‘You take a double room, Mum. Eve and I will have the other, Kirsty and Hannah can share the twin, and we’ll save the single for Charlotte.’
‘Great. And we get the lake views.’ Jill made a thumbs-up sign.
‘Absolutely.’
‘Me and Rach will be up chatting all night anyhow, knowing us pair,’ said Eve.
‘Right, well let’s go and unload all of Eve’s twenty bags from the boot then, and get our one case each Mum,’ Rachel added wryly.
‘Well, I don’t know about you lot,’ added Jill, ‘but I’m ready for a cuppa. Let’s get unloaded and I’ll get the kettle on.’
‘A cuppa, really? This is a hen do, ladies. Let’s get the prosecco opened!’ Eve grinned.
With a glass of bubbly to hand and swimming costumes on, the girls opened up the French doors and made their way to the inviting hot tub on the deck area. They climbed the three wooden steps, and one by one slipped down into the warm frothing water.
‘Marvellous,’ said Jill, settling back in the bubbles.
‘What a spot,’ added Eve, taking in the view of the lake as a gentle breeze rippled over its waters in tiny silver waves.
‘Ahh, this is what it’s all about,’ Rachel said slumping back, just managing to keep her glass above water level as the bubbles rose over her shoulders. ‘Oops, don’t want to water this stuff down.’
‘Bliss.’ Eve gave a small sigh.
‘Oh, and now we’re finally here with time to think, I’ll need to talk over some of the wedding plans with you lot too,’ said Rachel.
‘Absolutely, that’s what we’re here for, after all.’ Eve smiled warmly.
‘Can you believe it’s only seven weeks to go until the big day?’ Rachel pulled a panicked face. ‘It’s all creeping up so fast. July will be here before we know it.’
‘I know. Time’s flying just now,’ added her mum.
‘And … I’m getting slightly worried that I still haven’t chosen a dress yet,’ confessed Rachel with a sigh. ‘I’ve a feeling I’m going to end up in a white binbag with the arms cut out at this rate.’
Eve and Jill caught each other’s eye.
‘I know it’s not the end of the world,’ Rachel continued, trying to convince herself it didn’t matter that much in the big scheme of things, ‘I’ll find something that’ll do … But that dress I saw back in March has stuck in my mind. Oh well,’ she rallied. ‘I’m glad we’ve spent the money on the tipi that we’ve booked for the wedding day, and we can afford to make a fabulous buffet for everyone to enjoy. Even if the rest of it is on a bit of a shoestring. A dress is just a dress, after all …’ Rachel took a gulp of her rather lovely pear-drops-tasting prosecco. ‘It’ll all work out, I’m sure. And I know I’m really lucky, just getting married to Tom’s going to be pretty damned special, even if I do end up standing at the altar in a bin bag.’
Rachel spotted another look passing between her mum and Eve.
‘What?’ There was definitely something going on between the two of them.
‘Don’t be too despondent about the dress, love,’ soothed Jill.
Her mum and friend raised their eyebrows at each other, Jill giving Eve a nod.
‘It’s just … we might have something in the offing,’ added Eve.
‘You do? Well, that’s great … is there a wedding dress shop in Oban then? Have you booked an appointment?’ She bloody well hoped it had a bargain rail.
‘Hmm, there might be,’ answered Jill, with a twinkle in her eye, not yet giving anything away. She looked at Eve conspiratorially; they were both fighting to hide their smiles.
‘Come on. You can’t leave me hanging like this …’
‘You’ll just have to wait and see,’ concluded Jill, and she clinked glasses with Rachel and Eve with a ‘Cheers.’
Rachel hated being kept in the dark. What did this pair have up their sleeves?
Just as the afternoon sun was starting to fade, Kirsty and Hannah phoned to say they were making good time on their journey.
‘I can’t wait to get there. It sounds amazing. And you say you’ve been in the Jacuzzi already, you lucky things. No children, no night feeds, no nappy changes for three whole days. Woo-hoo!’ Kirsty cheered down the phone line.
‘See you soon,’ shouted Hannah excitedly from the passenger seat. ‘Save us some prosecco, guys.’
‘Ah, we’ve got plenty, don’t you worry,’ called Eve.
An hour later, with the lasagne warming in the oven and Jill’s homemade pudding waiting in the fridge, Rachel sat relaxing on the sofa, settling into the rhythm of the weekend. Just as she thought about closing her eyelids, letting the prosecco carry her into a luxurious nap, a pair of hands were suddenly placed firmly over her eyes.
‘What the …!’
‘Please stand and step this way,’ giggled Eve, drawing Rachel to her feet.
‘You two are definitely up to something. Tell …’ Rachel demanded, affronted and excited at the same time.
‘We thought the hen might be a good time to give you a sneak preview …’
‘A sneak preview of what? Would anybody care to enlighten me?’ Rachel raised her eyebrows from underneath Eve’s slightly clammy palms. After taking several steps together, Eve lifted her hands away with an ‘Eek …’ just as Jill called out ‘Ta-dah!’
Rachel found herself in the double bedroom assigned to her mum.
‘Mu-um?’
‘All will be revealed very soon, love. Oh, I do hope you like it …’
There was an air of tension as Eve disappeared from view and there was a rustle from behind the cupboard door.
Eve then appeared with an anxious smile and a heap of ivory-cream material, layered across her arm, that trailed down to the floor. Jill stepped across to help her hold the hanger and then rearrange the material, draping it down to rest on the floor.
It was a dress … a beautiful wedding dress! Just like the one in the shop all those weeks ago. And yet as she looked closer, she recognised it was a slightly simpler design. The material of the bodice looked different but it was just as pretty, and the style of the appliquéd flowers was softer somehow; they appeared to be almost floating on the skirt. But wow. Just wow!
Tears started to fill Rachel’s eyes and she found she couldn’t speak. How had they done this? Was it really for her?
‘Do you like it? Oh gosh, Rach, I really hope you like it. I’m not sure if I got it quite right,’ Eve started gabbling.
Jill stood smiling, holding the dress aloft, taking in her daughter’s reaction.
‘I … I love it. But how? How did you do it?’ Rachel was still incredulous.
‘I made it.’ Eve sounded happy and proud and anxious all at once.
‘Well, love, don’t you think you should try it on?’ prompted Jill.
‘Ah, yes … of course.’
‘I had to guess at the fit,’ added Eve, ‘but we’re pretty similar, and I know your usual dress size. I can always tweak it.’
‘But how did you know the style and everything, when we weren’t allowed to take any photos?’ There had been a big sign in the bridal shop’s changing room about no cameras being allowed.