He'd put on the suit and the waistcoat and the cravat (and Anna had straightened it for him, the tip of her tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth). He'd cleaned his car and got his hair cut. He had the rings and his speech. Time to get his best friend married.

The wedding and reception were both taking place at a country hotel a few miles away. As he had best man duties to perform in the morning Anna was meeting him there, just before the ceremony, and she had convinced him that no one would notice if they shared a room for the night.

("If anyone asks, we'll say I was planning to take a taxi home, then I was really tired or drunk so you let me sleep on your floor."

"They'll know something's up."

"Well, it's stupid to pay for two rooms. I'm not booking one, you'll either have to let me in or send me home. And I'll make it up to you," with a wink.

So now her toothbrush and a change of clothes were in his overnight bag)

In the end it wasn't until he was standing at the top of the aisle with Sven - who looked like he was going to throw up - that he saw Anna. She was taking a seat about halfway back in the rows of chairs, and she looked up and caught his eye as she smoothed her skirt over her knees. He had last seen her first thing that morning, wandering around in her pyjamas, but now she was of course fully made-up, in her new green dress, her hair swept up on top of her head. She looked stunning.

For a split second he felt like he was the one standing at the top of the aisle waiting for his bride. Then he blinked, and Anna was turning to answer a hello from the woman sitting next to her, and Kristoff slapped Sven on the shoulder to cover his confusion.

It wasn't just what he wanted to do to her - yes, he did want to drag her behind a pillar and completely ruin her lipstick, but he also just wanted to hold her hand. He wanted to kiss the top of her head, and put his arm round her waist. He hadn't expected it to be this difficult to put aside the casual intimacy they shared at home.

He wanted to be able to say And this is Anna, my girlfriend.

He kept having to remember himself, keeping his hands in his pockets. He circulated among the guests, he checked details with the staff. Anna would talk to anybody, but every time he heard her say 'oh, I'm a friend of Kristoff's - no, just friends!' it cut him like a knife.

"Now," the photographer said, "The two of you and the best man. And his young lady, the young lady in green, isn't it?"

"No," Sven said, rolling his eyes. "She's not his girlfriend."

Sven had actually asked Kristoff if he wanted to sit with Anna for the meal, given that she wouldn't know anyone else there, but he'd just breezily replied that Anna loved meeting new people and wouldn't care at all. Now he was kicking himself, sitting at the top table next to Sven's mother as etiquette dictated. Anna seemed to be sitting at a table with other friends of the bride and groom, and was chatting away merrily to the young man on her left. Kristoff didn't know who he was, but he hated him.

He gave his speech, and even though Anna had heard it ten times before she still gave him all her attention, smiling and laughing at the appropriate points. There was a strange tightness in his chest every time she looked over at him, a physical ache. It was hard to concentrate.

At 7pm Kristoff found himself at a loose end. The evening guests weren't arriving just yet; the guests already there were mainly in their rooms or sitting in the bar. Sven and Jessica had disappeared and he wasn't going to ask where. He decided to go and look for Anna.

She was in the garden behind the hotel, twirling an empty glass between her fingers. She put it down on the wall when she saw him.

"There you are! Everything going okay?"

"Yes, fine."

"It's - oh, blast, quick -" and she grabbed his hand and dragged him round a corner and along a gravel path.

"What? Who is it?"

"That idiot I was sat with at dinner, Steve something - I think he thinks I fancy him, I was just being friendly - has he gone?"

"I think so."

"Good."

She still had his hand, and she led him along the path, further from the hotel and the rest of the guests. Behind a stand of rhododendrons she turned and kissed him, suddenly but deeply. After a long moment she pulled away, breathing hard, and said "Sorry."

"It's OK." He wrapped his arms round her waist and pulled her close. "I don't know how I've managed to keep my hands off you today. You look so beautiful. Gorgeous."

She ran her hands over his lapels. "We could go to your room."

"There's not enough time….later."

"Not enough time? That sounds like a challenge."

"And that sounds like we'd better go back, before you start molesting me."

Anna smiled, then pulled a face and wiped a bit of lipstick from the corner of Kristoff's mouth with her thumb.

"Am I alright?"

"You're fine."

"Let's go back, then."

"Okay."

Neither of them moved. Anna leant forward slightly and rested her head against his chest. He held her and thought all the words he couldn't say.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the DJ announced, "the bride and groom will now have their first dance."

Kristoff knew what song it was, having had to hear much discussion of this very important choice; At Last, by Etta James. He smiled to watch his friends take the floor. They had had a perfect day, it had all gone smoothly, and they both looked so happy.

At last, my love has come along

My lonely days are over

And life is like a song

He glanced down at Anna, standing next to him. She was watching the dancers, smiling to herself. A lock of hair had fallen to the side of her face and the urge to tuck it behind her ear was overwhelming.

At last, the skies above are blue

My heart was wrapped up in clover

The night I looked at you

After the first two verses, the parents of the bride and groom joined the happy couple on the dancefloor, and he felt Anna tugging on his arm.

"Come on," she hissed at him. "You're the best man, you have to dance. Come on."

She pulled him onto the dancefloor and put her hands on his shoulders. Kristoff clasped his hands loosely round her waist. The charade they had been playing all day now felt almost impossible, with her so close and so beautiful, looking up at him with bright eyes.

You smiled and then the spell was cast

And here we are in Heaven

For you are mine, at last

The song finished; people clapped as the bride and groom left the dancefloor. Kristoff knew he should let Anna go but instead he found himself placing his hands flat on her back, holding her against him. One of Anna's hands had also drifted, from his shoulder to the nape of his neck, her fingers tangling slightly in his hair.

There were a hundred other people in the room, but he was aware of only one as he leant forward and kissed her waiting lips.

"I love you," he confessed, when they separated a short while later.

"I know," Anna replied, "but thank you for finally saying it." She grinned at him. "I love you, too."

(And if the kiss that followed was marred slightly by Sven exclaiming 'fucking finally' in the background, at least it was redeemed by knowing that there would be many, many more)

Fin