Behind Every Cloud (27 page)

“
At least the severance pay will clear my mortgage,
”
observed one of the older men,
“
but I
’
m too old to get another job.
”

“
You
’
re lucky,
”
the youngest colleague said bitterly.
“
I have a huge mortgage and have no idea how I
’
ll pay it. And the chances of my getting another job are nil at the moment. I
’
ll have to emigrate.
”

“
The banks are being very forgiving,
”
another man tried to reassure him.

“
I have two kids at university,
”
the last man said.
“
There
’
s
no way I can keep them there if I
’
m unemployed
.”

Ronan realised that of the five of them he was probab
ly the luckiest. He had no kids, a modest mortgage and thankfully now he had his part-time job with Sam
.

The five men sat with glum faces, pondering their future. Their mood was sombre as they slowly filed back to their offices. Ronan wondered how they would survive. He supposed they were no different from many thousands of others in Ireland at the moment. What a mess the country was in! He blamed the government. They
’
d lost control of the banks and the property developers
.

With a heavy heart he started to finalise what he
’
d been working on. Time to bury the Celtic Tiger!

They broke off work at five and headed to the local pub to drown their sorrows. None of them were keen to head home and break the news to their wives and partners. They needed to be together for a while longer to digest the awful news.

Ronan rang Louise to tell her he
’
d be late
,
only to be told that she was going out with some friends from the gym. He hoped it wasn
’
t going to be an expensive night. You never knew with these girls
’
nights out.

Louise had been in a state of nervous excitement all day, preparing for her meeting with Alan. He was calling her every hour saying how impatient he was to meet her. She
’
d taken a long fragranced bath and moisturised her body afterwards with the Crème de La Mer which she
’
d kept hidden from Ronan. If he ever discovered how much she paid for it he
’
d have had a heart attack. Dressed in her new La Perla lingerie, she stepped into her leather suit. Finally, she sprayed her wrists and behind her ears w
ith Angel by Thierry Mugler which the salesgirl yesterda
y had told her was the sexiest perfume in the world. It was quite possibly also the most expensive, but she loved it and was sure Alan would too. If so, it would be worth every cent.

It was with a heavy heart that Ronan arrived at the wine club. He had decided not to mention his problem to anyone. He didn
’
t want to spoil the atmosphere
,
which was buoyant after Rachel
’
s party.

The course was even more fascinating this week as Sam took them on a tour of the vineyards of France. Ronan got completely lost in it
,
forgetting his troubles for the two hours. Afterwards, Sam
,
Rachel, Ronan, Ellie and Zita
headed for the Castle once more, the young ones having again declined the invitation to join them. They discussed the party again in detail and Ronan was surprised when Rachel asked him if there was anything wrong.

“
I
’
m fine,
”
he lied.
“
Why do you ask?
”

“
You seem subdued tonight. Not your usual self.
”

“
I thought I was always quiet,
”
he said, smiling at her
.

She looked at him probingly.
“
You are, but you
’
re different
tonight.
”

How very observant of her, he thought. There was more to Rachel than met the eye. Her intuition was bang on the button.

“
I
’
m fine,
”
he insisted, smiling brightly.

She patted his hand
,
not at all convinced by what he was saying. There was no doubt he had problems with that awful wife of his. And he was such a lovely guy. He deserved better.

Just then, Zita claimed Rachel
’
s attention and began to regale her with talk about her job. The two of them seemed to be really hitting it off, Ellie thought as she ear
-
wigged on their conversation.

“
I
’
d love to see behind the scenes of a TV studio,
”
Rachel was saying to Zita.

“
That would be no problem. Actually, we
’
ve got the
go-ahead for a programme on ‘The Women Behind Our Successful Men’
. You
’
d be a fascinating subject:
‘
Beautiful wife of young
up
-
and
-
coming politician. How she juggles her private and
public life.
’
What do you say?
”

“
I don
’
t know,
”
Rachel replied hesitantly.
“
Do you really think people would be interested?
”
She sounded dubious.

“
Hell, yes
,
I
’
ll let you know after I discuss it with my producer.
”

“
That
’
s very kind of you,
Zita, if you really think it might work.
”
Rachel smiled at her, not at all convinced
that people would be interested in her life.
Ellie still couldn
’
t get a handle on Zita. There was something
unnerving about her. She seemed to be almost reeling Rachel in
.
Ellie wondered, not for the first time if she wasn
’
t gay and trying to seduce Rachel. Poor Rachel wouldn
’
t see it in a million
years.

Rachel was yet again drinking faster than all the others and insisted on buying another round at the end of the evening. Again, Zita was the only one to join her. Zita had a
crazy moment when she had to break off her conversati
on with Rachel to take a text from Carl. She smiled to herself at the irony of the situation. He certainly seemed keen and was pushing her to make a definite date to meet up. Let him wait. Playing hard-to-get was certainly the way to go with the suave Mr
Dunne.

Louise had butterflies in her tummy as she walked into the bar where they
’
d arranged to meet. He
’
d chosen well. It was so dark that she could barely make him out, sitting on a banquette in the corner. God, he was handsome, she thought
,
her heart giving a lurch as she went to meet him. He stood up and
,
putting his arms around her, drew her close.

“
I thought this night would never come,
”
he whispered into her hair. She shivered with excitement.
“
Mmmm
. . .
You smell divine. Angel, isn
’
t it?
”

She smiled, pleased that he had recognised it.

He moved over to make room for her on the seat and held her hand tightly.

“
Would you like some champagne?
”
he asked.
“
I have a feeling tonight is a night to celebrate.
”

“
Yes
,
please,
”
she whispered, feeling the force of his personality. She had a powerful feeling that this was the start of the rest of her life.

Afterwards she couldn
’
t remember what they
’
d talked about. She could only remember his closeness and his eyes piercing into her being. Was it possible to fall in love in one night? She had never felt so alive. Every nerve in her body tingled. When Alan asked her if she could come away with him the following weekend, she never hesitated for a moment.

“
I want our first time to be very special,
”
he whispered.

She closed her eyes in anticipation.

She appreciated the fact that he hadn
’
t wanted to take her to an anonymous hotel for a quick romp. This relationship was going to be more important than that. She left him
,
on a cloud of happiness, already thinking ahead to the weekend. He rang her while she was on her way home in the taxi.

“
I think I
’
ve fallen in love with you,
”
he said quietly.

It gave her a warm glow.

When she got home Ronan was in bed and to her relief he was asleep. She undressed in the guestroom and slipped into bed beside him, hugging her arms around herself as she relived the evening. She had never been so happy. She knew this was meant to be.

23

When Ellie got home from work on Tuesday, her sister Sandrine was sitting at the kitchen table with her mother, drinking tea.

“
To what do we owe the pleasure?
”
Ellie asked, grabbing one of the chocolate biscuits off the plate. Sandrine normally worked till seven or eight most
evenings so it was a surprise to see her so early.

“
I want to talk to you about the wedding,
”
Sandrine stated.

She was to be Ellie
’
s chief bridesmaid – well
,
she only had one sister, she didn
’
t have any choice – did she?

“
What about it
?”
Ellie asked warily. Her sister was known to meddle and always wanted to be chief bottle-washer when it came to family occasions. She hoped she wasn
’
t about to start in on her wedding, trying to take it over.

“
Well, David rang me today and he would really much prefer if you were to hold it in Fitzpatrick
’
s Castle in Kill
–”

“
Don
’
t even go there!
”
Ellie shrieked, giving her mother a jolt and s
hocking even Sandrine to silence.
“
How dare
David go behind my back and ring you about my wedding!
”
She was shaking with fury.

“
Be reasonable, El. It
’
s his wedding too, you know,
”
Sandrine said primly.

“
It
’
s none of your business
!”
Ellie cried
. “
Just keep out of it. It
’
s between David and me.
”

“
Obviously not or he wouldn
’
t have involved me. I think you should give it some thought.
”

Ellie stuck her chin out in the obstinate way her sister knew so well.

“
I am having my wedding reception in Clontarf Castle or there
’
ll be no wedding reception at all
!”
she said resolutely, her voice rising with each word she uttered. With that she turned on her heel and went up to her bedroom.

“
Better not interfere, dear,
”
her mother said to a dismayed S
andrine as she poured her another cup of tea.

“
Well, honestly, I was only trying to help,
”
her daughter
replied with a miffed air.

Ellie lay on her bed shaking with fury. How dare David try and involve her sister behind her back and how dare Sandrine attempt to force her to change her plans
!
She was livid with them both. She somehow felt betrayed. When she
’
d calmed down a little she rang David. It went to his voicemail and she left him a message to call back urgently. He rang back ten minutes later and couldn
’
t understand her anger.