Free Sealed with a Christmas Kiss by Rachael Lucas Page B

also said we didn’t need to rush it, and your exact words were something like “no chance” as you ran out of the room at about ninety miles an hour, if you
recall.’
    ‘Yes, but . . . ’ Kate pulled a face. Technically he was right, but she’d got this all worked out in her head.
    ‘Sweetheart, if you want to get married on Christmas Eve, I’m all for it. I love you. I’m happy to tell the world.’
    ‘We would be telling the world, remember?’ Kate reflected on the emails she’d exchanged previously with Sian about wedding ideas. She was keen to get as much media coverage as
possible for her new site, but that would mean loads of publicity – and hopefully bookings, too – for Duntarvie House next summer.
    ‘Go for it.’ Roddy kissed Kate’s forehead. ‘As long as Sian isn’t about to text and demand a conference call, I’m happy to do whatever it takes.’
    They drove in to Kilmannan that morning in separate cars. Roddy was going on to check on the progress of Finn’s new forestry project, which had the potential to make a
real difference. He’d had a plan to create and sell one-off pieces of sustainable wooden furniture as well as the garden furniture, which had started to take off thanks to online sales, and a
recent feature in a Scottish magazine had led to a flurry of commissions. Things felt exciting and positive. Even the half-longed-for, half-dreaded arrival of Kate’s mum, due in on the eleven
o’clock ferry, couldn’t make a difference to her mood. Parking outside the council offices, Kate stood and watched as Roddy tucked his Land Rover up against the pavement to avoid
blocking the narrow road.
    She pulled her scarf tighter against her face, tucking her nose in to keep it warm – there was a biting wind coming in from the harbour. Roddy leaned over, dropping a kiss on her
forehead.
    ‘You’ve definitely picked up all the right stuff? I put my birth certificate on the table, and they need another form of—’
    Smiling, shutting her up with a kiss, he patted the envelope he had tucked under one arm. ‘It’s all in here.’
    Excitement and nerves hit at the same time. Reaching across, Kate squeezed Roddy’s hand to reassure herself.
    ‘Once we’ve done this bit, it’s really happening. I think it’s more fun doing this without waiting around for ages and spending two years stressing out about wedding
plans.’
    She was gabbling a bit as they sat in the waiting room of the registrar’s office. It happened whenever something exciting or stressful was happening, and this was both. An impromptu
Christmas wedding was one thing, but one where the stakes were this high was quite another.
    ‘Two years of Sian flapping about making sure everything is picture perfect would send me insane.’ Roderick’s tone was decisive. On discovering that her plans for a winter
wedding feature for her new launch weren’t cancelled, Sian had activated Total Control Freak mode. Roderick had dealt with it by developing a sudden, all-encompassing need to involve himself
in Finn’s marketing plans, claiming that Finn could really do with a hand with the business side of things.
    ‘Well, you’d better brace yourself,’ Kate said, as much for her own benefit as for his. ‘She’s due here in a week. We need to find a way of dealing with her when
she goes over the top – it’s only a blooming wedding, after all. Apparently her new boyfriend is a photographer, and he’s coming to do reportage shots of the
preparations.’
    ‘Roddy, Kate?’ The registrar opened her door, looking down at her piece of paper. ‘Come away in, we’ll get this sorted.’
    With the paperwork formalized, and a kiss in parting, Kate was left with an hour to spare in Kilmannan before the ferry was due. Parking the car down by the harbour, she walked
back up onto Main Street. There was time to get a coffee in Bruno’s cafe – and no doubt he’d be watching for the ferry eagerly, knowing his sweetheart was on