Behind Every Cloud (52 page)

“
I
’
d like to see it. I can work late tonight finishing up things in the office,
”
he
’
d said.

She shrugged her shoulders.
“
If you want.
”

They agreed to meet there
.

It was obvious that Zita was thrilled that Carl had come too. She was being very charming and attentive.

“
I
’
m really glad you
’
re happy with it,
”
Zita purred.
“
I definitely think we should do a programme on you, Carl. The camera just loves you.
”

He grinned.

Rachel looked from one to the other of them. Zita was being unusually coquettish. God, he can even charm and seduce her, Rachel thought disgustedly. From talking to
Zita
,
she
’
d concluded that she was anti-men
–
but not where Carl was concerned apparently. She and Carl parted
ways, she to go home and finish packing, he to the office to finish up, or so he said.

“
I
’
ll probably be late tonight,
”
he told her, kissing her goodbye.

Zita grinned at him as he winked at her over Rachel
’
s shoulder.

Carl went
straight to the Merrion Inn after Rachel left
and Zita
joined him shortly afterwards. They drove back to her apartment where they made non-stop love for two hours, the last time in the shower.
Zita would have been
happy to stay there all night but Carl had made a reservatio
n for the restaurant in Dalkey and he was starving. He hadn
’
t eaten all day. Reluctantly, she got dressed for their outing.

Arriving at the restaurant, he scanned the clientele to make sure he knew nobody. All good, the coast was clear! He had requested a secluded table and they were shown to a quiet one in the corner. He ordered a bottle of champagne and they both chose scallops for starters and black sole meunière for mains. When the waiter had poured the champagne Carl handed her the glass and
,
lifting his glass
,
wrapped his hand around hers which brought their faces very close together. They sipped it and she giggled as the fizz went up her nose.

Louise was looking over the wooden rail of the mezzanine floor. They had just ordered their food and Alan had excused himself to go to the
“
little boys’ room
”
. Louise was scanning the ground floor to see if there were any celebrities there. She almost fell off her chair when she saw Carl Dunne sitting below, his hand wrapped around a woman
’
s, as they sipped champagne. Louise couldn
’
t see the woman
’
s face because her back was to her but one thing she was sure of, it wasn
’
t his namby-pamby wife, the stuck-up Rachel. This woman had a short straight black bob, not Rachel
’
s long silky blonde hair
.

Taking her phone, Louise focused on them and took a photo. Carl then stroked the woman
’
s cheek and she reached forward and kissed him fully on the lips. Louise snapped again. She couldn
’
t believe her eyes. The adoring husband caught in the act.

Just then, the waiter approached the couple
’
s table and t
he woman turned. Louise gasped in shock. She recognised Zita instantly. She snapped again. Wow! Who would
believe it? She sniggered with glee. My, oh my, so Ronan
’
s friends weren
’
t all he made them out to be. Holier than thou indeed! She remembered the disgust on his face the last time she
’
d seen him. Well, she
’
d show him that his poncy friends weren
’
t any better than she was. Hah! What a stroke of luck. She laughed aloud at the thought.

When Alan came back to the table he saw that she was in high spirits.

“
What
’
s happened?
”
he asked.

“
Nothing at all,
”
she lied, hugging the secret to herself. Alan would never understand.

Ronan rang Rachel to wish her bon voyage and was surprised that she was not in better spirits.

“
Is everything okay?
”
he asked.
“
You don
’
t sound very excited for someone about to spend a whole glorious month in the south of France.
”

“
I know. I
’
m sorry, but I
’
m really not looking forward to it. Carl and I have some issues that we have to sort out and I
’
m not looking forward to that.
”

“
I guessed something of the kind. You haven
’
t been your usual happy self lately.
”

“
Oh boy, do I know! It
’
s because I hardly see Carl any
more and when I do I hardly recognise the man I married.
”

“
That happens,
”
Ronan said sadly, thinking of the disintegration of his own marriage.

“
So, I
’
m going to take this time in France to see if we can get back on track and if not . . .
?
Well, I don
’
t want to think about that possibility.
”
She sounded very determined.

“
That
’
s a good idea,
”
he agreed.
“
I do hope you can work things out. Maybe that was why you were drinking
.”

“
It was. Some people comfort-eat, I was comfort-drinking
.”
She laughed a hollow laugh.

“
The main thing is you found that out and you
’
ve stopped. Listen, I really hope that you can work things out with Carl.
”

“
Thanks, Ronan, you
’
re a star.
”
She felt tears prick her e
yes.
“
Well, I
’
d better go finish packing. Take care
,
Ronan.
”

“
You too and you have my number if you ever need me. Remember, I
’
m only a phone call away, even from France. Have a great holiday!
”

“
I will, thanks.
”

She hung up, a lump in her throat. He was a good friend indeed
.

54

The following day Ellie drove with her parents down to Athlone to choose the wedding cake. Killinure Cakes was based outside the small village of Glasson which was so pretty, overlooking Lough Rea and choc-a-bloc with cute little restaurants. They decided to make a day of it and
,
as luck would have it, it was a glorious sunny day.

They dropped Ellie
’
s father in the golf club which was only a stone
’
s throw from where they had to go. It was a small cottage industry that the young woman, Katie,
ran in her own kitchen which had a gorgeous aroma of baking coming from it. They sat in her living room where she showed them photographs of wedding cakes she had made. They were spectacular and
,
when they heard how reasonable the prices were compared to those they had checked in Dublin, they almost passed out with disbelief.

While Katie
was making coffee for them
,
her two adorable children chatted shyly to Ellie and her mother.

Sipping the coffee along with some homemade cake, they agreed that if the wedding cake tasted anything like what they were eating, it would indeed be a great success.

Katie asked Ellie what ideas she had for the centrepiece of her special day and after an hour discussing various options they finally came up with the perfect cake. Delighted with the outcome they waved goodbye
,
thrilled that they
’
d made the journey down from Dublin
.
It had been well worth it.

They picked her father up from the golf club where he was deep in conversation with some other golfers. Ellie then took them to The Wineport for lunch. She
’
d seen it on television on the Celebrity Chef programme and wanted to treat her parents to a special meal. It didn
’
t disappoint and after a trip into Athlone they headed for home, content that another piece of the jigsaw that was her wedding reception was in place
.

“
You know, I
’
m really glad the salon closed down. Chloe
’
s doing great out on her own and I realise now that I wasn
’
t really happy there at all. Working for Sam is so much more interesting and the wine business is fascinating. I just love it!
”

Her eyes were shining as she spoke and her mother crossed her fingers and hoped that Sam would keep her on in this job. It was obvious that she was perfect for it and she hoped Sam saw that too.

Sam had indeed seen it. Ellie had been a revelation to him. She was brilliant on the computer and had a great way with all the customers. They were constantly singing her praises. And as for the French producers – she seemed to have them under her spell. Her personality and her grasp of the French language had them all eating out of her hand.

“
Ooh la la, cette Ellie, elle est magnifique
!”
he heard more than once. Yes, she is wonderful, he agreed with
them.

Not that poor Sylvia hadn
’
t been a good PA
,
but her people skills left a lot to be desired and her grasp of French – well, he didn
’
t want to go there! She was much happier taking over the online business and God knows he needed someone to do that for him. He just didn
’
t have the time any
more. Added to that
,
she and Ellie were getting on like a house on fire and the atmosphere in the office was positively light-hearted and fun
.

Yes, he had some big decisions to
make. Well, actually, no
,
he had made them. He was going to ask Ellie to stay on as his PA. He hoped she
’
d accept
.

55

All was chaos in the Dunne household as they prepared for their month
’
s holiday in the South of France. Rachel
’
s father was taking them to the airport and was tapping his feet impatiently as Rachel scurried around like a lunatic, doing last
-
minute chores. Paloma was coming with them and she followed them in a taxi with the luggage.
The children wanted to go in the taxi too, of course, but R
achel put her foot down. They were hyper with excitement and she was terrified one of them might go missing at the airport – far safer to keep them in her sights. Finally she
’
d got them settled in the car as Carl set the alarm and locked the door. At last they were on their way. One whole month of bliss! They couldn
’
t wait to get there.

Zita stayed in bed until midday that morning. All she could think of was Carl swanning off with his happy little family to the Côte d
’
Azur, not giving her a second thought. She could just imagine Rachel with her fabulous body, lying on a sun lounger, her olive skin turning a deep mahogany while her two perfect blonde children splashed in the pool. She tried to cut Carl out of this idyllic picture but she couldn
’
t. He was very much a part of it, his blond hair becoming blonder and his blue eyes bluer against his golden tan. She pictured him bringing Rachel a cocktail and then them making love in the balmy night air. She felt she would go crazy but she couldn
’
t get that picture out of her mind.

She couldn
’
t resist sending him a text
:
Missing u dreadfully. Hope ur missing me Zxx
.
He didn
’
t text her back.