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He didn’t comment.
She glanced over at him, and he was still watching the brides. “What say you, Mr. A?”
He blinked, then cleared his throat with a smile. “Agreed. I’ll message Sam to say we should lock them down for the date.”
“How did you hear about them?” she asked, watching the dancers again.
He hesitated for a beat. “I’ve heard them play before.”
Glancing over, she raised her eyebrows. “Oh yeah? At a wedding?”
He swallowed. “Yeah. That’s right.”
Just as Liv was about to ask him what was up, the fishtail-dress bride popped up in front of them. “Hello! I don’t think we’ve met. Are you friends of Sarah’s?” She gestured toward her new wife.
“Oh no, sorry,” Liv replied, feeling guilty. “I’m afraid we aren’t on the guest list. The band said it was okay to pop in and listen to a quick couple of numbers because we’re looking to book them for a wedding.”
The bride’s face lit up. “You two are getting married too? That’s awesome!” Before Liv could correct her, she’d started waving madly at her spouse. “Sarah! Come here!”
Liv shot Arran an apologetic look, but he had a smile on his face. She turned back to the bride. “Sorry, I didn’t mean—”
“These guys are getting married too!” Fishtail Bride said to Sarah, who gave them a shy smile.
“That’s lovely,” Sarah said. “Are you friends of Angela’s?”
“No,” Angela replied, clearly the more gregarious of the two. “They’re here to see the band. They’re going to book them for their wedding.”
“When are you getting married?” Sarah asked.
“Oh, we aren’t—” Liv began.
“June,” Arran said, taking hold of her hand and stopping her in her tracks.
Angela squealed. “Not long to go! Bit last-minute, aren’t you?”
Arran slung his arm around her shoulders and Liv thought she might drop down dead from a heart attack. “I know, right?” he said smoothly. “It’s just that a cancellation came up for Glenavie Castle and we had our hearts set on it.”
Liv swallowed against her dry throat. “Yes. Hearts set,” she parroted.
“Well, we can definitely recommend these guys,” Sarah said, gesturing toward the band. “The dance floor’s been full all night. They really know how to get everyone up and partying.”
“Thanks,” Arran said. “We were just saying that we’re going to lock them down because we liked what we heard.”
Angela grabbed Liv’s hand. “You should come and dance with us. That way you’ll get a proper feel for them!”
Before Liv could comment, Angela was pulling her and Arran toward the floor, Sarah in tow. As soon as her feet touched the wooden dance floor, Angela began gyrating in time to the music, whirling Liv and Arran round to face her and grabbing Sarah to dance next to her so the four were in a circle.
Glancing across at Arran, Liv was relieved to see that he had finally relaxed and was performing on Angela’s instruction, imitating her moves and adding one of his own to throw the dance batonback to her. Angela threw back her head and laughed in delight as Sarah smiled at the scene, her own moves more understated.
Liv grinned as Arran began to moonwalk across the floor between them, and Angela tried to imitate but ended up tripping on her tightly fitted fishtail and falling into her wife’s arms. The two kissed as the band began to play Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody,” and Liv’s heart turned to actual mush.
She turned away to let the happy couple dance in each other’s arms and saw that Arran was moonwalking back toward her. He held his hand out with a grin and she took it, her skin tingling at his touch, as the opening bars of the song gave way to the first of the lyrics.
They moved in time with each other, his arm around her waist and her hand reaching up to take his shoulder, holding hands on the other side. Her senses were heightened by his proximity, as if she were aware of every microscopic nerve ending in contact with his body—and each one of them fizzed with excitement.
His face was fully open and relaxed for the first time that evening, and it made her heart soar. The chorus kicked in and he released her waist to spin her around, coming to meet her and lift her in the air as the spin ended.
She laughed in exhilaration, holding her arms out like Kate Winslet on the bow of theTitanicas he twirled them around, her trust in him to hold on to her and keep her safe unwavering. The room was still spinning a little as he lowered her to the ground, bringing her down against his body. “With somebody who loves me,” sang the lead singer as Liv’s eyes met Arran’s.
