'I'd just like a few minutes alone if you don't mind. I'm so sorry.' I shot to my feet, grabbed my purple clutch bag, and quickly weaved my way through the tables. I shot out of one of the open patio doors and took off my shoes, holding them in my hand as I ran across the lawn towards the river, where some ducks and swans were happily gliding along. There was a bench situated near the old stone bridge that crossed the river, so I plonked myself down on it and gave in to a rare pity party as I shed a few tears. I was sniffing and snuffling so loudly, I sounded like Sumo, which made me giggle as I tried to blot my eyes and not streak my make-up. Crossing my ankles, I swung my legs back and forth as I closed my eyes, raised my face to the heat of the sun, and let out a slow, calming breath. I frowned when I thought I heard someone calling my name.
'Abbie … Abbie … Abbie!' It was repeated again and again, the tone of the speaker getting louder and more insistent. I opened my eyes and looked around to see Miller racing across the lawn like his life depended on it, the tails of his morning suit flying behind him. Oh hello! If only he was wearing a little less, it would be like watching some reruns of Baywatch. 'Move, get under the bridge!' he yelled.
'What?'
'Get under the bridge, quickly,' he urged as he approached. I stood up, baffled. Was this some fancy American chat-up line? What the hell did he mean? 'The sprinklers, they're about to – '
I shrieked as I was suddenly blasted in the face by a jet of freezing cold water, as the lawn came alive and looked like some kind of second-rate English version of the Bellagio Fountains in Vegas. All we needed were the violinists to come out to add some musical atmosphere. Miller burst out laughing as he reached me, then grabbed my hand and started to run again, water spraying us from every direction.
'What the hell?' I cried, as we scurried down some crude steps on the riverbank and he pulled me along the towpath to shelter under the bridge.
I didn't have a chance to worry about how drenched I must look, or how badly my make-up would have run, or how the water would have affected my very carefully done wedding up-do. All I could think about was that he was holding my hand, and how lovely it felt. Like they were born to fit together. He let go to sweep his wet hair back from his chiselled face as I shook my hands, trying to get rid of some of the water pouring down them, then tried to push my own hair out of my eyes. I was soaked, and so was he. Damn that jacket and waistcoat he was wearing. I could be having a total wet white shirt, Pride and Prejudice, Mr. Darcy moment right now. We finally looked at each other, and both burst out laughing.
'What the hell?' I repeated when we finally stopped and caught our breath.
'I saw you slip out. You looked upset, so I thought I'd follow you and make sure that you were ok, but someone stopped me and told me that the sprinklers were timed to go off while everyone was inside.'
'So you chased me out here to save me?' I looked up at him, touched.
'Well, I told them to turn them off first, but the guy didn't know how to shut down the automated system, so I tried to warn you, but you were too far away to hear me yelling. I had no choice, damsel in distress and all, again,' he added with a grin, then his shoulders started shaking and he roared with laughter. I watched him, perplexed. It had been funny for a moment, but not that funny, especially now that I was cold, dishevelled, and shivering without the hot sun beating down on me.
'Well thank you, but I fail to see the funny side. We're both soaked, and I probably look like a drowned rat, with make-up running all down my face. I'm not staying here at the hotel, so I have no change of clothes, no make-up, nothing.'
'I wouldn't worry about your make-up,' he chortled, struggling to get his laughter under control. I scowled at him and crossed my arms over my chest. His unexpected and very sweet chivalry points were rapidly declining. 'You look like a … what was it that farted a neon rainbow?'
'A unicorn, but it's not like I got changed, you saw me in this damn dress all day.'
'Not when the dye from it was running all over your chest, arms, and legs,' he guffawed, bending over to clutch his sides as he started to hyperventilate.
'Are you freakin' kidding me?' I groaned as I looked down to see he was right. I was a human rainbow now. 'Oh my God, can this day get any worse? What if it doesn't come off?'
'I'm sure it will, you just need a hot shower and a good scrub. Come on, you're shivering, we need to get you changed and warm.'
He reached for my hand, taking it without asking permission, and pulled me along behind him as we headed out into the sunshine on the other side of the bridge and made our way carefully up the bank to find a fence bordering a large field, full of grazing sheep. There was no sprinkler in sight, not that I could get any wetter. And what was I going to do for clothes? I was going to have to call a taxi to take me home to get changed and come back. But what taxi driver would want me in his cab, risking his seats getting soaked and stained with bright dye? Miller gestured for me to climb the fence first, so I offered him my shoes and bag to hold and turned around to grab the metal wire, hoping to lift the top section and shimmy between the gap in the three parallel sections.
'Jesus Christ!' I screamed, my whole body juddering and the fine hairs on my arms and back of my neck standing on end as a forceful current zapped me and ran through my body. It was only an electric damn fence. I let go of it quickly, still shaking from the shock as I stepped back, with Miller laughing again behind me.
'I'm so sorry, I shouldn't find it funny, but your face was priceless. Are you ok?'
'I just don't believe this,' I moaned, lifting my hands to cover my mortified face. The first guy I'd been attracted to in forever and he seemed to have liked me too. I had no chance with him after these disasters.
'Come on, we're not risking going over that, and I think you need a bourbon. You can come and shower in my suite. I'll find you something to wear before I take a shower too.'
'I'm not swimming across the river to try the bridge from that side, not the way this day is going.'
'I wouldn't risk it either,' he confirmed. 'We're already wet, so we may as well just walk back across the lawn and get a bit wetter. Safer than an electrical current and possible flesh-eating sheep.'
'Flesh-eating sheep?' I giggled, finally seeing the funny side. I dropped my hands to give him a look and he shrugged with a grin.
'I have a vivid imagination. I design video games.'
'So much cooler than my job,' I stated. I accepted his free hand as he offered it, still holding my clutch and shoes in his other, and we started to make our way down the bank to retrace our steps.
'Don't even ask,' I warned, one palm firmly in the air, as we squelched past an astonished Georgie and group of onlookers standing out on the patio.
'Never a dull moment with you, Abbie Carter,' she laughed, trying to keep up with our determined march towards the main hotel entrance, where the reception desk was situated. Miller immediately asked for more towels to be sent to his room, suggesting dark ones if they didn't want a rainbow of dye all over their pristine white ones, and asked if they could dry out our shoes while we took a shower. Georgie raised her eyebrows as she mouthed, 'Move fast much?' at me.
'Separate showers,' I advised her. 'Could you go and see Rebecca, the head bridesmaid, and find out if she's staying over? Maybe she could lend me some mascara and eye shadow, so I don't look completely awful bare-faced.'
'You look beautiful bare-faced, but sure,' she agreed. 'Don't do anything I wouldn't do,' she warned with a cheeky grin as she spun on her heels and disappeared.
'Who was that?' Miller asked as we headed barefoot up the stairs.
'My best friend, Georgie,' I replied, casting a glance his way to try and gauge what he was thinking. Most men fancied Georgie, and that was without her looking so glamorous next to me in my current state.
'Ah, the non-lesbian girlfriend,' he nodded.
'Hmmm, though if I was a lesbian, I'd be totally into her. She's gorgeous, isn't she?' I tested.
'If you like that kind of look,' he agreed. 'She's attractive, but she's not my type.' I suppressed a smile. He actually seemed sincere. Wow, a man who wasn't panting after her was a rarity indeed. 'Aren't you going to ask what is my type?'
'No,' I replied as he led the way along the corridor of bedrooms. 'You've already implied that you're interested in me, and I like to think I'm a trusting kind of girl. So you're either being sincere, in which case I'm extremely flattered, or you're pulling my leg and pretending you like me for a bet or something, and if that's the – '
'I'm being sincere,' he replied forcefully as he ground to a halt at bedroom number fourteen and turned to face me, a serious look on his face. Jesus, it was as hot as his smiling face. I think I'd find any of his faces hot. 'I've never led a woman on, Abbie. I'm known for being direct. There's just something about you I can't explain, something that makes me want to get to know you better, something I find incredibly attractive. Come on, you're still shaking. Let's get you out of those wet clothes,' he suggested as he turned to open his suite door.