All That Glitters (2 page)

‘Yeah, you know, this really isn’t my colour, and normally I wouldn’t be seen dead looking less than a hundred per cent beautiful, but I’ve been told it’s my job not to steal the limelight from you, so for once – and just this once! – I’m going to take a backseat and let you be the star of the show,’ she said seriously. ‘Not that you need any help in that department. You look stunning.’

Ella beamed – she didn’t think she’d ever get bored of being told she looked wonderful – but a tiny part of her wondered if she wanted Chastity Taylor (wife of Freddie Taylor, captain of Kingston United and defender for England) to think she looked good. Chastity was known for her hundreds of fashion faux pas, and regularly topped the ‘worst dressed’ lists in magazines. She told everyone it was because the journalists were jealous that she was married to Freddie. Ella wasn’t so sure.

‘I mean,
look
at you, you look like something out of a Disney cartoon,’ Chastity continued, oblivious to the huge security guards pacing the corridor. Even though they’d hired the whole of St Immaculata’s Castle deep in the Surrey hills, and there was no way paparazzi could get over the moat – let alone infiltrate the castle walls – Danny and Ella weren’t taking any chances. There was no point trying to be modest. This was one of the most talked-about weddings in ages.

‘You do!’ piped in Krissy, fresh from the set of
EastEnders
, where she played the part of a teenage single mother. ‘You look gorgeous! I wish I had your skin. How do you get it all dewy and fresh looking?’

Ella couldn’t work out what she should say. Should she admit to a facial peel, or should she just smile and act all coy? She didn’t really know these girls. God, she still couldn’t quite believe that Chastity Taylor and Krissy Hawkes were her bridesmaids. Did that mean that they really were friends, just like Chastity had said? Before she could really consider it, Krissy’s perfect RADA voice – so different from the cockney she’d perfected for the TV – cut through her thoughts.

‘Now, before we go in and make you Mrs Riding, I need to be told my lines.’

Ella looked at Krissy in confusion. ‘Your lines? What do you mean?’

‘Um, yes, my
lines
,’ Krissy said slowly, as if Ella was stupid. Perhaps she was. Nobody could look that good and be clever, too. ‘You know – what I need to say at the altar. My agent said this was a speaking part.’

Ella was about to smile, to catch Chastity’s eye about how ridiculous Krissy was, when she froze. The excited chattering from inside the Baron’s Hall began to quiet, and trumpets signalled the start of the ceremony. Here she was, standing with a soap star she’d never met before and a WAG she’d really only known for a couple of weeks, and she was about to play centre stage in what
Hello!
was calling the Wedding Of The Year. Could she do this, really? Everyone always assumed Danny would marry someone as famous as he was – especially as he’d dated so many actresses and pop stars. Instead, she was standing here feeling a bit like Cinderella. She was a wannabe who’d got lucky with a footballer on a beach, for God’s sake, and she wasn’t anyone special.

The heavy oak doors opened, the pianist began to play ‘Clair de Lune’ – which was one of Danny’s favourite pieces of classical music, mainly as it had been in
Twilight
and he was addicted to vampire shows – and all eyes were on her. Ella knew this was it.

This was her destiny. She was not only about to become a footballer’s wife, but she was going to live happily ever after.

Ella stretched luxuriously in the golden light of the sun. She was lying on a sun-lounger on the upper deck of the biggest yacht she’d ever seen, and as the sunshine beat down on her already bronzed body, she felt herself relax even more. Things couldn’t be more perfect: she was married to a lovely man, she had a glass of freshly pressed raspberry juice, and she wanted for nothing. She was in heaven.

‘You look like a model in that Gucci bikini.’ Danny grinned, as he pulled himself out of the infinity pool and walked towards her. Ella shielded her eyes and watched him approach. He was so sexy. Danny’s body was tanned and ripped, with every muscle clearly defined, and his piercing green eyes, reddish-brown hair and full lips made thousands of girls weak at the knees. He was gorgeous, so absolutely perfect in every way. And he was her husband. Wow!

Ella looked down at herself. Even though people kept telling her just how hot she was, she was only just starting to come to terms with it, because it hadn’t always been that way. When Danny and Ella had first met, Ella fully admitted she looked like shit. She’d been desperately in love with Fin, so when she found out he’d been cheating on her the whole time they were together, she was devastated. She’d comfort eaten, got bloated, and stopped looking after herself. It was only when she met Danny that she started to gain a bit of self-respect again, and with it came healthy eating, working out, and taking care of herself. Now her long light brown hair had subtle strands of honey running through it, her body was curvy and firm, and her skin was sparkling. She didn’t quite think she was as attractive as Danny was, but she knew they looked good together. The wedding photos that had appeared in
Hello!
the week before had proved it.

‘I’m all right.’ Ella smiled, as she looked down at her body. She looked so much better with a tan. ‘It’s a great bikini though, isn’t it?’

‘It certainly is,’ came a voice, and both Ella and Danny turned. Aaron.

‘All right, darling? How are my little lovebirds doing today?’ Aaron Kohle said, as he pulled a sun-lounger over and sat between them. Ella felt her heart sink a tiny bit, but she told herself to stop acting so spoilt. They were on Aaron’s yacht, after all, and it had been so good of him to let them use it for their honeymoon. And it wasn’t like they saw him that much – only once every couple of days.

‘We’re great!’ Ella said happily, glancing at Danny as if to check she could speak for both of them. ‘We’re having the best time.’

Aaron smiled, and while Ella was locking eyes with Danny, he let his gaze wander up and down Ella’s body. He’d always taken a very keen interest in everything Danny did – both professionally and personally – and now he had Ella to look after too. Making sure she was in great shape was just part of it.

‘I just wanted to let you both know that the wedding issue of
Hello!
had record circulation figures,’ Aaron continued, as he ran his hands through his slightly greasy, greying hair. ‘I know you don’t want to think about work stuff on your honeymoon, but I thought you’d like to know. You’re the hottest couple in the UK as of right now, and you’re all anyone can talk about – the normal girl who married the Kingston United footballer is the story of the year. You’re like Kate Middleton marrying Prince William. You, my girl, are
it
.’

Danny put his arm around his wife and gave her a little squeeze. ‘That’s brilliant,’ he said, his green eyes shining. ‘Absolutely brilliant. Aaron, you’re amazing.’

‘I aim to please,’ Aaron said wryly. ‘Now, the captain tells me we’re on course to Nassau and we should be there in a couple of hours. I’m going to be hitting the casinos, knocking back some drinks and surrounding myself with hot birds. You’re welcome to join me.’

Ella smiled. She wasn’t keen on how Aaron controlled so much of Danny’s life – or hers – but she couldn’t help but like him. He was larger than life, knew everyone in football, and even though he was a little smarmy and sexist, he could still be good fun.

‘We’re having a low-key supper on the beach,’ Ella said, almost shyly. Sometimes she felt a little intimidated by Aaron. He was so powerful. ‘One of the stewards has organised it all for us. We’ve got a spot on the west of the island so we can watch the sunset.’

‘It will be exactly two years since we met on the beach in Thailand, you see,’ Danny added. ‘We wanted to celebrate it by doing something special and private. Just us.’

Aaron rolled his eyes. ‘Are you sure you wouldn’t rather join me in the casinos, Danny-boy? Be in it to win it? Unless . . .’ His voice trailed off, and Ella could see his brain was whirring. ‘I could probably get some paparazzi to record the special moment for you, you know. Sell it to the
Daily Mail
or
Daily World
or some rag. Make a bit of money and show everyone how in love you are?’

Danny shook his head. ‘No, tonight’s just for us,’ he said, and Ella smiled. She really did have the best husband.

‘Here’s to us,’ Danny said, raising his glass of champagne as they watched the sun set from Cable Beach. They were sitting on multi-coloured batik cushions behind a low-slung rosewood table, and tiny lanterns surrounded them. It was incredibly romantic.

‘I know that a wedding day is meant to be the best day of your life, but the day I met you on Ko Phangan was mine,’ Danny continued. ‘There you were, looking absolutely miserable, and rather than being polite to me you were absolutely horrible. In that one moment I knew you were special.’ He laughed. ‘You were the first person in years who hadn’t fawned all over me.’

‘That’s partly because I didn’t recognise you,’ Ella explained, ‘but also because I was having a terrible time. I know you’re one of the most famous men in the whole wide world,’ she teased, ‘but I don’t really care about football, or football players. I just thought you were pretending to be concerned about my tears because you were hoping to hit on me. Little did I know how you were about to change my life.’

Ella and Danny stared at each other for a moment, and then they both smiled.

‘Ella, I wasn’t looking for a girlfriend or a wife, but after we spent that time together I knew that we were made for each other. We like the same things, have the same sense of humour, and I’d never had a female friend like you. I just love spending time with you.’

‘I do too,’ Ella said softly. And it was true, she did. Whenever she was with Danny they had so much fun. After they’d got bored of the beach they’d gone trekking in the Thai jungle, watched a ladyboy performance in Chiang Mai, and eaten candied insects on the Koh San Road in Bangkok. And after the trip – which Danny had insisted on paying for, as Ella had only left England with enough money to stay in a beach hut – they’d hung out in Ella’s grotty London flat until Danny had to start training again. They watched movies, played games, and never left each other’s side. They had everything in common, and they never got tired of each other. They were best friends.

‘You’re everything I want in a husband, and perhaps most of all,’ Ella said seriously, ‘I know you’d never hurt me, not like Fin did. I know where I am with you, and I’m grateful for that.’

Danny smiled, and he pulled Ella closer towards him. In his arms, Ella felt safe, happy, and secure.

‘We’re going to have a hell of a life, you know,’ Danny whispered, and he gently stroked Ella’s arms as goose bumps appeared. ‘We’re going to have the life that everyone dreams of. And we’re going to make it so, so special. It’s you and me all the way – and we’re going to go further than anyone else ever has. We’re going to be constantly, deliriously happy. It’s going to be perfect.’

Ella sighed contentedly. This was her life now. This was what had been given to her when she’d been down on her luck and down on herself. Danny. He was everything. He was hers.

The sun started to reach the horizon, and both Danny and Ella watched as it hit the dark-blue ocean and then disappeared. It left ghostly whispers of pinks and reds across the sky.

Chapter Two

‘So what do you reckon?’ Danny asked Ella, with one of the trademark cheeky grins that he normally reserved for when he scored a goal with Kingston United. ‘Think this – Castle House – can be our home sweet home?’

It was a bit of a non-question, as Aaron had already bought the mansion for them to stay in, but Ella didn’t really mind not having a say in where they lived. Whatever sort of house they had, she knew she’d love it. It was the start of her brand new life with Danny, and regardless of what the house looked like she knew she could make it a home.

She opened the limo door, and with a final smile at Danny, looked towards Castle House. Only . . . it wasn’t really a house. It was a mansion. And it was absolutely massive. The perfectly symmetrical mock-Georgian manor house gleamed in the sunshine, and Ella could practically smell how new it was. But even though it had clearly just been built, care had been taken to make it look like it was hundreds of years old.

Fragrant honeysuckle crept over the classical columns on either side of the heavy dark grey front door, and Ella’s eyes followed the pale-pink flowers up to the fourth floor of the house and back down again. God, it was stunning. Perhaps not exactly to her taste – she’d always fantasised about living in a little thatched cottage somewhere – but there was no denying that this house, this
mansion
, was spectacular.

Ella quickly took a look at the long, circular driveway in front of the house – complete with an Italian-style fountain in the middle of it – and then let her eyes trail over to the perfectly manicured grass on either side. Well-tended beds of roses and azaleas bordered the sweeping lawns, and,
God
, was that a peacock? Ella focused her eyes on a movement behind some pinky-purple rhododendrons, and yes! There they were, two peacocks, displaying their iridescent blue-green plumage as they strutted around. Peacocks. She was about to live in a home that had peacocks in the driveway. It was absolutely mental. It was a palace in the Surrey countryside. She loved it.

‘It’s more than I ever thought we’d have,’ Ella whispered, as she squeezed Danny’s hand. She was utterly awestruck. Was this house really where they were going to live? Really?

‘Me too,’ Danny remarked, as he led her out of the limo that had picked them up at the airport. A valet – where had he come from? – was taking their Louis Vuitton cases up to Castle House, but Danny hadn’t taken any notice of him. Ella, however, was trying not to gawp. Did they have
staff
?

‘Apparently Aaron had to pay over the odds to get us this place,’ Danny continued, amused at how mesmerised Ella was by their new home. ‘This house is scandalously close to the Chelsea training ground, you see, so Chelsea players normally snap these mansions up. John Terry’s place is just around the corner . . .’