Gareth reached out to put his hand on Lana’s shoulder. ‘Can we go somewhere quieter to talk?’

Lana pushed him away. ‘Mind your own fucking business. This is to do with me and my friend.’

‘Let’s go outside,’ said Judith, and began making her way across the dance floor.

Lana, fired up, furious, followed hard on her heels, knocking past dancing guests as she went, her sense of balance compromised by the alcohol she’d consumed. ‘Don’t walk away from me, Jude. You tell me to my face!!’

But still Judith kept walking.

Lana caught up with her and grabbed her by the shoulder, pulling her round. ‘TELL ME!!’ she screamed. By now people had stopped dancing and were trying to find out what was going on.

Catrin had broken away from her dance with Sol’s brother and run over to stand between them. ‘Girls, don’t do this now. Please.’

‘Don’t you speak to me, Catrin Kelly. Little Miss Fucking Butter Wouldn’t Melt!’

An audible and collective gasp filled the room in shock.

‘You knew!’

Catrin began sobbing. ‘I’m sorry, Larn, but it wasn’t my place to say! I begged Jude to tell you, but—’

‘Yeah, well, at least we know where your loyalties lie now, don’t we?’

‘You don’t understand …’

‘Oh shut up, Catrin,’ Lana hissed.

‘Leave her alone,’ shouted Judith. ‘I wanted to tell you myself!’

‘So do it then! TELL ME. I’m still waiting.’

Everyone was watching now as Rick Astley still warbled in the background.

‘Yeah, OK. I’m with Gareth. I love Gareth. OK? And I’m sorry for not telling you sooner, I really am.’

Lana stared at her, chewing her lip, struggling to focus, fighting the effects of the champagne, aware that everyone was awaiting her reaction. She should just walk away, of course.

‘You didn’t need to find out like this,’ said Gareth quietly. ‘But you have now, so—’

And then it struck her – the intense humiliation. Not just that her best friend was in love with her ex-boyfriend, not just that they were having a baby together, but that her two best friends had kept this a secret from her, they’d colluded and excluded her. She felt like an abandoned five-year-old.

‘Bitch,’ she hissed quietly, before exploding into a terrifying rage. ‘YOU FUCKING TREACHEROUS BITCH!’ And with that, Lana lunged forward and pushed Judith as hard as she could.

Judith lost her balance and fell backward, reaching for something to grab in the process. The only option was the linen-covered table on which was placed the three-tier wedding cake. It seemed to happen in slow motion – Gareth reaching and failing to break her fall, and the white-iced cherry-sponge tower flying through the air, dismantling into three separate parts and landing like wet clay with an undignified triple splat on the floor.

Amelia and Liz screamed the loudest.

‘Lana! It’s my wedding day!’ cried Catrin, held back by Sol.

Gareth helped Judith slowly to her feet, confusion on her face.

‘You OK?’