No Regrets: A Novel of Love and Lies in World War II England (The Thornton Trilogy Book 1) (25 page)
Authors: Mary Christian Payne
1945
December 28th arrived with a blue sky and sunshine. The wedding was to be held in the chapel adjoining
Highcroft Hall,
and the reception would follow in the beautiful ballroom where the engagement party had taken place. The chapel was adorned with red roses and white lilies, along with pine boughs draped along the railings. Red bows were tied on the end of each pew.
The chapel was filled to capacity, since every person who’d received an invitation was present. Elise, Violette, Giselle, Chloe, and the other three bridesmaids had spent the previous night at
Highcroft Hall,
so that they would be able to dress on the premises without any worry about creasing their gowns on the way to the ceremony. Giselle and Elise hadn’t fallen asleep until the wee hours, since they’d had so much to catch up on. Elise was adamant that she wouldn’t see Sloan on their wedding day, so she took meals in her room and never ventured down the staircase.
Guests had begun to arrive the evening before, and there was a lovely dinner held in the mammoth dining room. Elliott was there, as well as Ted and Giselle, Violette, Lord Sterling, Josef, all persons in the wedding party and, of course, the groom’s parents. It had been a charming occasion, and everything went well.
It was difficult to tell what was going on with Lord Sterling and Violette. He seemed much taken with her. She’d told Elise that before the relationship moved forward, she intended to tell him her entire background. Elise begged her to wait until after the wedding, because she certainly didn’t want any upset. Violette agreed. She would never have done anything to spoil Elise’s wedding day.
Elise was the perfect bride. She was dressed in an exquisite gown. It was white taffeta, trimmed with white velvet. The long sleeves had soft cuffs of velvet, and the bodice was of the same fabric. The skirt billowed out into folds of silk taffeta, ending in a train trimmed with velvet braid. She wore a diadem of diamonds that Lady Celia had worn on her own wedding day. It held a gossamer veil in place on top of her golden curls. The matching earrings were a gift from Sloan. Violette gave her delicate, lace gloves, bought in Paris before the war, and Giselle provided the blue garter, so necessary for any bride. Josef presented her with a silver six-pence for her shoe, meant to bring luck and happiness. Elise’s bouquet was an enormous arrangement of lilies – all varieties and all white.
Her bridesmaids were dressed in green velvet. The gowns had high waistlines, reminiscent of the Napoleonic era. Each girl carried a white fur muff, topped with a sprig of holly. Chloe was a tiny angel, dressed in white velvet, with touches of red at the collar and cuffs. She carried a basket of red and white rose petals, strewn in front of Elise as she began her walk toward Sloan. Josef was the proud brother who escorted her, and everyone in the sanctuary stood as she made her way toward the altar. Josef handed her off to Sloan and took a seat next to Violette. The two lovers stepped forward and knelt before the Rector. The organ played enchanting music, and Elise and Sloan bowed their heads in prayer.
After they stood and repeated vows, there was the exchange of rings, followed by the pronouncement that they were husband and wife. The entire chapel burst into applause, as Sloan bent and kissed Elise’s sweet lips. No one in Thornton-on-Sea could say that they’d ever attended a more beautiful ceremony. Both Lady Celia and Violette wiped tears from her eyes. No one would ever know what a large part Violette had played in the coming together of the bride and groom.
Following the ceremony, the reception drew oohs and ahh’s from those attending. There were so many incredible flowers that the ballroom was filled with sweet fragrance. Fountains were scattered about the room, beneath arrangements of roses, climbing on arbors and trellises. An orchestra played beautiful dance music - songs from the war years, which kindled memories for everyone in the room. A sumptuous buffet table was piled high with delicacies, and a triumphant wedding cake stood in the centre. Red roses climbed along the tiers. They rested in a pretty arrangement on the top. After receiving their guests, Elise and Sloan made their way round the room. Anne was standing with Elliott, and there was nothing for it but to acknowledge her. Before they moved on, after a chat with Elliott, Anne pulled them both aside for a private word.
“I want you to know that I truly wish you all the best. I made a terrible mistake and someday I hope you can find it in your hearts to forgive me. I’ll spend the rest of my days trying to make amends. You two make a stunning couple. Thank God my actions didn’t keep you from one another.”
“Anne, both Elise and I appreciate your apology, and we hold no grudge. You can rest assured that there won’t be any repercussions from us. Perhaps someday we can heal from the past completely. We do wish you well and hope you find happiness in the future.”
With that Sloan took Elise’s hand and turned away. Just as they began to move on, to speak with another group of guests, Elise spotted Violette and Lord Sterling entering the ballroom from the outer doorway. Violette looked triumphant, while Lord Sterling looked like he’d won first place at the County Fair. What on Earth could have happened? Surely Violette hadn’t chosen to admit her past to him? She had promised not to do so. Elise found her way over to Violette and took her by the arm. “Why are you looking like the cat who ate the canary?” she questioned.
“Perhaps because that’s the way I feel. I had to confront Lord Sterling with the truth. He began to speak about the future to me. He said he hadn’t felt so romantic in ages. I had to nip it in the bud. Or, at the very least, make certain he knew all of the particulars, before getting carried away with talk about what a grand lady I am. So, I motioned for him to follow me outside, and I simply told the truth.”
“Oh my God! How did you say it?”
“I just said ‘There are things you don’t know about me. Before you say another word about your feelings, let me be very honest with you. I operate a brothel in Brighton and have for many years.’”
“What did he say?” asked Elise, putting her hand up to her mouth.
“He said ‘Is it successful? How much is your profit in a year?’”
Elise burst into laughter. “You can’t mean it.”
“Yes. I told him I’d grossed a little under half a million pounds last year. Her proposed to me immediately.”
Elise could scarcely stop laughing. She caught Sloan’s eye and motioned him to her side. When she repeated what Violette had told him, he, too, nearly bent over in hysterics.
And that was the end of that. Elise threw her bouquet; Anne caught it; Chloe danced a jig; Giselle and Ted were seen kissing in the foyer, and Violette and Lord Sterling disappeared up the stairway.
Thornton-on-Sea
basked serenely in the sunlight of a winter day, while Josef Lisak sampled another hors-d’oeuvres, trying to decide whether to add it to the starter menu at ‘
Chez Chloe
’.
The Somerville Trilogy
Willow Grove Abbey: Book 1 of the Somerville Trilogy
St. James Road: Book 2 of the Somerville Trilogy
Serendipity: Book 3 of the Somerville Trilogy
The Claybourne Trilogy
The White Feather: Book 1 of the Claybourne Trilogy
The White Butterfly: Book 2 of the Claybourne Trilogy
White Cliffs of Dover: Book 3 of the Claybourne Trilogy
The Thornton Trilogy
Mary Christian Payne
is an accomplished business-woman who has held high ranking, management positions with Fortune 500 companies, in New York City, St. Louis, Missouri, Orlando, Florida, and Tulsa, Oklahoma. She is a recipient of the Mayor’s Pinnacle Award in Tulsa, for directing a highly successful program at The Women’s Resource Center at the University of Tulsa. All of these positions involved significant amounts of writing. She has also acted as a speech-writer for high profile political figures, and for executives of major corporations.
She is now a retired career psychologist. She was the Founder and President of Transitions Counseling Center, in partnership with her father, the retired CEO of a four billion dollar retail organization. She has taught seminars throughout Oklahoma. Mary Christian is a world traveler, and has spent extensive time in England, thus creating an excellent foundation for writing novels set in Great Britain. The era of World War II has always held tremendous appeal for her, and she is a committed Anglophile. The daughter of an Army Major during World War II, she grew up hearing countless stories of that tumultuous and romantic time. Mary Christian has written and published nine novels since her first was published in 2013.
She lives with her husband, Jim, who is a Pharmacist, and their two beloved Maltese Terriers in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. She is also the mother of two, adult children, and three grandchildren.
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