Victoria ran. She ran as fast as she could, down the corridors of the church and through the gardens and along pathways and side streets. She stopped only once to kick off her stiletto heels, and then continued running barefoot until she found a secluded corner of another garden to hide in. Tears were streaming down her face, and her once perfect makeup was now a smudged, blotchy mess. She was exhausted, both physically and emotionally. She tried to catch her breath, but it was difficult, and she began to feel extremely anxious. What if someone did find her? What would she say? How could she possibly explain the state she was in? All she knew was that she simply couldn't watch Daniel and Emily's marriage go ahead – the reason for this consumed her with guilt, shame and frustration.

She found a small concrete bench to sit on and tried to organise her thoughts. Victoria knew she was being ridiculous, and she didn't want to admit how she truly felt, but she could not hide it nor deny it any longer. She couldn't watch the marriage ceremony because...

"I'm in love with her," Victoria said in a whisper to herself.

She stared out into the distance. She watched as a young man jogged along the track, and a bird in a tree tended to its ragged nest. She watched the calm flow of the water and the way the sun shone on the bank, giving the trees and flowers a new burst of energy. Victoria's tears slowly began to subside and she exhaled. She calmed herself. Enough was enough. It was time to let go of the guilt she had felt for so long.

She had to find Emily.

Emily politely excused herself from the wedding by telling Daniel she had to go to the bathroom. She hoped he would accept a few more glasses of white wine and not notice her extraordinarily long 'bathroom trip'. She had no idea where Victoria might be. Her master plan depended on Victoria being at the reception. Walking briskly out of the church and down through the gardens, she felt very grateful that she had booked a church in such a quiet area, as there was nobody around to see her running through town in an extravagant wedding gown. She looked around the gardens and everywhere else she could think of. Surely Victoria couldn't have gone very far in such a short amount of time. However, she was nowhere that Emily could see.

She searched the gardens one last time, desperately trying to spot Victoria. After a few moments she knew that she should be getting back to her wedding. Victoria would have to return eventually.

To Emily's surprise, just as she was turning away, she spotted a dark-haired woman in a long, purple dress walking across the road. She had no shoes on. It was Victoria. Emily gasped quietly, unable to comprehend why Victoria looked so distressed and dishevelled. She had never seen her like that before. Why had she run away? What was wrong? Victoria was now just a few hundred metres away from Emily. The older woman suddenly looked up, spotted Emily, and stopped in her tracks.

"Victoria!" called Emily, waving. "What are you doing?"

There was no response from Victoria. She was looking at Emily in surprise, and dropped the pair of stiletto heels on the ground that she had been holding.

"You're needed at the wedding!" continued Emily. "And we wouldn't want you to miss what's planned for the reception later."

Still, Victoria was silent. Emily watched her carefully and got the feeling that something else was going on. Victoria left her stilettos behind and began walking towards Emily, appearing more confident and composed. Emily frowned in confusion. Victoria was soon directly facing her and their eyes met, holding a stare. The two women were just inches apart. The air was thick. Emily could feel Victoria's breath on her skin.

"Why did you leave the wedding?" said Emily nervously.

Victoria continued to look at the younger woman. The tension could have been felt from a mile away. She observed Emily's flawless skin and the way her blonde hair fell softly in her face. She noticed her long, elegant neck and her soft, pink lips. She reached for Emily's hand and held it gently. She began to slowly trace Emily's arm with her fingertips, whilst holding her gaze.

"Victoria, what are you –"

"Stop talking," Victoria demanded.

Before Emily could say another word, Victoria's lips were pressed against hers, their warmth and their taste filling her. What on earth was happening? She felt Victoria's hands stroke her arms, up and down, and then they moved towards her shoulders. Victoria slipped the sleeve of her wedding dress down and kissed her shoulder, then moved her hands slowly to Emily's breasts. Victoria continued to kiss her passionately in an almost uncontrollable manner. She ran her hands through Emily's hair.

"Stop… what are you doing?" cried Emily, pulling herself away. It was difficult to remove herself from Victoria's grip, but with some effort she finally did. She couldn't believe what was happening.

Victoria Grayson just kissed me.

Emily stepped backwards and stared at Victoria in utter shock. She didn't know what to say or how to react to the situation. She was lost for words and didn't exactly know how she felt. It was a mix of anger, confusion and disgust, yet as much as Emily hated to admit it, she also knew that she felt extremely aroused. She was surprised at the older woman's actions and also fearful of what she felt was coming.

"Why the hell did you just do that?"

"Oh, for God's sake, don't pretend like you don't know," Victoria sat down on the stairs of the church and looked up at Emily. She couldn't believe that she had actually made a move after fantasizing about doing so for such a long time.

"What? What are you talking about?" questioned Emily.

Watching as Victoria got up from the stairs, Emily couldn't help but notice how attractive the older woman was. She felt a surge of desire flood through her body. The kiss hadn't been that bad, had it? She silently cursed at herself for having such thoughts and noticed that Victoria was now standing directly opposite her again. Her eyes were haunting and cold. Victoria placed a finger on Emily's lips, silencing her. Emily shuddered, closing her eyes to escape Victoria's penetrating stare.

"I want you…" Victoria breathed, her heart pounding. She gently kissed Emily's neck. "…I've wanted you for so long."

Unbeknownst to either woman, Daniel Grayson was standing around the corner, watching in horror.