‘I'll have to leave now then. I was going to stay to hear my dad's speech.’

There was a pause and then Hugo said, 'Listen, you stay where you are. I'll collect you.'

‘But, Hugo, there's an hour between us, it won't be any quicker if you come and fetch me – longer in fact.'

‘Stay where you are. I'll come and get you. Trust me.’

He disconnected, leaving Sarah to wonder if she could in fact trust him or not. Well, she would just have to. It was bad news that Carrie was so upset. She'd known it was possible, of course. It wasn't that celebrities were any more difficult than anyone else, but they were used to a certain standard. And if Sarah had paid for a service she'd be very annoyed if she didn't really get it, even though everything had been left in good hands. It was always going to be tight but it would have been just about doable if the service hadn't gone on so long. But it had. And now she was in a major bind, torn between letting down her sister and her biggest-ever client. Although, to be fair, her sister was being brilliant about it.

Sarah stayed seated, drumming her fingers on the table for a few seconds before she realised what she was doing and stopped. 'Please get your food faster,' she silently urged the guests. 'Drink up!' She took a sip of her wine, forgetting for a moment that she wasn't going to. Forcing her mind away from her anxieties she remembered how pleased she'd been to find the wine at a supermarket. She'd tasted it in the car park, found out it was all right, and then gone back in and cleared the shelves. It was less than half price once the reduction for quantity had been taken into consideration.

The Catering Ladies were doing a very good job. She saw a wodge of sandwiches being delivered over several hats to some surprised relations who were having a good catchup. Then she noticed Veronica coming towards the top table with plates in her hands. Smoked salmon and salad -perfect! She'd explained how unhappy Mrs Boscastle had been with the buffet idea and now she might be fooled into thinking she'd got her own way in the matter after all.

Sarah chatted to her father and stepmother, trying to hide from them her anxiety about Carrie's wedding. A helicopter went overhead just as her stepmother was telling her something about buying her outfit and her decision not to wear a hat but, instead, a fascinator. Sarah nodded and smiled and hoped she wasn't supposed to be sympathetic. Inside, she was dying with anxiety and knew if such a thing were actually possible, she'd be dead in minutes.

As she turned to the neighbour on her right, hoping to take her mind off her increasing panic, there was a tap on her shoulder. It was Hugo. In person.

‘How on earth-'

‘Come on. Say goodbye as quickly as you can. I've got a taxi waiting.'

‘A taxi? Hugo..

It was only after she left the tent that she realised she hadn't actually said goodbye to anyone. She'd glimpsed Lily waving merrily at her, and flapping her towards the door. When Sarah had turned Lily had kissed her hands to her and Sarah knew that one wedding at least would be all right.

She was about to ask Hugo how he'd got there, when she was ushered firmly into the back of a taxi.

Hugo got in next to her. 'Fast as you can, mate,' he said to the driver, who, engine already running, sped forward.

‘It's not going to be any quicker to get there by taxi,' Sarah complained, 'and a whole lot more expensive. Although I must say, he has got you here very quickly. I wasn't expecting you for an hour at least.'

‘Which would have been far too late and which is why we're not going by taxi.'

‘What do you mean? This is a taxi!' Nerves were making her tetchy.

‘Yes,' he said patiently, 'but it's taking us somewhere else.'

‘Don't tell me there's an express train?' Her mind whirled around uselessly. Did this mean she could have got to Somerby, or at least the nearest town, in record time? 'Not a train, a helicopter.’

Up until that point in her life Sarah had always believed she would only go in a helicopter if she were on a sinking ship. Now she discovered that sinking ships could be metaphorical.

She closed her eyes as the taxi nipped round the back to a playing field where a helicopter, hardly bigger than a dragonfly to Sarah's panic-stricken eyes, whirred impatiently.

‘Keep to the front of the aircraft, out of the way of the rear rotor blade,' Hugo shouted into her ear.

Then he shoved her in the direction of the open door. She put her foot on the rail and scrambled in, her dress riding up horribly as she did so.

‘Shove up,' Hugo commanded and she shuffled over to the second seat. He did up her seatbelt for her and handed her a headset. 'Put these on, then we can talk.’

Sarah put on her headset and, moments later, the helicopter rose into the air. Just for a second Sarah saw the ground get farther away and then she closed her eyes and gripped on to Hugo's hand with both of hers.

‘Are you OK?' he asked her.

‘I'll be fine once we're there,' she said, her eyes clamped shut.

‘Not keen on flying?' asked the pilot.

‘Not really,' Sarah managed. 'But I'll be fine.'

‘We're really lucky Bob hung around for a few moments after he'd dropped off Carrie and Mandy. He's got to pick up some of their guests later,' said Hugo. 'I was able to nab him.'

‘Mm,' said Sarah, knowing she should be enthusing about this stroke of luck but not able to do so at just that moment.

‘Presumably you want to go straight to the hotel where Carrie's getting ready? We'll be there in about twenty minutes,' Hugo went on.

Sarah opened her eyes for a giddy-making second. 'Oh, that is good.' Then she closed them again.

‘Carrie only arrived about half an hour ago. I think Elsa wanted to get cracking on the dress straightaway.'

‘I should think Bron wanted to do her hair and make-up, too. I wonder if it was wrong of me to ask her to get involved?' Sarah was clinging on tight, her life and all her mistakes passing before her eyes behind her eyelids.

‘She's done a brilliant job on the cakes, and helped with the flowers. And she is a hairdresser and make-up artist, isn't she?’

`Mm.'

‘Well then.'

‘And Elsa, those last-minute bridesmaids..

‘Sorted. She dressed them up at the house before taking the dress over to wait for Carrie at the hotel. Even the photographer is quite good.' This raised a faint smile from Sarah. 'So, you don't have to worry about anything except getting Carrie on side again.'

‘That's quite bad enough,' she squeaked.

‘Oh good,' said the pilot, 'it's all still clear for landing. There seem to be a good few paps there, but they know better than to get in the way of the blades.'

‘They'll all think you're a celebrity,' said Hugo.

‘If that's supposed to make me feel better, it doesn't.' Hugo laughed.

Once Sarah had taken off her headset she became aware of how noisy the helicopter would have been without one. She followed Hugo out of the door and he hurried her to the front of the helicopter. 'You go inside, I'll just have a word with Bob. Go and make your peace with Carrie.’

Sarah's last thought before she hurried into the hotel was that she must ask Hugo how much that had all cost.

The fact that she had arrived by helicopter and that the people on reception eventually remembered meeting her before, when she had checked out the hotel, meant she was ushered to Carrie's suite without too much fuss. She knocked on the door and Mandy opened it.

‘Carrie!' Sarah was aware she had mud on her shoes, her fascinator was askew and she must have looked as if she'd been drinking. 'I am so sorry! How can I apologise enough? I was at my sister's wedding and I couldn't get away sooner.’