And he knew in that moment he would never delete that email. That he’d keep the photo of them, in front of the wedding arch, with him for ever.

CHAPTER EIGHT

LILY LAUGHED. ‘I STILL can’t believe you moved all those empty barrels.’

‘You doubt my manly prowess?’ he said in mock shock.

‘Not at all.’ And she didn’t. She really didn’t.

They were sitting in the restaurant, after the breakfast rush, having hauled out enough empty wine barrels and cases to decorate the orangery.

‘I told you we didn’t need to buy them.’

‘Yes, you did. And yes, you were right,’ she replied, giving him his due.

The smug look of satisfaction on Henry’s face was a picture, until his gaze settled on something in her hair. Frowning, he reached over and gently pushed back a fallen lock.

‘Cobweb,’ he explained as he withdrew his hand, her cheeks hot from just the proximity of him.

Kate came over to the table and placed two more coffees in front of them.

‘You are a goddess,’ Henry exclaimed as he reached for the hot rich brew.

‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone put away so much coffee in my life,’ Lily remarked.

‘I live on the stuff.’

‘It’s a good thing I have a constant supply, then,’ she said without thinking. Because that implied more. Implied something longterm. And when she risked a look up at him, she knew that he’d realized it too. And something almost sorrowful entered his gaze, and she regretted her careless words. Because after the wedding, he would be gone. The sale of the estate had been agreed, subject to searches and terms. She could have bitten off her own tongue then.

In the last week, Lily had given Vihaan and Kev free rein over the restaurant while she focused almost exclusively on the wedding. And she’d been surprised by how much happier she felt. How much easier it was to have Henry help her with all the wedding stuff. The decorations had arrived, and in a few days they’d have the orangery set up and ready for the wedding that was now only a week away.

Casting her mind over all the things that she and Henry had achieved since the Dream Wedding Disaster, as she was now calling it, she couldn’t work out what she would have done without Henry. Even just having someone to bounce ideas around with had been a godsend, but more than that, he’d made suggestions and even got stuck in. Manly prowess indeed.

The bell over the door chimed and Lily turned to see who it was. Her sudden and shocking high-pitched squeal was met with one equally as impressive.