ENDLESS LOVE (Vol II)

Part 8- "Dearly beloved..."

Diana was shaking. She was certain she wanted to marry Roger, but all those eyes on her made her nervous. She placed her trembling hand on her belly. Trying to calm her breath, she focused on the baby and the thought that soon they would officially be a family and that everyone was there to celebrate their union.
"Are you ok?" Daisy placed her hand on Diana's shoulder.
Diana looked up in tears "no" she shook her head.

Daisy turned Diana towards her and held both shoulders "if you don't want to go through with this that's fine, we'll leave, just you and me"
Daisy knew that Diana wouldn't leave and that she loved Roger, but she also knew that Diana wasn't the type to bail on anything unless she desperately wanted to, so giving her the option would strengthen her desire to stay and follow through.
She quickly wiping her undereyes trying not to smudge her make-up "no no, I'm being stupid, I'm just scared, there's so many people"

Daisy smiled sympathetically "I'll be right in front of you who's going to look at YOU!" She teased.
Diana laughed "thank you I needed that"
Embracing her quickly, Daisy turned serious "just keep your eyes on Roger, it's just you and him today, no one else"
Diana nodded and looked to Marco who was waiting to draw back the curtains on the small partition which stood at the end of the isle.
Diana's father lovingly extended his arm to her which she took.
The curtains opened as the Bridal Chorus began to play.
Daisy took her first step as maid of honour, she was taken a back by all the celebrities looking at her with smiles, even to her it was daunting. Poor Diana. She thought.
Slowly she stepped to the beat of the music, holding her bouquet of flowers. She briefly glanced at Freddie who was smiling at her, before fixing her eyes on her spot next to the alter besides Diana's sisters who had walked out minutes earlier.

Diana emerged last looking pale, her eyes fell on Daisy who discreetly signalled for her to look at Roger by pointing over at him.
Diana gave a small nod and looked at her husband-to-be. Her face visibly eased and suddenly she was calm and felt safe.

Confidently she walked down the isle with her father, never breaking her gaze with Roger.
As she took her place, unexpectedly she wrapped her arms around him "I love you" she whispered in his ear.
He took her hands in his and kissed them, they were warm and strong. A big smile plastered across both their faces as they looked into each others eyes about to make the biggest commitment of their lives.

The celebrant cleared his throat and began to read,
"Dearly beloved....."

##########

The ceremony lasted a short while with many tears and laughter (as the flower girl decided that it would be a good idea to try climb under Diana's dress during the exchange of the rings)

With two hours to spare before the reception, the wedding guests were provided with refreshments and entertainment at the villas outdoor courtyard.

During this time, the wedding party were to partake in the photos which were taken by Angelo Calluzzo, Italy's most sought after and respected photographer.
Daisy stayed clear of Freddie for no other reason that today was strictly about Roger and Diana. Every so often she would look in his direction and force herself to not become consumed by his sheer presence.
Despite having become desensitised to his celebrity, Freddie was no ordinary man. He was born to stand out and shine, which understandably made him hard to ignore.
"You may as well just speak to him" Diana said in a casual tone over Daisy's shoulder.
"And say?" Daisy replied turning around amused at the suggestion.
"Oh I don't know, maybe something like, Freddie I want to take you in my arms and make sweet sweet love" Diana teased.
Daisy shot her a dirty look.

Freddie was equally tormented by the lack of communication with Daisy, especially since the two had a magical night before.
John stood next to Freddie and crossed his arms as he followed his gaze over to Daisy.
"Fred, just say something to her" he moaned.

                            ###############

Jackson sat down with a large plate of glorious cheese, fruit and some kind of pastry that he had never seen before but was desperate to try. As he began to eat, he smiled to himself at the irony that someone like him would be surrounded by so many celebrities. He was the most ordinary person there in his own eyes.
His thoughts were interrupted "may I take this seat?"
"Sure" Jackson replied politely.
"I'm Viktor" the mystery companion introduced.
"Jackson" Jackson smiled "hey! Viktor? Daisy told me about you! It's nice to meet you"
Viktor smiled "ah I hope she spoke kindly of me, she's a wonderful young woman"
Jackson nodded "yeah he said you were a great guy, she spoke very highly of you"
Viktor took his wineglass to his lips, his fifth for the day "you've done well with her"
Jackson quickly swallowed his mouth full of food "oh no we're not together like that, I'm simply her date"
Viktor raised his brows in surprise "is that right? That's quite an accomplishment to stay nearly friends with someone like Daisy, she's quite a naturally charming person"
Jackson shrugged "I couldn't crack her I'm afraid, I know when I'm beaten"
"How do you mean?" Viktor curiously asked.
"Freddie. Freddie is the one she's in love with" Jackson replied casually.
Viktor smiled to himself, hearing that Daisy loved Freddie was like hearing that the sky is blue, it was fact. Regardless, Viktor was forced, at the hand of Alex, to try to drive a wedge between them, which unfortunately had worked.
Viktor opened his mouth to speak before quickly closing it.
"What?" Jackson had noticed Viktor's reluctance.

Viktor had had too much to drink by that point, and his level of self control was dangerously weak. He scrunched his face desperately trying to resist the temptation of saying something he was forbidden to say, but his genuine regret over destroying two peoples lives had begun to impact him greatly.
"I find it odd" he began
Jackson unaware of Viktor's comment looked at him puzzled.
"I mean, it's odd to me at least, that a single woman at one of Alex's parties just happens to sleep with Freddie Mercury the one night his girlfriend isn't there. Everyone arrived with a partner, so who did she go with? Or if she went alone who was she to be invited? It's a weird coincidence"
Jackson paused in his eating and watched Viktor with now great interest "so what you're suggesting is.."
Viktor cut him off "I'm not suggesting anything, it's just odd....to me at least, it's a little....coordinated"
Jackson knew exactly what Viktor was suggesting
"So, say the whole thing was set up" Jackson began in a non threatening manner "why would someone care who Freddie Mercury is dating?"
Viktor shrugged taking another sip of wine "perhaps it's not him they care about"
"Daisy?!" Jackson's voice was filled with surprise.
Viktor shrugged again "who knows"
Jackson knew that Viktor knew something.
"Ok so for arguments sake, a fake affair is set up because someone likes Daisy, what happens then?"
Pursing his lips Viktor was at the point of no return. The guilt of everything that had been done to Daisy from the stabbing, miscarriage, food poisoning and the loss of her fiancée, was too much for him to bare "I would imagine the said individual would want to somehow gain Daisy's attention"
Bingo! Jackson slowly nodded as the pieces fell into place. He was surrounded by drunks daily and knew that alcohol had one advantage, it made people open up and speak the truth, and he knew truth when he heard it.
The affair was fake and its orchestration was run by a male who was after Daisy for himself, and how else would Viktor know unless he was in the loop? Jackson's eyes scanned the courtyard and found Alex who had been by change speaking to Oksana, Freddie's current beau, another coincidence.
Gotcha he thought to himself.