How life could change so quickly, so dramatically, in such a short space of time.
Rebecca Dawson.
She was someone else now, and she couldn’t wait to start their new life together.
In Jamie’s home. Their home, she reminds herself, thinking of Jamie’s constant reassurances.
Staring down at the white gold band on her finger, the sparkling diamond glistening there next to it, she smiled to herself.
This was all real. This was happening.
No more living out of hotel rooms. No more having to hide away from the world. She could leave all that darkness behind her now.
This was the fresh start she’d been longing for.
And the day just proceeded to get better and better. Their wedding breakfast was at Claridge’s, of course. Nothing but the best for my beautiful wife, Jamie had declared as they’d sat in the beautifully decorated restaurant, Rebecca’s dress dazzling in the light from the striking Chihuly glass chandelier that hung down above them as they toasted their good fortune with the finest champagne. They guzzled it down greedily, both giddy with happiness.
Rebecca stared around the room in awe, glad that despite their ceremony being small, the day was still special. The venue was stunning, Rebecca thought as she eyed her reflection in the vast splay of shimmering mirrors that adorned every wall, her ears homing in on the sound of the grand piano, as the notes drifted around them all, just loud enough to hear over the chatter in the room.
‘Are you not hungry?’ Jamie asked, watching Rebecca staring into space as she pushed the salmon around on her plate, picking at the odd morsel now and again.
He grinned then, before she answered, realising that he’d been doing exactly the same. Nibbling at the food just for the sake of it, both their appetites gone, they were both too excited, both only hungry for each other.
‘We could always make our excuses to leave…’ Jamie said, his hand working its way up Rebecca’s thigh, concealed by the cloth draping the table. His fingers pulled at the lace fabric of her wedding dress, tracing the soft outline of her silk lingerie underneath, which made her think about the Royal suite, upstairs, that Jamie had booked them into for the night.
‘Well, we are newlyweds after all…’ Rebecca said, raising her brow with a mischievous smile as their two guests, Lisa and Michael, Jamie’s sister and trusted colleague from the office,continued eating their food, caught up in their own conversation, oblivious to the simmering heat at the table. ‘I’m sure they’d forgive us for running out, just this once…’
And they did. Of course.
‘Oh, no need to apologise, mate. I’m sure you’ve got better things to do than wait around for your dessert!’ Michael winked as Jamie and Rebecca both stood up, thanking their guests for attending the ceremony before making their excuses for the swift exit from the table. ‘I’m sure myself and Lisa won’t let any of the champagne go to waste.’
‘Oh, absolutely,’ Lisa agreed, raising her glass. ‘I’ll drink to that! And congratulations once again to you both,’ Lisa said, getting up from her seat and kissing Rebecca on the cheek. ‘My brother is a very lucky man.’
Rebecca smiled, hoping that Lisa’s words were sincere now that she’d officially become her sister-in-law.
Rebecca hadn’t let it slip Jamie had told her Lisa’s concerns of him marrying too quickly. How she’d warned her brother that he might live to regret marrying someone he barely knew.
Instead of heeding her warning, Jamie had simply laughed it off as he relayed the conversation to Rebecca. ‘Who really knows anyone though? Isn’t that part of the fun, that we can spend our lives getting to know each other?’ He hadn’t even considered his sister’s concerns, brushing it off by saying that she was a worrier. That she was too sensible. That Lisa let her head rule her life and sometimes he wished she’d loosen up a bit, to stop being so serious all the time.
‘Christ, sometimes I have to remind myself that I’m the eldest. She’s supposed to be the one who needs looking after, not me.’
Lisa’s negativity had rattled Rebecca at first. But she hadn’t confessed that to Jamie; instead Rebecca had played along and told Jamie that perhaps his sister had a point. Maybe it did feel a little rushed. Maybe it was too soon?
It had been a test that Jamie had passed – immediately insisting that they were doing the right thing, that he was certain. That had been enough for Rebecca to convince her of his love.
So, she’d dropped it, and ended the conversation saying that he was lucky to have someone who cared for him so much, who had his wellbeing at heart.
‘You look absolutely exquisite, Rebecca,’ Lisa said to her, smiling.
It was true; Rebecca had never looked more breathtaking. Her long red hair was pinned high on her head in an elegant chignon and decorated with pearl embellishments, matching the same delicate pearls that adorned the lace Vera Wang dress hugging her slim figure. The dress was a bold choice, even Rebecca was aware of that. Extreme for a simple registry office wedding, and if she was honest, the dress wasn’t really her at all. But Jamie had insisted that money was no object, and had sent her to an exclusive bridal shop to find the perfect dress, and the shop assistant had been so lovely to her, especially after Rebecca had told her that the wedding was going to be an intimate affair and that she had no real family of friends of her own attending. The lady in the shop had pulled out her most breathtaking gown then and insisted that Rebecca try it on, and she almost didn’t recognise the reflection that stared back at her in the dressing room mirror. She looked so elegant, so demure, that for a few seconds, the beautiful dress had taken her breath away.
Even today, even now, it still didn’t feel as if it was really hers. It felt as if it belonged to someone else, that she was just borrowing it. A beautiful princess, playing dress up just for the day.
But she’d chosen well – when she’d seen the look of pure delight on Jamie’s face as she’d walked down the aisle towards him, she knew the dress had been worth every penny and every pearl.
‘Exquisite. That you are, Mrs Dawson!’ Jamie had teased once they were both tucked away in the Royal suite, as he unzipped her dress and let it fall at her feet, before they’d made love, their bodies entwined, lost together inside the gigantic four-poster bed.
Jamie had fallen asleep soon after. Rebecca looked at him now, his head lolled to one side, his mouth gaping open as he snored gently. Spent from sex and too much champagne.
But she can’t sleep.
Lifting his arm carefully, so she doesn’t wake him, she slides from the bed. Stepping over her dress, the fine silk and pearls wrinkled in a heap on the floor, she wraps her robe around her naked body and makes her way to the lounge at the opposite end of the suite.
She runs her hand across the top of the espresso machine, craving caffeine, something strong to keep the edge off the excitement that’s still fizzing away inside of her. She decides against it, not wanting to chance waking Jamie with the noise.
Let him sleep, she thinks, so she can have a few moments to get her head straight. To take all this in. Settling for the dregs of the champagne they’d abandoned on the coffee table earlier, she takes a seat on the chaise lounge by the window. She folds her legs beneath her before pulling back the curtains, just enough to allow her to stare out into the brightly lit night skies of London.
The breathtaking panoramic view of Mayfair’s shimmering lights dance back at her through the windowpane, and for a few minutes it’s all she can do to stop herself from opening the window and shouting out so all of London can hear her.