Page 94 of More Than Just Friends

‘Yep!’ Laila smiled.

‘Who’s a millionaire!’ Stella added.

‘Some women have all the luck!’ I chuckled.

‘Cassie would know all about that.’ Stella gestured towards a woman with light brown skin and the shiniest curls I’d ever seen.

‘Why’s that?’ I frowned. ‘Did you also bag yourself a millionaire?’

‘Nope.’ Stella shook her head. ‘Cassie’s an overachiever, so she had to get herself a billionaire!’

Aha.

I remembered Sammie mentioning that there were some millionaires and billionaires coming to the wedding. So these were the people she was talking about.

‘I didn’t know he had money when we met.’ Cassie flashed a playful smile. ‘I just thought he was an arrogant dickhead!’

‘That must’ve been a nice surprise, then!’

‘It was a massive shock,’ Cassie said. ‘Most days I still feel like I’m living in a dream. Nico, that’s my other half, he’s an investor in the Love Hotel resorts. That’s why we’re here. We met Laila at the Love Hotel Riviera in the south of France because her boyfriend, Gabriel, is a good friend of ours.’

‘Wow,’ I said. ‘I love how many people the Love Hotel brought together. Not just the romantic relationships, but the friendships too.’

‘Amen!’ A voice I instantly recognised as Sammie’s sounded from behind me. ‘Hi all! Sorry I’m late. Had to double-check something with the cake for tomorrow.’

‘Sounds like essential work!’ Laila said. ‘Can’t have a wedding without a decent cake.’

‘Yep!’ Sammie agreed. ‘And Stella’s cake is so big, there’s probably enough to feed the whole island twice over!’

We all burst into laughter.

‘Is everything else all okay?’ Stella asked, taking a sip of water.

‘Everything is tickety-boo. Don’t worry, hon. All the essentials are sorted including the flowers, cake, DJ and the catering. You had your final dress fitting earlier, right?’

‘Yeah,’ Stella confirmed. ‘Max said his suit fits perfectly too.’

‘Well, then you’re good to go!’ Sammie said. ‘Are you nervous?’

‘I’m actually not,’ Stella replied. ‘More excited. I know Max is the one for me, so the wedding is just a way to make everything official. And an excuse to have a party in Santorini. I mean, look at this place!’ She gestured to the sea views.

‘It really is stunning,’ I said and the whole table gushed in agreement.

Multiple waiters, or Cuisine Champions as they called them here, brought a selection of starters to the table.

‘These look lovely!’ Stella said.

‘Here we have dolmadakia.’ A female Cuisine Champion pointed to the first plate. ‘It is vine leaves stuffed with rice, onions, pine nuts and herbs. Then we have Greek salad and some tomatokeftedes, which are tomato fritters with onions and herbs.’

‘Yum!’ I said.

She rattled off several more dishes, but when she mentioned spanakopita, my ears instantly pricked up.

That was Noah’s favourite.

‘Aren’t they just for breakfast?’ I asked.

‘It is popular for breakfast but can also be enjoyed for lunch and dinner.’ She smiled.