Maria’s wedding HEARTBREAK: Will Gary choose Sarah?
THE TORN GROOM HAS TO MAKE A TOUGH DECISION…
Blushing bride Maria excitedly prepares for her marriage to Gary this week, blissfully unaware that he’s actually considering jilting her at the altar for his former fiancée, Sarah! The groom is torn over which of the two women he truly loves, after sharing a charged moment with his ex-lover Sarah on the morning of his nuptials, leaving him with major doubts as to whether he can still go through with the ceremony. Meanwhile, poor Maria has yet to realise that her entire world could come crashing down at any moment! “From Maria’s point of view, she and Gary are in a really good place right now,” explains actress Samia Longchambon, who plays her. “All the stuff that happened with her ex Ali [Neeson] has disappeared since he left, so Maria’s head and heart are all for Gary. “As always, Maria wants to believe in a fairy tale,” she adds. “To some extent, she thinks Gary is her Prince Charming, who stood by her and forgave her for the indiscretion with Ali in the barber shop. Maria trusts and loves Gary, and thinks they’ll live happily ever after.” However, Gary’s feelings for another woman are the least of Maria’s problems, given that she may unwittingly be about to marry a murderer! While Maria is aware that Gary was responsible for the tragic Underworld roof collapse – and ultimately caused Rana Habeeb’s death – she’s still completely in the dark over the fact that he killed loan shark Rick Neelan and buried him in the woods. Sarah, on the other hand, knows the truth about the murder – and has so far kept the information to herself… “There was a moment in hospital after Gary was run over when Sarah lied about how the accident happened,” recalls Samia.
“That was a bit of a red flag for Maria, but she brushed it aside. So, to find out that Sarah knew about Rick and didn’t tell her would feel like a huge betrayal. “Obviously, Maria would be furious and crushed anyway, especially after her first husband Liam [Connor] was murdered and she ended up engaged to his killer,” continues Samia, referring to Maria’s doomed romance with villain Tony Gordon. “She doesn’t have a great track record with murderers and people dying around her! So, to learn on top of all this that Sarah could have actually enlightened her – not to mention that she and Gary had a secret together that Maria wasn’t part of – would be absolutely devastating for her.” As fate would have it, bride-to-be Maria is running fashionably late for the ceremony – buying Gary some valuable extra time as he wrestles with his dilemma. However, it’s not long before he’s confronted by Sarah’s brother David, who happened to witness the closeness between Gary and his sister earlier that morning, and suggests that Gary makes a decision as to which woman he wants more, pronto! Is Gary truly committed to a future with Maria – and will he go ahead with the wedding? Or is Sarah the one who’ll always hold the key to his heart?