‘Now, are you just going to let that sit there at the tip of my finger?’ she asked, nodding to the ring.

As his fingers pushed down the gold band, his lips claimed hers and she had never felt more complete, more excited and more hopeful for a future she could now see, with Henry.

Pulling back from the kiss, she stared at where the ring fit perfectly on her finger as if it had always meant to be there.

‘We should probably get back to the wedding. Victoria will have my head,’ grumbled Henry.

‘The wedding can wait,’ she moaned, pulling him into another glorious kiss.

‘Lily Atwell, I think I’ve ruined you,’ he said, as she felt the smile of his lips against hers.

He turned her into the crook of his arms and led her, reluctantly, back to the orangery just in time to see Victoria and Ollie about to cut the cake. Victoria locked eyes with Lily and smiled the happiest smile, full of love and laughter. The entire venue rose up in a joyous scream as together, their hands around the same knife, Ollie and Victoria cut their cake.

With Henry’s arm holding her to his side, they stood in the doorway, and Lily took in the beautiful sight. Every single person was smiling or laughing, chatting away, forkfuls of cake making people groan in delight, and then she caught her mother’s eye, hopeful and eager. Lily brought her hand up and wiggled her fingers so that her mother could see the beautiful ring and laughed when her mother clasped her hands to her heart, and tears glistened in her eyes.

Love you, her mother mouthed and nodded to Henry, who had caught the exchange.

‘Love you too,’ Lily whispered across the distance, knowing that only Henry would have caught the words.

She sighed and leaned her head against Henry’s shoulder. ‘I think that this could be the beginning of a beautiful happy-ever-after.’

‘Many beautiful happy ever afters,’ Henry replied, pressing a kiss to his wife-to-be’s forehead. ‘Many.’

That night, they ate, drank, danced, laughed and loved long into the night and all the four girls agreed that it was the most perfect, most beautiful, most wonderful night of their lives.

‘Until my wedding,’ claimed Malie.

‘Until my wedding,’ cried Zoe.

‘Until my wedding,’ whispered Lily with eyes only for Henry Hawkesbury, the love of her life.

EPILOGUE

Ten years later …