And the Bride Wore Prada by Katie Oliver Page A

anyone just yet; it wasn’t certain, after all. The doctor had said most emphatically that he’d need to run a urine test first.
    She brightened. That was it! All she needed was one of those at-home pregnancy test kits, and she could have a wee on the stick, and find out for herself whether she was really pregnant or not. She was beyond anxious to know if she was to be a mother.
    She wanted to know the answer
now
.
    Without wasting another moment, Natalie rummaged through the drawers and flung on a pair of jeans and a jumper and thrust her feet into a pair of wellies. Then she grabbed her handbag and headed out the door.

Chapter 15
    As Natalie hurried down the hallway towards the stairs, Helen’s door opened.
    ‘Oh – hello,’ Natalie said, pausing in mid-flight to take in the other woman’s coat and boots. ‘Where are you off to this morning?’
    Helen slid the strap of her purse over her shoulder. ‘I’m meeting the tow truck driver. He’s taking me – and my late, lamented hire car – into the village.’
    ‘I see,’ Nat said, disappointed. ‘Then I don’t expect you’d have room for one more.’
    ‘Did you need to go into Loch Draemar?’
    ‘Yes. Rhys has disappeared, and I need to buy,’ she paused ‘something, erm, personal...from the chemist’s.’
    Helen smiled. ‘I quite understand. I’m sure we can make room for one more in the truck’s cab.’
    Colm was waiting downstairs as they descended the stairs. ‘I’ve come to take you into the village, Miss Thomas.’
    ‘But...I arranged to ride along with the tow truck driver,’ Helen told him, puzzled. ‘He said I might. So there’s really no need for you to take me. Us,’ she amended as she glanced over at Natalie.
    ‘Well, you haven’t much choice, I’m afraid,’ Colm informed her. ‘Your car’s already been towed away. Now, ladies, if you don’t mind,’ he added brusquely as he reached for the door, ‘I’ve things to be doing. Let’s go.’
    And so it was that Natalie arrived in Loch Draemar a short time later, after agreeing to meet Helen and Colm in an hour’s time. She made her way with trepidation into the chemist’s and winced as the bell jangled over the door.
    But after the proprietor called out a pleasant ‘good morning’, no one bothered her, and she found herself alone, studying the assortment of pregnancy kits on offer with a frown of concentration.
    She’d no idea there were so many brands available to tell you if you were pregnant or not. It did her head in. How was she to know which test kit was the most reliable?
    Was it best to buy this famous one she’d seen advertised on TV? Or the one that claimed to be ‘easy to use’? Or this one over here, that screamed ‘doctor recommended’ in large blue letters?
    In the end she went with the famous one. It cost the most...so that meant it was the best, surely?
    Just before lunch they piled into the Range Rover and returned to Draemar.
    ‘It looks like I’ll be depending on the kindness of strangers for another week,’ Helen remarked as Colm turned up the drive that led to the castle.
    ‘What? Your car won’t be ready until then?’ Natalie asked.
    She shook her head. ‘The mechanic says they have to send to Inverness for the parts. I really hate to impose on Tarquin and Wren any more than I already have.’
    ‘Oh, they don’t mind,’ Natalie assured her. ‘They love the company. But it’s a bit inconvenient for you, I imagine.’
    ‘A bit,’ Helen agreed, although secretly she was glad of the delay. It gave her time to wrangle an invitation to Northton Grange from Dominic and Gemma, and hopefully, to get the scoop – and photos – of their soon-to-be, not-so-secret wedding.
    And while she remained at Draemar castle, she mused, she could do a bit more research into Andrew Campbell’s death, as well.
    Natalie eyed her quizzically. ‘What brings you to Scotland, if you don’t mind my asking? Are you here visiting family?’
    Colm slanted a