Lottie was dumbstruck. She hadn’t expected this. It had come, literally, out of a clear blue sky.
‘OK, I’ll just get on with it.’ He took a breath. ‘Lottie Hargreaves,’ he said, gazing up at her. ‘Would you do me the honour of becoming my wife?’
What? Words would not come, only emotion: shock, excitement, joy, shock … robbing her of breath. He’d kept this secret for a whole week – no, longer than that …
‘This is so – sudden, Connor.’
‘Not that sudden. Not unexpected, surely? We’ve known each other for years. Plus, I love you. That’s all that matters.’
‘I love you too …’
He laughed. ‘Then what else do we need?’
What else? To commit to a lifetime …
He searched her face, doubt filling his eyes. ‘Have I made a huge mistake?’
‘No. Not a mistake. I’m just shocked. I mean I’m flabbergasted. I never expected this.’
‘But it’s not a “no” as in “no, I don’t want to marry you”?’
‘No. I mean, yes. Yes, I do want to …’ The words slipped out before she’d even realised.
His eyes lit up. ‘Thank God for that. Would you mind if I got up now? I think I’m kneeling on a sea urchin.’
Laughing though still stunned, Lottie helped him to his feet. It wasn’t a sea urchin, only a broken shell that had grazed the skin. He rubbed it and they hugged each other and kissed for what seemed like forever. If he was willing to make a lifetime commitment, she was ready to meet him. Her heart danced like the waves on the sea and her spirit soared like gulls wheeling impossibly high in the sky.
She genuinely wondered if it was possible to burst with happiness.
Connor took out the ring and slipped it on her finger. It fitted perfectly and its fire caught the rays of the setting sun.
Hand in hand, they’d wandered back to their holiday cottage, where Connor produced a bottle of champagne with a beautiful card featuring a painting of the cove where he’d proposed. Lottie wasn’t sure if he’d written it before or after she’d said yes but frankly, she didn’t care.
It thanked her for accepting his proposal and said she’d ‘made him the happiest man alive’.
They took the glasses upstairs, but even after they’d made love, she couldn’t sleep for excitement, allowing herself to imagine the future stretching on forever with Connor, imagining children … grandchildren.
The next day, on the long journey north, all she could think about was how excited Steph would be when she found out her four-year-old twins were going to be bridesmaids. It was too momentous a piece of news to be delivered by phone, she thought, driving home while Connor dozed in the passenger seat. It had to be in person, preferably with Connor by her side.
She’d get him to come with her the following evening after work, make a big occasion of it, maybe get a taxi so they could all have a bottle of champagne. Yes, that’s how she’d break the news. She knew Steph would be as thrilled as she was.
It was past eleven when she got home. Connor had driven the last few hours and gone straight to bed, saying he was knackered and had an early start. Lottie woke just as he was on his way out of the kitchen the next morning. She immediately noticed the overnight bag at his feet.
‘Not running away, are you?’ she said, putting her arms around him.
‘Running away?’ he said sharply.
‘I was joking.’
‘Oh. No … but I’m afraid I do have to go away to the Edinburgh office.’
‘Edinburgh?’
Disappointed, she let go of him. This business trip was news to her. ‘What? Now?’
‘Unfortunately I’ll probably have to stay for a couple of days.’ He grimaced. ‘I’ve got a big project on. I had a message on the way home from Cornwall saying it was all going tits up. I need to spend the next few days kicking arses up in the Scottish branch.’
Lottie couldn’t hide her dismay. ‘Arghh. I was hoping we could go round to Steph’s to announce our news. I thought we could make a proper thing of it, maybe get a cab so we can take a bottle of champagne.’
‘Can we hang fire until I get back? I’ll probably be stuck in the office until Thursday.’
‘Thursday? You want me to wait until Thursday to tell Steph our news? I’ll burst!’
‘Well …’ He sat down, a serious expression on his face. ‘It might be a good idea to hold on for a while anyway before we start shouting about it. Steph’s hardly had the happiest experiences with men, has she?’
‘No … but that won’t stop her from being happy for us, Connor.’
‘Even so, perhaps we should curb a little of our enthusiasm. Be slightly more tactful?’
She frowned. ‘Tactful?’
He patted her hand. ‘Sensitive, then.’
‘If you really think so …’ Lottie said, slightly hurt that Connor had misjudged Steph, but unwilling to cause a scene when he was about to leave.
Connor smiled and picked up his phone. ‘I’ll see you later in the week.’
‘OK.’ With a quick kiss, he left.
Lottie consoled herself with the reminder that it was only a few days, after all, and she’d rather wait until the weekend when he was able to relax and fully enjoy the moment.
However, she spent the entire drive to work still disappointed he’d rushed off and wondering exactly what he’d meant about being ‘tactful’. Granted Steph had had a few disastrous encounters with guys. The twins’ father was a guy she’d met on holiday in Ibiza and he’d given Steph a fake phone number so she’d never even been able to track him down to tell him about his daughters. Even so, Lottie was certain Steph would have been overjoyed to hear about her engagement.
Lottie had been the first person Steph had called to reveal she was pregnant; the one she shared all her news with, good and bad, big and small. Steph was the rock
