He ran past, realised where he needed to be and ran into the chapel.
'Rosie! I need some help.'
She waved him away.
'Not now Bill, I've just got the finishing touches to do.'
'I got a note from Sophie, I don't know what to do, I'm so confused.'
She squinted at him.
'So am I. What are you blabbering on about?'
He might as well just come out with it.
'I'm Sophie's father.'
She looked at him incomprehensibly. How the hell did he know? She laughed awkwardly before she gave it away.
'You're joking aren't you?'
He shook his head, clearly confused, still out of it.
'You're not joking are you?' Rosie's jovial attitude unravelled. 'Bollocks!'
'What?' He snapped back to the conversation.
'Hmm?' She tried to play for time but couldn't think of anything. He sighed in frustration.
'Look what I'm saying is, Sophie's my daughter. I was supposed to walk her down the aisle.'
'And…how did this come about?' she asked, hoping Donna wouldn't have a heart attack upon hearing this.
'Last night.' He didn't elaborate. She tried to get through to him another way.
'Give me that.' She snatched the piece of paper he was holding and read it rapidly, eyebrows dancing in dismay. What was Sophie playing at?
'Well, I know nothing about this' she lied through her teeth. 'You should go and talk to Donna about this.'
He felt relieved at the simple answer. He stuffed it in his jacket pocket and nodded.
'Ok I will.' He turned to go and was nearly at the door when she stopped him with an icy tone.
'Bill. Where are you going?'
He was back to confused.
'Going to go and talk to Donna.'
'What do you think you're doing?' She ran over and grabbed him. 'The wedding starts in 5 minutes, you're going to ruin it now?'
'You told me to go and talk to Donna!' he roared, suddenly incensed.
'I didn't mean NOW' she shouted back at him.
'Oh, right.' Bill stared at her, suddenly discomfited.
Rosie propelled him to a chair and forcibly sat him down. He tried to get up but she restrained him. She slid onto the next chair and glared at him. He felt compelled to talk.
'It was our secret. It was meant to be a surprise.' He jumped as she grabbed his collar and drew him to her, turning her head to brush his ear which got him hot under the collar all of a sudden. She startled him by hissing in his ear;
'Donna doesn't like surprises.'
'I'm starting to realise that.' He felt stupid. She released him and got up, circling around him to put her hands on his shoulders. Resting her head against his, she lightly massaged his shoulders and waited for him to calm down. Bill braced himself at the unfamiliar contact but before long he relaxed as she'd worked her magic.
'What do you suggest I do?' he asked helplessly.
'I'm going to make this really easy for you' she replied.
'I'm listening.'
'Sit here, shut up and look happy.'
He thought it over. 'I can do that.'
'Good.' She walked away and clattered around with the finishing touches. He gave up and sat back. He tried not to think of the note burning a hole in his jacket pocket. He snuck a glance at her and saw her smirk.
'What?' He demanded.
'You weren't really looking forward to walking her down the aisle were you?'
Bill got defensive.
'Yes.'
She glanced back at him with that know-it-all expression. He felt flustered.
'I was going to.'
She said nothing. Bill felt goaded into explaining himself.
'Ok I was shit scared' he confessed.
She laughed.
'Don't worry about it' she assured him. 'You're off the hook. No responsibilities' she reminded him.
He brightened up.
'That makes me feel better.'
'Bold strong adventurer like you; would have thought being calm in a crisis would be your kind of thing.'
'This isn't the same. I'd rather run from a wildebeest stampede' he muttered, slouching into the chair. 'I could handle that. This is terrifying. I'm used to hiking and backpacking. I'm a bit of a lone wolf. When they suggest marriage I'm off like a shot.'
'Just wait until they want a mortgage' she warned. He frowned.
'Why would you want one of those?'
'Exactly. The last one wanted to get a flat. With a mortgage. And a garden.'
Bill looked perplexed.
'Urgh, in the suburbs?'
She nodded. They exchanged dark glances at the thought of the suburbs.
'I asked him if he was going to look after the garden because I sure as hell wasn't going to. If I wanted responsibility I would have got a puppy.'
He laughed. He liked Rosie. She got where he was coming from.
'Tell me about it. All of that pressure.'
She pointed the lighter at him. 'Do me a favour and shut up. You're a man; you have no idea what it's like being badgered by your colleagues about commitment. For 10 bloody years all I've been getting is "isn't it time you got married? You're not young anymore. You'll change your mind in a few years' time dear. Hurry up, your biological clock is ticking." She tapped her wrist.
Bill suddenly felt outraged even though he had no idea why.
'Tell them to fuck off!'
'I do!'
He snorted with laughter at the thought of those stuffy women at the bookshop lecturing smart, sparky Rosie about life. He respected someone who stood their ground.
'Ok I'll shut up, I have no idea about anything' he agreed.
He wrestled with his tie and Rosie came over and removed it, draping it over the chair. He'd never got the hang of ties. You didn't have much occasion to wear one in Australia. He noted that her hands were gentle and he hadn't come across that in a while.
'I'm out of my depth here. I'm not good much at weddings' he confessed.
She appraised the man in front of her.
'Never took you to be a bit of a softy.'
He blushed, slightly self-conscious. All of a sudden she thought he seemed a little less brash, a little more appealing.