Diamonds Forever (Diamond Trilogy 3) - Page 120

‘What about being lady of the manor?’ said Kayley. ‘Are you used to that yet?’

‘Well, it’s just a bit of silliness, isn’t it?’ said Linda. ‘It’s not legal or anything. But you’ll have to come round to my new place, Kay. Lovely little bungalow on that new estate, not far from your dad. Gorgeous, it is. There’s one of them islands

in the kitchen, dead posh.’

‘Where is Dad, anyway?’ said Kayley vaguely.

‘Oh, you know what he’s like. Smoking out the back, as usual.’

Kayley laughed.

‘Right. I should’ve guessed.’

The official photographer hurried along the path towards them.

‘What about a picture of the happy couple on the porch?’ he suggested. ‘A new life together, and a new venture. Doesn’t the school open next week?’

‘That’s right,’ said Deano. ‘But we’ll wait for the photos, if that’s all right with you. We’re not all here yet.’

Kayley and Deano hadn’t been wrong in their conjecture about the reason for Jason and Jenna’s lateness to the reception.

They sat in the back of the wedding car, surrounded by clamouring and the flashing of bulbs while Bob, their chauffeur, yelled out of the top of the window at them to get out of his way.

‘Do you know what, Bob?’ said Jenna, leaning forwards. ‘It’s all right. We’ll walk the rest of the way.’

‘What?’ spluttered Bob, but Jenna was already opening the door, dislodging a couple of hangers-on from their billets.

‘What’s going on, Jen?’ Jason scrambled after her.

She emerged, a pristine white swan amidst a pack of snappers in crumpled summer cotton. As if blinded, they all stepped back for her, giving her space to move among them, though the click-click-click mounted to a frenzied pitch.

When she and Jason stood in the centre of a rumbustious circle, her name being called from all directions, she held up her bouquet of calla lilies in a call for silence.

Miraculously, it fell.

‘Thank you all so much for joining us on our special day,’ she said in ringing tones. ‘It really means so much to me and my husband.’

She turned and gave Jason a little smile, which he returned, taking her hand and running his finger over the band of gold he found on it.

‘So,’ she continued, ‘perhaps it’s appropriate, on a wedding day, that we should have a little exchange of gifts. As my gift to you, I will pose for you, here with my new spouse, for the next five minutes. Take as many shots as you like. We’ll kiss, we’ll gaze into each other’s eyes, we’ll do all the cheesy classics and more. And in return, your gift to us will be to leave us alone until after the honeymoon. Do we have a deal?’

There was general laughter, and some jokey questioning as to exactly how far the happy couple were prepared to go in their posing.

‘Hey,’ said Jason. ‘Didn’t you see enough of her last year?’

The notorious Facebook shot had passed into legend, but it didn’t seem to have harmed Jenna’s public image – if anything, it had rather enhanced it, especially as it had such a feel-good love story to go along with it.

More laughter, then a final question.

‘How do you feel about the Harville verdict?’

‘Brilliant,’ said Jenna, hoping that her voice had drowned out Jason’s less press-friendly, ‘Fucking great!’

‘Justice has been done at last,’ she elaborated. ‘Though, as it’s sheer good luck that nobody died as a result of his actions, I’d have been happier with life. But twenty years is a long time. I just hope he’s feeling remorse, though he never seemed the type.’

‘What would you have given him, Jason?’ called another voice.

‘D’you want me to show you?’ growled Jason.

Tags: Justine Elyot Diamond Trilogy Erotic
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