Free The Desperate Bride’s Diet Club by Alison Sherlock Page A

the excuse to escape, Violet got up to return her empty tea cup to the kitchen.
    Unfortunately, Sebastian’s mother had followed her into the room and was standing guard at doorway.
    ‘A wedding,’ said Miriam. ‘How exciting. I can’t wait to tell everyone.’
    Violet nodded her agreement.
    ‘Can I see the ring?’

    Violet held out her left hand and watched Miriam peer forward for a closer look.
    ‘Lovely,’ declared Sebastian’s mother. ‘Emeralds are so classy, aren’t they? But then Sebastian did always have good taste.’
    Violet carried on nodding and smiling in reply.
    ‘I suppose you’ll want to lose a bit of weight for the wedding,’ said Miriam, giving Violet a quick once-over.
    Violet stopped nodding andblushed bright red, mortified.
    ‘You could always try those slimming pills,’ Miriam carried on, not noticing or caring about Violet’s embarrassment. ‘One of the ladies at my lunch club has lost a couple of stone in a month. Your mother was a large woman, was she?
    The mention of her mother brought tears to Violet’s eyes. She had been slim, a dark-haired beauty. Nothing like her fat daughter.
    ‘It’s a shame because you’ve got ever such a pretty face.’
    Thankfully Sebastian chose that moment to appear. ‘Any more of that cake?’ he asked.
    Miriam’s smile snapped back on. ‘Of course, darling.’ Then she turned to look at Violet. ‘You must both have a second piece.’
    She went back into the lounge with Sebastian to sort out the plates, leaving Violet to calm down both her red cheeks and herracing pulse.
    But somewhere amid the embarrassment was a flash of anger. How dare Miriam dismiss the death of her parents as ‘unfortunate’?
    Violet was the only child of parents who had adored her. Then, when she was twelve, they had both been killed in a car accident. It hadn’t been unfortunate. It had been catastrophic.
    Not only did Violet suffer the deep grief of losing her parents, but herlife suddenly changed dramatically. She was torn out of school and away from her friends to live with her mother’s sister Mary and her husband Joel. They were the only family willing to put up with an orphaned twelve-year-old. Violet had no choice but to go.
    Her parents’ death had been a cataclysm and Violet hadn’t been truly happy since.
    Apart from now, she reminded herself. She was engaged.She was getting married to the love of her life. But her heart sank once more as she thought of Sebastian’s parents’ country club and all their cronies.
    She would have preferred a small wedding. Intimate and stylish. But Miriam had already mentioned a guest list of at least a hundred. And that was just off the top of her head. It was made up of a lot of people who didn’t know or care about Violet.

    She tried hard to think about who she would want at her wedding. The only person who popped into her mind was Uncle Joel. But he had died four years ago, just before Aunty Mary.
    And now there was nobody who cared. Nobody except Sebastian in her life.
    Sebastian was smiling as they drove home later that afternoon.
    ‘Well, that’s all sorted,’ he said. ‘Mother says she’ll book the church and receptionso at least we don’t have that stress on our hands.’
    But Violet was beginning to panic. A fat bride. A porky, obese bride waddling down the aisle in front of one hundred guests who didn’t know her. They would all be whispering, giggling, laughing at her. She could feel her pulse racing at the thought of it. She couldn’t do it. Oh God. All those people.
    She took a deep breath and looked at herfiancé. ‘We could always elope,’ she found herself saying.
    ‘Elope?’ He sounded quite shocked. ‘Don’t be ridiculous. My family has been getting married in St Winifred’s for generations. And you know what Mother’s like with foreign food.’
    Sebastian was right. It was ridiculous. As usual, Violet was being an idiot.
    But what about us? a little voice inside her asked. What about