Bridesmaid Says, ''I Do!''

He felt OK about it. Honestly, he was happy with the future he and Bella had planned.

Just the same, Kent would have been relieved to get a few things off his chest to Steve. In the past few years his load had mounted steadily.

When his dad had hankered for an early retirement, Kent had taken on the bulk of the farm work. Then Bella’s mother had died, and her father, the very man who’d saved his life when he was a kid, had started drinking himself to death. Desperately worried, Kent had helped out there as well, putting in long hours ploughing fields and mending neglected fences.

Bella, of course, had been distraught. She’d lost her mother and now she was likely to lose her father, and if these weren’t enough troubles to bear, her family’s property was rapidly going down the drain.

A host of heavy emotions was tied up in their decision to marry, but although Kent was tempted to confide in Steve he wouldn’t off-load his baggage, not even to his best friend.

‘I hear Bella’s dad’s in a bad way,’ Steve said. ‘He’s been keeping very much to himself and he needs to slow down on his drinking.’

Kent’s head shot up. Had Steve guessed things were worse than most people realised?

‘Tom has the beginnings of heart failure,’ he said slowly.

‘That’s a worry.’

‘It is, but if he looks after himself, he should be OK.’

Steve nodded. ‘And once you’re his son-in-law, you’ll be able to keep a closer eye on him.’

Clearly, Steve thought their decision was reasonable, but then his eyes flashed as he sent Kent a cheeky smirk. ‘You and Bella are a sly pair though, keeping this under wraps in a gossipy town like Willara.’ He snapped a piece of straw between his fingers and raised his eyebrows. ‘So, when’s the happy day? I suppose

I’ll have to wear a penguin suit.’

When Zoe burst into The Hot Spot, Bella was already there, waiting in their favourite corner booth with salad sandwiches and two chai lattes.

‘That was the longest morning of my life,’ Zoe moaned as she hurled herself into a seat. ‘Thanks for getting lunch.’

‘It was my turn.’

Reaching across the table, Zoe touched the diamond on Bella’s left hand. ‘This is real, isn’t it? You’re properly engaged. I’m not dreaming.’

‘It’s totally real.’ Bella gave a crooked little grin. ‘But I must admit I still have to pinch myself.’

‘You, too?’ Drawing a deep breath to calm her racing thoughts, Zoe asked carefully, ‘So … you weren’t expecting this engagement?’

‘Not really,’ Bella said, blushing. ‘But it wasn’t exactly a surprise either.’

Zoe blinked and gave a helpless flap of her hands. ‘I’m sorry, I’m lost already. You’re going to have to explain this.’ She took a sip of her chai latte, but she was too intent on Bella’s response to register the sweet and spicy flavour she usually loved.

‘There’s not a lot to explain.’ Bella tucked a shiny strand of smooth blond hair behind one ear. ‘The thing is … even when we were kids there was a lingering suggestion from Kent’s and my parents that we might eventually—you know—end up together some day. They teased us when we were little, then toned it down later, but all the time we were growing up it was there in the background as a possibility.’

This was news to Zoe and she couldn’t help asking, ‘How come you’ve never mentioned it?’

Bella looked contrite. ‘You must think I’m crazy, talking so much about guys without ever really mentioning Kent.’

‘You spoke about him, but you said he was just a friend.’

‘He was. For ages. We were just … neighbours … and good mates …’ Her shoulders lifted in a casual shrug. ‘To be honest, I’d never seriously thought about marrying him. But then—’

Zoe leaned closer. ‘Is Kent the reason you’ve headed for home every weekend lately?’

Pink crept into Bella’s cheeks and her green eyes took on a touching mistiness as she held out her left hand and admired her ring again. ‘It sort of crept up on us. Kent’s been so sweet.’

‘Oh-h-h …’ Watching the dewy smile on Bella’s lips, Zoe was overcome by the romantic possibilities of her friend’s situation. Her skin turned to goose bumps and she could picture it all: a wonderful, long-term friendship where a couple felt really comfortable with each other, and knew each other inside out—all the good bits and the bad. Then, suddenly, they were hit by a blinding and beautiful truth.

So different from Zoe’s soul-destroying experience with Rodney the Rat.

‘Out of the blue you just realised you were in love and meant for each other,’ she said.

Bella nodded.

‘And you definitely know Kent’s Mr Right?’

Another nod.

Zoe couldn’t believe the way her throat was choking up. ‘I thought those blinding flashes of insight only happened in movies, but look at you. This is a real life friends-to-lovers romance!’ To her embarrassment, a tear spilled down her cheek.

‘So you understand?’ Bella’s smile was a mixture of sympathy and relief.

‘My head’s still trying to catch up, but I guess I understand here.’ Not caring how melodramatic she looked, Zoe pressed a hand over her heart. ‘I’m happy for you, Bell. Truly.’

‘Thanks.’ In a blink, Bella was out of her chair and the girls were hugging. ‘I knew you’d understand.’

‘Your dad must be thrilled,’ Zoe said when Bella had sat down again.

To her surprise, a flood of colour rushed into Bella’s face and then she paled and looked down at the sandwich in front of her. She pulled at a piece of lettuce poking out from the bread. ‘Yes, he’s very happy,’ she said quietly.

Puzzled, and just a little worried by the reaction, Zoe wasn’t sure what to say next. Something wasn’t right here.

Or was she imagining Bella’s tension?

She wondered if Bella’s dad had expressed mixed feelings. It would be bittersweet for Mr Shaw to watch his daughter’s engagement blossom so soon after his wife’s death. He’d miss having her there to share the joy with him.

Zoe thought about her own parents, settled at last, running their little music shop in Sugar

Bay and raising her little brother, Toby. After

Toby’s unexpected arrival when Zoe was fourteen, her mum and dad had undergone a dramatic transformation. By the time she’d started work and Toby was ready for school, they’d given up their nomadic existence, travelling round the country in a second-rate rock band.

But becoming conventional parents hadn’t dimmed their love for one another. They’d remained fixed in a crazy love-struck-teenager groove and, although their relationship had always left Zoe feeling on the outside, she

couldn’t imagine either of them having to manage alone. Not for ages, at any rate.

Poor Mr Shaw …

‘Earth to Zoe. Are you there?’