I’m not in the mood.”

“No, no lecture. Gem, I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you…”

I watch her wring her fingers in agony. “Out with it,” I hiss.

“It was some time ago, I bumped into Jake…”

“You what? I don’t understand. When did you go to San Francisco?”

She shakes her head. “I didn’t. It was here in London.”

“What was Jake doing in London?”

“He-he sort of m-moved here.”

“I need to sit down.”

“But the boning.”

“I’ll take the stabbing, and a glass of that too.” I point at the champagne and Amelia pours me a glass. “So he’s moved here with her?”

London’s my city.

“Without,” Amelia whispers.

“So she lives in San Francisco and Jake lives in London. I’m not following you.”

“Oh, Gem. Jake got… Jake got d-divorced!”