A/N: As promised –part two of the wedding – hope that you enjoy it

Chapter Seventeen

She appeared to be in bed and not in a church at all and Charles was sat on the edge next to her as she screwed her eyes up against the light that he'd just flicked on and realised that her legs were all twisted in the wreckage of the duvet, as she slowly worked out that it was her legs being trapped that had made it seem as if she couldn't run and that he was right, it had been a dream, she'd been asleep and bloody dreaming again, or having a bleeding nightmare in fact.

"Oh fuck, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, but really don't think I can do it, it's all gonna go to shit, I'm gonna let you down, I'm gonna let everyone down, I know I am"

"It was just a dream, darling, that's all, and it doesn't matter what you do, you could never, ever let me down, all you've got to do is just turn up and marry me, the only thing that worries me is that you'll decide I'm too bloody old or something"

"Wish we could just go on like we are"

"We can if that's what you want"

"Oh I dunno what I want, I s'pose not really, everything's all sorted, innit? Your lot, my lot, it would piss everyone off big time"

"I really don't care about anyone else, as long as it's not you that I piss off" He put a hand out and stroked the sweaty stands of hair away from her face "Bloody knew I shouldn't have told you all that crap about Billy big bollocks and his nonsense"

"What did you call him?"

"Just a nickname, don't go getting any ideas in that beautiful head of yours"

"As if … Donut" A giggle was now bubbling up and trying to escape as the last remnant of her horrible dream faded away "Actually not sure that I like him very much to be honest, think he's a bit of an arse so I'm surprised she only slapped 'im, would 'ave thought a kick in the nuts would have been much more to the point" The cold clamminess of the sweat had dried on her body so that she shivered and pulled the duvet back up round her neck as he stretched himself out next to her resting against his arms that were folded behind his head "What was your nickname anyhow?"

"Me? Nope didn't have one"

"Don't believe you"

"You think I'm going to tell you?"

"Shit, I'll have to torture you then"

"Lovely"

She'd wheedled and chipped away at his resolve until Charles had told her the whole story, starting with the Elvis wedding no-show and how he'd hated being the one who'd had to go and tell this Georgie what a shit her disappearing bridegroom was, and then he'd explained all about what had gone on in Kenya and the part Elvis had played in getting her back in one piece ….. and just how desperately glad he'd been that she was back at home and safe when Georgie had gone missing.

"Just promise me that you'll stop worrying about it, and listen, nothing is going to spoil it, we are going to church and we are going to get married and then everyone is going to pose for pictures with their toothy grins in place, your mum, my mum, even bloody Lauren and then you and I are pissing off on our own and you are not going to escape because I'm not going to let you, alright?"

"You being bossy Bossman again?"

"Yup"

-OG-

As soon as she saw the expression on his face she knew that she had been right about the frock and that it did suit her so that she couldn't wait to get close enough to him so that she could see his eyes as she walked down the aisle towards him holding onto her dad's arm. Dave was, for once, quite obviously dead proud of her if the beam on his face was anything to go by and everyone else seemed to her to look really happy for her as well, well, for both of them.

But she didn't much care what everyone else thought, not even bloody Lauren, this wasn't a bit like the dream she'd had, nothing else mattered, not her guilt at not turning up at the centre for bloody ages, so not checking up on Liam, not her failing her driving test even though she'd been bloody furious at the time and had complained bitterly to Charlie that the examiner had got it in for her and that she was already a far better driver than Daisy. He'd said that that wouldn't be hard because everyone was a far better driver than his mother so that Molly hatched a little plan to find out where she'd taken her test and go there, she'd be a definite. Today, she was aware as she walked past them that her family and his were all there looking at her and that there were ranks of soldiers, some with their partners, and how everyone was dressed up to the nines with most of the girls wearing hats and heels, and out of the corner of her eye she even noticed Lauren ….. who was standing there looking ….. fat.

But she didn't actually look at anyone else, her eyes were locked onto this tall, dark-haired man in all his simple gorgeousness who was standing at the front of the church and waiting for her with this …look on his face, this man who only had eyes for her just like she only had eyes for him, and nothing and no-one else mattered.

-OG-

When Molly had been a little girl none of her daydreams about a life with the Prince Charming who would obviously come along and sweep her off of her feet had included spending her first night on a thirteen hour flight to Malaysia along with about a thousand other people, most of whom seemed to have bad colds and coughs so that she kept remembering what she'd read somewhere that being on a plane meant sharing everyone's germs. It not only sounded like intensive care but there was a baby in front of them going for the world record in crying. So much for their wedding night, although it was definitely her own fault, Charlie had wanted to stay over in a hotel and go the following day, but she'd been all impatient and couldn't wait to get to the resort that she'd kept on googling the last few weeks.

She'd thought she might be a bit nervous about the actual flying, unlike Charles who was totally blasé about it, but she'd never been anywhere before so wasn't sure how she was going to feel, but she loved it. Well, she loved the take-off bit anyway, the rest of it was a bit shit because it was actually pretty boring, a bit like being on the tube really but without the obvious nutters to keep you entertained. And of course they keep chucking food at you all night on a plane which to be fair they don't do on the tube. But she could have done without the bloody air servant, well alright, the hostess, who was a very, very pretty Asian girl, who was dancing attendance on her old man, doing a bit of a Shirl as they called it but without the big tits. Molly kept on nudging him sharply with her elbow whenever little Miss Had My Teeth Veneered asked him if she could get him anything, although to be fair his legs were at a bit of an angle so that his feet were sticking out meaning she was in danger of tripping over them every time she walked up and down the plane. It was the first time ever that Molly had been really pleased that she was so titchy, he didn't look terribly comfy with the amount of leg room he'd got, or rather hadn't got, and had said that he was jealous.

Molly had ended up muttering at him that unless he wanted to take the world record for the shortest marriage ever, he could stop bleeding smiling at Miss You Can Have Whatever Your Heart Desires like that, so that he'd snorted one of his laughs and told her he was only being polite and that anyway he only had eyes for her and she had nothing to be jealous about, so that she'd huffed and told him to stop being an arse otherwise she'd make him pay later. His little whisper of 'promises, promises' had made her giggle in spite of herself.

Kuala Lumpur came as one hell of a shock, London had been cold enough to freeze your bits off, if you had any, but this was just like stepping into a sauna with all your clothes still on so that the air con in the transit lounge came as a welcome bloody relief. She was tired and gritty eyed and grumpy, with a mouth that felt like the bottom of a bird cage so that she was longing for a shower, some clean clothes and most of all to clean her teeth, which she managed to do in the Ladies, as well as splash a gallon or so of cold water over her face which made her feel a little bit better. Charlie had waited for her to come back and then told her not to move from the bit where the plastic seats were bolted to the floor as if he thought she might run off while he went to find somewhere to wash his face and brush his teeth and then when he got back he grinned and kissed her good morning, something they'd tacitly agreed not to do until they'd found a way of getting rid of the horrible staleness of being on a plane all night mixed with endless cups of tea and coffee. But he hadn't managed to shave so still had the dark stubble on his face which she actually thought made him even better looking, not that she intended to tell him that, well, not till they got to the resort anyhow.

"What, that? We're going on that?" Molly looked across the tarmac to this really small plane that the whole group of passengers who had been in transit with them were heading for.

"Yup, don't worry it'll be fine, it's perfectly safe"

"Course it is, wow"

What she really meant to say of course was SHIT, but was afraid that he might compare her lack of balls with some of the other women that he knew, well alright the ones who were soldiers like this Georgie who was apparently dead brave and wouldn't think of having a fit at the idea of going anywhere in a plane made of Lego.

She packed as much enthusiasm into her voice as she could fake and hoped that her eyes were full of excited anticipation and not sheer bloody horror "Why would I be worried? I'm not worried, can't wait"

"Bloody hell, didn't have you down as an adrenaline junkie, what's next sky-diving?"

"Yeah …. Can we?" Nah, not in a million, mate, are you bloody nuts or are you just winding me up?

"Get on the bloody plane Molly, let's get there first"

She could hear the laughter in his voice as she peered up at him again, wondering whether he'd seen through her act, although for the first time ever she wondered whether he actually liked flying. It hadn't occurred to think about it before, she knew that he'd been all-over with the army and lots of foreign holidays and she was used to seeing him as some sort of super-hero who was not the least bit wary of anything except she knew he wasn't massively over keen on helicopters, he'd told her that they were very noisy and incredibly dangerous. She slipped her hand into his and squeezed his fingers as they walked across the tarmac under the baking hot sun towards the little steps that had been pushed up against the plane.

"Don't worry, I'll look after you"

"What?" He started laughing as she swung his hand backwards and forwards and then shook it slightly before she grinned up at him and shrugged her shoulders "Go on, get up the steps and stop chatting me up Mrs James"

-OG-

Two and a bit hours of being bounced around in something the size of the upstairs of a London bus which kept swaying and jerking about as if someone had got it on the end of a bit of string and the novelty had well worn off for Molly. She had long since stopped being scared and convinced that they were all going to die but enough was enough as far as she was concerned. Not that she was air-sick like some of the people on the bloody thing, but she was a bit queasy and wanted to get off, now. Charles had dozed a fair bit even though he had even less leg room than he'd had on the proper plane, but she hadn't, she had stayed wide awake . The view out the window had been too exciting for anything else, all the mountains and the sea and the little silvery sandy beaches and the great big deep green stretches of jungle meant that she was glad they weren't flying at thousands of feet up so that she'd been able to see it all, although Charlie had told her that it wouldn't have been so bumpy if they had been much higher up.

"Put your sunhat on"

"Bloody gorgeous 'ere innit?"

Molly had closed her eyes tightly as they'd come in to land hoping that the pilot had had plenty of practice. The landing strip looked like it was on this bit that stuck out into the sea, or that's what it seemed from where she was sitting, although when they got down on the ground she could see that it wasn't actually like that at all. There was a fair bit of grass between where they landed and the sea so that she grinned happily at Charles for all the world as if she hadn't been crapping herself five minutes earlier. She wasn't sure whether she'd actually managed to pull it off and fool him, somehow she was beginning to doubt it.

There was a tiny little building that was some sort of terminal and everyone's luggage had been simply dumped in a big pile in the middle of this hall, so that the passengers had to root around and look for their own stuff as Molly looked up at Charles with real stars in her eyes and raised her shoulders in a sort of excited shrug, she'd never been anywhere like it in her life. Charles put his arm round her, loving her and loving the way that she was loving it and then looked around with slightly more jaundiced eyes. Yes it was exotic, it smelled of coconut oil and salt and vegetation, and there was a beautiful cloudless blue sky with unbroken sunshine and it wasn't too blisteringly hot because there was a very slight cooling breeze coming from the direction of the sea, but experience told him it was better to wait out until he'd seen the rest before he passed judgement, even on a holiday resort. The one thing that he wanted more than anything else in the world was for it to be perfect for her.

"Come on let's find a taxi"

There was no 'official' transport from the airstrip to the hotel, it was apparently every man for himself at this sort of taxi rank where there were some very beaten up old bangers lined up with smiling drivers who were practically rubbing their hands together at the prospect of multiple trips from a full flight. After a short wait the two of them were happily ensconsed in an ancient Volvo which had the stuffing leaking out from the leather seats in the back as Charles prayed that it was more roadworthy than it looked and that it wasn't actually held together with chewing gum and string.

"You alright? Nearly there now" He snorted slightly "I hope"

"Yeah course I'm alright, why wouldn't I be?"

"In that case you can stop undressing me with your eyes now, Mrs James, it's indecent"

"You should be so lucky"

"Oh I am, I cannot begin to tell you how lucky I am"

-OG-