Foreign Affairs (61 page)

‘Don’t sound too enthusiastic. I bet if it was that Paula one who wanted to go out, you’d go flying.’ Brenda sniffed.

‘Look, I said I’d go out with you tomorrow, Bren. I’m a bit tired, that’s all.’ Jennifer pulled her nightdress down over her head and got into bed and pulled the
soft plump eiderdown up under her chin.

‘It’s just that I’m glad to see you home,’ Brenda said plaintively. ‘I want to hear all your news. You’re really lucky, you know. Getting a job in Spain, and
now training to be a courier. It’s such a glamorous job compared to my boring old slog. I’d love to have had the chance to skedaddle off to Spain like you did.’

Jennifer gritted her teeth and counted to ten. ‘Why don’t you do it now, then? It’s not as if you’re Methuselah or anything.’

‘It’s not that easy,’ Brenda sighed. ‘You were lucky.’

‘Brenda, luck had nothing to do with it. I just got up off my ass and did something with my life. You can do the same if you want to. You’re as bad as Rachel Stapleton.’

‘Who?’

‘Oh no-one,’ Jennifer muttered. It was typical of Brenda, she fumed. Just because she was in a rut, she was annoyed that Jennifer was making a go of things. Jennifer wouldn’t
have minded looking for a flat, except that her mother would be hurt. Coming home to live after having your own place was extremely difficult, especially when you were sharing a room with a sister
like Brenda. Roll on Easter, she thought, stretching her legs gingerly between the cold sheets.

Chapter Fifty-Five

‘What do you think of that Brenda one?’ Jennifer viciously swatted a fly that was buzzing around her, with her clipboard. She and Paula were waiting with dozens of
other couriers for the arrival of their flights at Palma Airport.

‘She’s a gas woman all right,’ Paula remarked as she straightened the elegant black Spanish-style bow that was keeping her blond hair back from her face.

‘Imagine, we’re here working in Majorca, and she could have booked her holiday with us in TransCon, and instead she takes off to the Costa. I mean, I ask you.’ Jennifer was
most put out.

‘Maybe she felt we’d cramp her style or something.’ Paula yawned. ‘No doubt if we’d been assigned to the Costa, she’d have come to Majorca.’

‘I suppose you’re right. You know Brenda, she’s as odd as they come.’ Jennifer peered into arrivals. ‘No sign yet, I hate it when the flights are
delayed.’

‘At least we got our return flight checked in smoothly. Did you hear your woman asking to be put in first class on a charter flight? She caused a right rumpus.’ Paula grinned.

‘She was pissed out of her skull,’ Jennifer snorted. ‘I wouldn’t like to be her tomorrow morning. She’s going to have a hell of a hangover.’

‘She puked on the bus.’ Paula scowled.

‘Yuck!’ Jennifer grimaced. ‘My lot were fairly OK. Apart from Mr and Mrs Burke, who were having the mother and father of a row. You should have heard them. She called him a
pathetic old Casanova, and he called her a dried-up old prune. It was hilarious really. Mind you, he was an awful old lecher.’

‘And people think being a courier is glamorous.’

‘It’s fun though, isn’t it?’ Jennifer grinned.

‘Oh yeah,’ Paula agreed. ‘This time last year I was doing exams. Would you believe it? That year just flew. Are you sorry we weren’t sent to the Costa?’

Jennifer shook her head. ‘Not really. Majorca’s gorgeous, especially at this time of the year. The start of the season is always the nicest time. It’s going to get fairly
hectic during July and August though.’

‘I wonder will Gillian and Bryan be coming to Santa Juan?’ Paula teased.

‘Wash your mouth out with soap, Paula Matthews,’ Jennifer exclaimed, giving a shudder as she remembered her former employer’s assault on her.

‘Here’s our gang.’ Paula nodded in the direction of a horde of pale-skinned new arrivals pouring through the arrivals in their direction, when they saw the TransCon logo. The
two of them were rapidly surrounded by clients.

‘See you later,’ Paula said, when they had sorted out the new arrivals. She was doing the north of the island. Jennifer took care of the southern end.

Half an hour later, Jennifer stood at the front of the luxury coach, pointing out the marina on their left and the massive illuminated Palma Cathedral towering above them to the right. The
cathedral was one of the island’s most beautiful tourist attractions. The first time she gave her speech, she’d been nervous and her voice was a little shaky as fifty pairs of eyes
focused on her. But it was no trouble to her now, she actually enjoyed it. It was nice bonding with a new group. She liked the sense of exhilaration and anticipation among new arrivals. And because
she genuinely loved the verdant picturesque island, Jennifer took great pleasure in telling her clients that there was far more to Majorca than beaches and sangria.

She had built up a good working relationship with the agency, the coach drivers and the apartment owners, whose apartments Transcontinental Travel block-booked for the season. Arrival and
departure days were very hectic. She looked after two flights a week and had clients in ten apartment blocks between Palma and Paguera, including stops in Santa Ponsa and Magalluf. By the time she
did her visits and dealt with the paperwork back at the office the day was gone. Some nights she took clients on organized excursions to barbecues and fancy dress nights and the like.

The commission she made from selling the trips went into a special savings fund for her future with Ronan. He was saving like mad, he told her. If both of them saved really hard they might be
able to get married sooner than they had planned. It would mean they needn’t have a long engagement. But she’d have to give up being a courier. She couldn’t very well work on the
continent and leave her husband at home. Still, that was a long time away. She wouldn’t be twenty-one until August twelve months so that gave her another season away, at least. Maybe then
Kieran would give her a job in the TransCon office. She liked the travel business. She could always work at the front desk if her boss was willing and there was a vacancy. In the meantime she and
Paula were having a ball in Majorca.

One night, while waiting for a flight, Jennifer and Paula were joking and laughing with one of the couriers from another agency. His name was Rick. He was a real ladies’ man. Tall, blond,
blue-eyed and sexy, he fancied Paula like mad and was always trying to make a date with her. She wasn’t interested but, Paula being Paula, flirted nevertheless. Rick was down on bended knee,
begging her to go for a meal with him, and she was laughingly refusing, much to Jennifer’s amusement, when a polite cough caused them to turn around. Miss Johnson from head office stood
looking at them. Jennifer and Paula nearly died.

They were half-way through the season and Jennifer and Paula were expecting such a visit but they thought that she would visit their colleagues on the Costa first. And they would have warned
Jennifer and Paula of the impending visit. Miss Johnson was not known as a sneaky cow for nothing.

‘The other passengers will be through shortly, I only have hand luggage.’ She indicated a Samsonite shoulder bag. ‘It’s just as well, perhaps,’ she said coldly.
‘I sincerely hope that this is not your usual carry-on. You are wearing the company uniform. You are the company’s representatives abroad. What sort of an image are you giving the
company? If other couriers . . .’ she gave Rick a supercilious glare, ‘want to act in an undignified manner, that’s their business. I won’t have
my
couriers acting
like silly teenagers. Is that clear?’ Rick moved discreetly away and made hilarious faces behind the supervisor’s back.

‘Is that clear, Miss Myles? Miss Matthews?’ Miss Johnson demanded.

Jennifer was on the verge of a fit of the giggles. All she could see was Rick mimicking the supervisor behind her back.

‘Yes, Miss Johnson,’ she heard Paula say. Jennifer knew Paula was furious to have been caught in such a ridiculous situation. Paula prided herself on being the epitome of
sophistication.

‘Yes, Miss Johnson,’ Jennifer managed to say. She hoped her boss wouldn’t notice that the nail varnish on her thumbnail was slightly chipped. Miss Johnson was a stickler for
good grooming. Chipped nail varnish was a big no-no.

‘Good. Please greet your clients. They’re coming through,’ Miss Johnson said haughtily, making a note in her folder. She watched like a hawk as they went through the arrivals
procedures.

‘I bet she’ll come on my bus, the old bitch,’ Paula muttered as they walked towards their buses. ‘She never liked me because I got the job through Helen. Now she’s
really got something on me. I bet she can’t wait to get back to Kieran. I hope someone pukes all over her on the bus.’ Jennifer felt sorry for Paula, but she was relieved that Miss
Johnson would not be coming on her bus. Paula was probably right. After the episode in the airport, she’d most likely want to see how Paula performed. If there was one thing Miss Johnson
enjoyed, it was getting people rattled.

‘I’ll go with Miss Myles,’ Miss Johnson declared. Oh shit! thought Jennifer in dismay. She thought she’d got away with it. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Paula
grinning.

‘See you later,’ her friend said sweetly as they parted to board their respective buses.

Miss Johnson sat in the front seat right under her nose. Briskly, Jennifer walked down the aisle of the coach checking off names. One couple was missing. She got off the bus to search for them
and saw Paula bringing them over. ‘They were on my bus. They took one look at Jolly Johnson and decided they’d prefer to come with me.’ She giggled. ‘Can you believe the way
she walked in on us just when that idiot was down on his knees? Wait until I get him,’ she whispered.

‘I’d better go,’ Jennifer said hastily. ‘She’s sitting on the bus like she’s got a poker stuck up her ass. I’ll see you at home if I haven’t
drowned myself somewhere.’

‘Good luck,’ Paula murmured.

Jennifer explained the situation to her driver, Carlos, in rapid Spanish. ‘Don’t drive too fast,’ she warned. ‘I want to keep my balance.’

‘I’ll catch her eye in the mirror and seduce her with lusty glances, she looks as if she could do with a man,’ Carlos, ever the chauvinist, suggested with a grin.

‘Stop it, Carlos, and behave yourself,’ Jennifer begged. ‘Come on, let’s get going.’ She was beginning to feel very hot under the collar indeed. She took a deep
breath, smiled and began her speech.

‘Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Jennifer Myles. I’ll be your rep for the next two weeks and on behalf of Transcontinental Travel, may I welcome you to
Majorca.’

‘The island of tits, bums, booze and nookey,’ a voice called from the back of the bus. Why are you doing this to me, God? Jennifer asked the Almighty in despair as she ignored the
interruption. Trust her to have three pissed lads on the bus tonight. Miss Johnson wrote furiously in her precious folder.

‘Stop the bus, we’re three thirsty Cork men, we want to go and get a drink.’

‘Boys, you’ll be able to drink all you want to when I leave you off at your apartment, there’s a disco bar nearby that stays open late,’ Jennifer said pleasantly.

‘Yo.’

‘Great stuff.’

‘Good on ya.’

The three of them roared from the back of the bus.

‘But if you just listen to me for a few minutes now, I’ll tell you how to make sure you don’t ruin your holiday before you’ve even started it,’ Jennifer said
firmly.

‘Sound girl ye are,’ one of them shouted. Jennifer felt like going down and giving him a box in the jaw. His friend told him to shut up. Jennifer’s heart sank. Don’t let
them start a fight, she thought in dismay. That’s all I need. She glared at the trio.

‘Right,’ she said briskly, as they drove out of the airport. ‘First of all I’ll just tell you a little about the island and what to expect. And what to eat and drink.
Bank and shopping times and so on. Then tomorrow, when I come to visit you at your apartments, you can have your questions ready and we’ll have a get-to-know-one-another session.’ Fifty
faces gazed at her, expectantly. The fifty-first sat stony-faced in the front seat. Jennifer smiled confidently, giving no sign of the nervousness she was feeling, and began her spiel.

‘Could you stop the bus, Jennifer, I have to go for a slash?’ came a slurred voice from the rear of the bus. It was one of those nights, she decided. To hell with it. She might as
well go with the flow and forget about Miss Johnson.

‘Come on,’ she said with pretended cheeriness. ‘And then I don’t want to hear another word out of you.’

‘You’d think it was for spite,’ she told Paula later as they sat sipping a beer on their small balcony. It was almost four a.m. The pair of them had to be up early in the
morning for their client meetings. But they needed to wind down after the stress of Miss Johnson’s arrival. ‘One of the fellas saw her sitting on her own when he was getting off and
said if she was lonely, she knew where they were staying. You should have seen the face of her,’ Jennifer giggled, utterly relieved that the ordeal was over. Once she’d got rid of her
merry men, everything else had gone smoothly enough. ‘She has a list of our apartments and the times of the meetings. God knows where she’ll strike tomorrow.’ Jennifer yawned.

‘She’s incredible though, isn’t she?’ Paula mused. ‘Not a hair out of place. Make-up flawless. Grooming immaculate. I’ve never seen her look less than
perfect. She’s only about thirty-five, you know. But she’s a real dry pain in the ass. I wonder has she a man in her life?’

‘If she hasn’t, she could have. Carlos offered to seduce her,’ Jennifer laughed.

‘He’s a great character.’ Paula was amused. ‘But not even Carlos would put a smile on Jolly Johnson’s mush. Come on, let’s get to bed. We’ve a long day
tomorrow. We’d better phone the office in Malaga and let them know she’s on her rounds.’

‘Hmm,’ agreed Jennifer. ‘Forewarned is forearmed.’

‘You handled that situation last night very well, Miss Myles. And I’m glad to see that you’ve redone your nail varnish. You’re inclined to speak a little too quickly
sometimes. Guard against that,’ Miss Johnson said crisply. The supervisor had come to one of Jennifer’s meetings. She held out her hand. ‘I won’t see you again after
I’ve checked up on Miss Matthews. I’ll be sending in a good report on you. Just remember that when you are in uniform you must behave with dignity.’ She gave Jennifer a limp
handshake.