Page 10 of The Forever Match

But the Queen dismissed her tone with a shake of the head. “I wasn’t sure how long this would take, and they’re both under the weather.”

“That’s because they’re constantly eating everything in sight.”

Victoria’s mother blinked, but decided to ignore her daughter’s comment. The Queen didn’t have any makeup on today, and the dark circles under her eyes were more prominent. Ash hoped that wasn’t their doing.

“I know the staff could have looked after them, but the truth is, I didn’t want to leave them. Plus, it’s close by and convenient. You know how sensitive they are.”

“I know how spoilt they are.”

The Queen waved her hand. “You’ll hardly know they’re here.”

As if sensing they were being talked about, both corgis chose that moment to start barking.

Victoria raised an eyebrow, along with a million hackles.

“By the way, I got a very large delivery of lingonberry jam today from the Swedish embassy. Do you know anything about that?” the Queen asked.

The blush that worked its way up Victoria’s cheeks was fierce and fast as she pursed her lips in thought. Then she snapped her fingers, and nodded.

“Astrid said they were going to send it. Traditional Swedish wedding gift,” she replied.

Smart thinking from her fiancée. It was all Ash could do not to applaud. She moved behind Victoria, and placed a warm hand in the small of her back.

Victoria’s face twitched as she glanced at Ash. Victoria was in a funk today, and Ash didn’t need her picking a fight with her mother when she didn’t need to.

Rather, they needed to focus on the ceremony, because in four days, an audience of billions around the world were going to watch it.

The Queen shushed her dogs with a sharp command, and amazingly, it did the trick. “Where have you got to? Have the staff measured the walkways? Do you know where your charity youngsters and the young footballers need to stand?”

Both Ash and Victoria were walking out to a guard of honour from the Lionesses’ youth team on one side, and the teenagers from Victoria’s homeless charity on the other. They’d all been thrilled to be asked initially. Would they feel the same if they had to stand in the rain for a couple of hours?

Ash glanced up at the roof of the marquee as the rain splattered against it.

“Yes, that’s done. We just need to run through the aisle walks and the ceremony.” Victoria frowned. “Talking of which, where’s Father?”

The Queen furrowed her brow in exactly the same manner as her daughter, and Ash got a front-row seat to her future. She wasn’t at all mad about it.

“I don’t know. He went to play golf with Roger and Travis, and now he’s stuck in traffic. Says there’s a big snarl-up on the M25 and he’s going to be late. I told him not to go today, but he insisted it was his last chance before the roads got impossible.”

Ash checked her watch again. Her parents were also late, held up in the same traffic. She and Victoria were walking up the aisle with their fathers, one after the other.

“As we’re both fatherless, we’ll have to skip the aisle rehearsal, and focus on the ceremony,” Ash said.

“Good idea, Ashleigh,” the Queen said. “I’ll take a seat at the front, give you any pointers on what both of your faces are doing. Remember, the cameras are on you at all times.”

Victoria shot Ash a ‘give me strength’ look, then took her hand and together, they walked up the aisle, sliced through the centre of acres of chairs. Ash’s heart thudded against her ribs, and it only got louder with every step she took.

This was just the two of them. Nobody else, bar Victoria’s mother, the celebrant, some Palace staff, and two yappy dogs.

Sometimes, she wasn’t sure how she’d cope with the ceremony, the wedding party, and what was down the line. The lifetime of cameras and curtsies waiting on the other side. It loomed in her chest like weather.

But then, she looked at Victoria, radiant even when she was in a huff, and she remembered why she was here.

For love.

“In four days we’re doing this for real. With an audience. All these rows of chairs full.” Victoria flashed a nervous smile. “Can you believe it? I never thought I’d get married when I was growing up.”

Ash squeezed Victoria’s hand, then shook her head. “Me neither.”