Don't Tell the Groom (37 page)

Authors: Anna Bell

âLadies and gentlemen,' said the lead singer of the band, âwhile we take a break, please put your hands together for the maid of honour and best man, DJ Loopy Lou and DJ PP-L.'

My open mouth on the video is embarrassing. I swear you can see my fillings as Josh flicks between me and the scene unfolding on the stage. There, in all their glory, are Phil and Lou dressed up in ridiculous hip-hop inspired outfits. Phil even has his trouser leg half rolled up and has my mum's hat on backwards. And Lou has Phil's cravat tied around her head.

âYo, yo, yo,' said Lou. âLet the battle commence.'

The next hour was hysterical. I swear it took a week for my ribs to heal from all the laughing. Lou and Phil battled their way through an hour of songs, each pulling out a song that was either one of my favourites or one of Mark's. It got everybody on the dance floor. And I mean everyone, even Nanny Violet.

Which reminds me. My favourite Nanny Violet memory of the whole wedding is in the second set of the band when Ted asked her to dance and they swayed around in a perfect waltz to âThat's Amore'. I couldn't have choreographed it better myself. OK, so I did invite him to the evening reception. And I did give him a nudge when the song came on. But really it was all down to him. I haven't seen Violet smile that much since she drank half a bottle of Bailey's one Christmas before she realised it had alcohol in it.

âYou're not watching that bloody video again, are you?' asks Mark, as he walks into the lounge.

âMaybe. I just love it.'

âSo did I, the
first
time I saw it.'

I know I'm not supposed to be keeping secrets from Mark, and I'm doing really well on the whole, except I do sometimes secretly watch this video once or maybe twice a week.

âWell, what am I supposed to do now that I'm not planning the wedding any more?' I ask pouting, trying to do my best Jane impression.

âI can think of something.'

He grabs my hand and pulls me off the sofa and leads me up towards the stairs. Stage six!
Stage six
Â â just kidding.

If there is one thing that the pre-engagement wedding planning taught me, it was not to be in such a hurry for everything to be perfect. Whatever life throws at Mark and me, I don't care, as I know we'll cope with it
together
.

The End

About the Author

Anna Bell writes the weekly column
The Secret Dreamworld of an Aspiring Author
on the website Novelicious, and reviews modern women's fiction for the website the Chicklit Club. She is also a member of the Romantic Novelists' Association's New Writers' Scheme.

Anna gave up a career as a museum curator to become a full-time writer. When not at her laptop she can usually be found walking her Labrador with her husband, and dreaming up new plots.

You can find out more about her on her website:

www.annabellwrites.com

or follow her on twitter

@annabell_writes

Acknowledgements

I'd like to thank Jay, who did a marvellous job of editing this book. As always, your attention to detail and suggestions were spot on. Thank you also to Andrew Brown at Design for Writers for designing such a beautiful cover, and for being patient with my silhouette panics.

I'd also like to thank my agent Hannah for taking me on as a client and putting up with my many, many ridiculous questions. I'm so excited about this stage of my publishing journey!

Although the topic of online gambling gets a light treatment in this romcom, it is a really serious issue. I'd like to thank those that helped me with those elements of the story by sharing their very personal experiences. Any mistakes that I've made relating to counselling or advice are all my own.

Writing books is an exhausting process and I couldn't do it without the support of my friends and family. A special thanks to Jane, Christie and Steve for reading the first chapter, which I sent them hesitantly; their positive feedback gave me the confidence to write the rest.

I also owe a huge thanks to those online people that give me endless support, Twitter is one of the best companions that a writer can have (other than a dog). Thank you especially to the ladies of Novelicious: Kirsty, Debs, Kira, Amanda, Cesca, Kirsty P, Jenni J, Jenni C and Cressida for all their help with covers, taglines and blurb, and for listening to my rants.

Thank you also to those people who are continuing to buy my books, and for those that have written reviews and tweeted with me. I love nothing more than hearing that I made people laugh or smile.

And finally, I owe this book to my husband. He may have been working away while I wrote this, but somehow he still managed to be a slave-driver. I am going to enjoy him being around for the next book though, as I did really miss him tidying up after me and feeding me chocolate!