“
Anyone else for a drink?
”
Carl asked
.
“
I
’
d like a gin and tonic
,
please,
”
Louise piped up.
Ronan was apprehensive. She
’
d been knocking back t
he wine like nobody
’
s business and now she was starting on gin and tonic. God! The last thing he needed was for her to get drunk. He knew he must avoid that at all cost.
After the supper had finished with a fabulous array of desserts, the tables were pushed back to the side of the marquee leaving the centre free for dancing.
“
I need to go to the ladies
’
. Can you tell me where it is, Rachel?
”
Ellie asked, standing up.
“
Come, I
’
ll show you,
”
Rachel answered.
“
I need to go a
nd circulate again anyway and see how everyone is doing.
”
“
I
’
ll come too,
”
Louise said, jumping up and grabbing her bag.
Orla wandered off to talk to some people
.
After they
’
d gone, Carl arrived over to the table and beckoned to Ronan
.
“
Want to see the house now, Ronan?
”
he asked.
“
Can I come too
?”
Marcus asked jumping up quickly
,
full of anticipation.
“
Sure, no problem.
”
“
Do you mind if I join you
?”
Zita asked
.
“
Our tour will be all the more interesting if you do,
”
Carl replied, holding her in his gaze.
She smiled at him, her eyes languid. The handsome devil was flirting with her again.
Ronan was relieved that Louise had gone to the ladies
’
with Ellie
,
otherwise she would surely have wanted to come and it would have been like a tourist tour of the White House. He hadn
’
t missed how taken she was with Carl
.
He was everything she
’
d ever wanted.
Ronan knew that he was a big disappointment to his wife. She
’
d thought when she
’
d married him that it would all be a bed of roses
.
It hadn
’
t worked out like that, of course. He had opted to join a small dedicated firm which was committed to improving the structure of hospitals and schools. Not a big money-spinner unfortunately
,
but Ronan loved the work he did. Louise would have relished being married to someone like Carl with all the glitz and glamour it entailed
,
not to mention the millions that would have been at her disposal. He knew his wife was thinking this same thing. Maybe it had been a big mistake bringing her here
.
Blinded by love, it had taken Ronan a while to realise just how shallow his wife was. He knew she didn
’
t love him any
more and sometimes he wondered if she ever had.
Jade had disappeared to talk to some friends and Sam was sitting alone with David at the table as they waited for the
band to start up. He was trying hard to make conversation
with Ellie
’
s fiancé but was finding it increasingly difficult. It was obvious that the other man was not enjoying himself.
“
Are you not having a good time?
”
Sam couldn
’
t resist asking.
“
I
’
m afraid I hate these kinds of parties.
”
He grimaced.
“
It
’
s all so . . . shallow, I guess is the word I
’
m looking for
.”
“
Oh, it
’
s not so bad
,”
Sam replied.
“
Rachel and Carl are very welcoming and you have to admit they
’
ve put on a jolly good show.
”
“
I suppose
.
It
’
s just not my kind of thing. No decent conversation.
”
Sam gave up on him. It was a party for God
’
s sake and David wasn
’
t exactly the world
’
s most interesting conversationalist. He wondered what Ellie saw in him. Sam sure as hell couldn
’
t figure it out
.
Rachel gave Ellie and Louise
directions to the ladies
’
room where they marvelled at the opulent furnishings. There w
ere fresh flowers and Jo Malone toiletries on the marble tops and even a chaise longue and two armchairs. It would not have been out of place in the poshest hotel in Dublin.
“
Oh my God, I
’
d kill for a house like this,
”
Louise moaned.
“
Look at these gold fittings and just look at all the beautiful towels in here
!”
She opened cupboards one after the other.
“
Rachel is a lucky bitch!
”
“
Yeah, well, she can
’
t have an easy life. Being married to a politician is not exactly a piece of cake. I think she hardly ever sees him.
”
“
That would suit me just fine,
”
Louise said, with a grimace
.
“
How can you say that?
”
Ellie asked haltingly
.
“
Well, you know, marriage isn
’
t always a bed of roses
,
especially when there are money problems.
”
Ellie heard the despair in her voice.
“
Well, I suppose times are tough now for everyone,
”
she said gently, not wanting to disparage Ronan.
“
Not for Rachel, obviously! I hope your David has pots of money
.”
Ellie was horrified by this announcement.
“
What
’
s money
got to do with it? What about love?
”
Louise stopped applying her eyeliner and looked at Ellie as if she was mad.
“
Love has nothing to do with it. T
rust me, it
’
s true what they say – love flies out the wind
ow when poverty comes in the door
.”
Stunned into silence
,
Ellie applied her lip gloss
,
trouble
d by what Louise had said. Did Ronan really have such money problems
and was he as unhappy as his wife appeared to be? God, it must be awful to be stuck in an unhappy marriage. Ellie shuddered.
“
Let
’
s have a nose around,
”
Louise suggested when they
’
d finished and left the ladies
’
room
.
Ellie felt very uncomfortable as the other girl opened doors and peered into rooms. She felt like an intruder and was hoping nobody would come along and catch them.
“
I
’
m going back,
”
she insisted when Louise wanted to go into the other wing of the house.
Annoyed, Louise had no choice but to follow her
,
but insisted on detouring by the sun-deck to have a look at it. Seeing the hot-tub made her even more discontented
. “
Honestly, some people don
’
t know what to do with their money,
”
she grumbled. At the same time it was obvious that she was green with envy as she tried out the luxurious leather sun-loungers.
They passed by the bar and Ellie asked for a sparkling water while Louise opted for a gin and tonic. Ellie figured she
’
d had enough alcohol for the moment. She didn
’
t want to disgrace herself by getting drunk. David would never forgive her. Anyway, the night was young yet.
The band was just starting up when they got back to the
table. Sam and David were sitting in obviously uncomforta
ble silence and Ellie wondered why they weren
’
t chatting. The others were still on their tour of the house and Orla and Jade were nowhere to be seen
.
Rachel came back to join them.
“
Phew! Well, thank God supper is over and everything went well,
”
she said, smiling around at them.
“
Now we can all enjoy the dancing. This band is great.
”
“
What about your neighbours, Rachel?
”
David asked.
“
Won
’
t they be bothered about the noise?
”
“
Most of them are away in Marbella for the summer an
d those who aren
’
t are here tonight,
”
she informed them
with a laugh.
“
Good move!
”
Sam raised his thumb in an okay sign.
“
Do you not go to Marbella for the summer
?”
Louise wanted to know.
“
Well, we have done for years. My parents have a
place there but this year
we
’
re going to the south of Franc
e instead. We
’
re spending the month of August there in a friend
’
s villa. Unfortunately, the Dáil doesn
’
t recess until the end of July, so we can
’
t go till then.
”
“
You
’
re so lucky,
”
Louise sighed.
“
I wish I
’
d married a man who would have given me this fabulous house and exotic holidays
.”
A change came over Rachel
’
s face.
“
Actually, the house is mine,
”
she said, her voice icy cold
. “
It was a wedding present to me from my father
.”
“
Oh, sorry,
”
Louise said, realising that she was being put in her place.
“
Well, you
’
re still very lucky,
”
she continue
d, ignoring the disgusted glances of the others.
“
David, come on
,
let
’
s dance,
”
Ellie said, grabbing his hand.
“
No
,
Ellie, I
’
m tired. I don
’
t feel like dancing tonight.
”
“
Ah, come on
!
The band is great.
”
“
No, please
.
I have a headache. I think I have a migrai
ne coming on.
”
Sam saw the disappointment in her eyes and felt sorry for her.
“
I
’
ll dance with Ellie – if that
’
s okay with you
,
David,
”
he offered, looking at the other man.
David shrugged his shoulders.
“
Fine, if Ellie wants to.
”
“
Yes, please,
”
she said, her smile dimpling as she grabbe
d Sam
’
s hand.