Shaking herself from her thoughts, Lily crossed the room to where the three garment bags containing the bridesmaids’ dresses hung near the window. Through the white cover she could see glimpses of the beautiful dress she had tried on … was it only a week ago? It felt like an age. The harvest, the night of the storm. All the things she had shared with Henry …

She loved him.

The realization nearly drew a gasp from her.

She couldn’t, could she? She’d only really got to know him in these last few weeks. Surely it would take longer than that? But she answered her own question. She knew him. He might not be here, right in front of her, right now. But she did know him. His fears, his secrets, his hopes … And she accepted each and every one of them because they made him the person he was. The person who had made something good from a terrible tragedy. The person who – almost against his own will – brought the town together for a harvest he hadn’t needed to worry about. Not really. Not if he truly intended to sell the estate. The person who had made her laugh, and yes, made her cry. But the person who had pushed her to see to her own truths. Her beauty, her power, which he had drawn from her during the night they shared, but also her hurts, and her own secrets. The ones she’d kept from herself. Without that, without him, she might not have ever seen. Seen that she had been hiding. He’d shown her her own strength. And even though he wasn’t here today, beside her, that strength meant that she could stand on her own feet, owning herself and finally making plans for a future.

Malie and Zoe’s giggles drew her back to the present.

‘Right. Who dresses first?’

‘You,’ they both replied.

An hour later, Lily, Malie and Zoe were in front of the large mirror hanging above the fireplace, in their bridesmaids’ dresses staring at their reflections.

The sage green silks of the material suited each of them perfectly, as did the green sapphires twinkling from their necklaces.

‘Oh,’ a voice from behind them came. ‘You all look so beautiful!’

They each turned to find Victoria standing before them in her wedding dress. Lily gasped, Malie squealed, and Zoe practically sobbed.

The ivory silk of the dress practically glowed. The strapless bustier bodice was embellished with crystals that caught the shafts of summer sun pouring in through the windows. There was a sheer lace overlay that fell across the stunning silhouette of Victoria’s waist and down towards a floor-length skirt and train that flowed out behind her like a pool of silk. It was dramatic, but simple, sophisticated and breathtaking. It was perfect.

‘I’m going to cry,’ Zoe exclaimed.

‘I’m going to dump Todd and propose to you myself,’ Malie whispered in awe.