Risqué Business (Club Risqué #8)

Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

T he day was finally here. The little chapel looked beautiful. Helen’s magic touch could be seen in every delicate flower and shimmering chiffon bow.

Trinity was glad they’d decided to have the ceremony close to her parents’ home. Concentrating their efforts on special places from Trinity’s childhood, like this chapel where she’d attended Sunday school as a girl with her siblings. As well as having special meaning to her, it also stopped Christian from moping over the fact that he wasn’t marrying on the country estate where he’d grown up, as he’d always imagined he would.

“You look beautiful,” her father told her. “Every inch the radiant bride.”

“Thanks, Dad.” Trinity took one last look in the mirror. She almost didn’t recognise the woman who gazed back at her. This was her fairytale dream, her happily ever after, and every part of it felt like something from a storybook.

She wore a trumpet style wedding dress with a deep, sweeping back… one of the advantages of being so dainty and not having much of a bust was she could go braless. The off-white dress, encrusted with crystals, hugged her figure, then flared out at the hip and swirled around her legs into a short train.

Her hair had been teased into curls and wisps, which feathered around her face and was also embellished with crystals and tiny sprays of diamanté flowers.

Her veil, a fine gauze of tulle decorated with vines of seed pearls and crystals, was short and sassy, a divergence from the tradition everything else was steeped in.

“Are you ready, love?”

Trinity bit her lip and turned to look at the single unused corsage that sat alone on the table in the dressing room. “Is everyone seated?” She directed the question to her mother who was fussing with last minute tweaks. That wasn’t really what she was asking, but Helen followed her gaze and understood her, either way.

She pressed her lips together and nodded. “Yes, they are. I’m afraid there’s no sign of Krista.”

Trinity gave a short, single nod and tried not to let the news spoil her day. She had so hoped Christian’s mother might see one of the several invitations Trinity had sent out to every address she could think of and choose to attend her only child’s wedding. And although Christian had been true to his word and never brought the subject up again, Trinity knew, deep down, he’d be gutted. Knowing Krista had likely made the definite decision not to come was almost worse than if they’d never made any attempt at a reconciliation.

The bridesmaids, in their soft, sage coloured dresses all got into place, and Trinity pressed her hand against the gentle curve of her stomach to settle the butterflies that fluttered there. Her pregnancy was just starting to show, but not so much that she’d had to have her wedding dress altered. Just the tiniest swell that hinted at the new life she carried inside her.

Helen gave the wedding party one last look, adjusted her husband’s cravat, and was about to leave to slip into her place at the front of the chapel when there was a whoosh of movement, and a latecomer came barrelling in through the heavy oak double doors.

Everyone stopped and looked.

“Can I help you?” Helen asked, since the ushers had all taken their own seats.

“Am I too late?” A familiar, breathless voice responded.

Trinity, out of sight since she was still in the anteroom they’d used to dress in, felt a jolt of recognition and pushed past until she was face to face with Krista. “You came!” The words were barely a whisper of breath and shock.

“Taryn?” Addressing her by her given name, Krista pressed shaking fingers to her mouth. “Is that really you?”

Trinity was aware she looked very different from the last time Krista had seen her six years ago, when her hair had been long, and its natural blond, rather than the short, poppy red spikes she wore it in today.

The two women stared at each other for a long moment. Words seeming to have deserted each of them. Then the music changed, and Helen stepped forward. “It’s time,” she announced quietly. “We need to be seated.”

Taking a step forward, she presented the corsage to Krista and helped her to pin it. “Y-you had one made for me?” The older woman whispered, her voice cracking.

“Of course we did,” Trinity told her. “We never gave up hope that you’d be here, even though we heard nothing.”

“Come on,” Helen beckoned to Krista. “We really need to take our seats.”

Her mother pressed a kiss to Trinity’s cheek. “I’ll tell them to hold the processional for a few minutes while Christian greets his mother,” she whispered, and Trinity nodded gratefully. She needed a few minutes herself, too.

“Here, let me fix your makeup.” Desi, in her usual authoritative manner, took over seamlessly from Helen and passed Trinity a bottle of water which she sipped gratefully while her bridesmaids made sure everything was once again perfect after the appearance of their unexpected guest.

Then, it really was time.

The organist struck up the wedding march, and as the chapel door opened, everyone stood. The sun streamed through the stained-glass window, casting coloured shimmers on the congregation. A collective murmur filled the air as Trinity took her first step down the aisle. Her heart pounded like the wings of a hummingbird, but her smile was serene, her eyes filled with determined love.

Everything was perfect.

Christian wiped the tears from his eyes with the welcome handkerchief Jake thrust at him after his emotional reunion with his mother. He couldn’t believe she was here. He had so many questions, so much to catch up on. But there was time for that. All the time in the world.

His heart swelled and something pivotal settled inside him, adding an extra glow to what was already the most amazing day.

And about to become even more so.

His breath hitched as he saw his bride gliding towards him. Her radiance eclipsed everything else in view. His gaze travelled from the tips of her footwear, which peaked out from beneath the shimmering contours of her dress with every measured step she took on her father’s arm, and rested on her face which was glowing with pure joy. He swallowed hard, his fingers gripping the polished wood of the pew in tense anticipation.

The scent of her perfume, a delicate blend of roses and apple blossoms, filled the air as Trinity floated closer. Each step echoing a memory, each heartbeat resonating with a promise of a future yet to unfold.