The Stag and Hen Weekend (34 page)

By the time the limousines pulled up in front of Koko’s, on the south side of Manchester city centre, a combination of the champagne and the long car journey had left Helen feeling slightly nauseous and she couldn’t wait to get out of the car. The fresh summer air cleared her head and as she saw just how excited her friends were she resolved to enjoy herself after all.

According to Aiden, Koko’s was Manchester’s most exclusive club and the number one destination for the city’s beautiful people. Helen cared less about Manchester’s beautiful people than she did about whether or not she would be able to dance to the music. It had been a long while since she had enjoyed a good dance and even longer since she had been out clubbing and the last thing she wanted was to have this sterling opportunity frustrated by a DJ playing anonymous dance music.

Reassured that the DJ was one of the country’s best they all followed Aiden past the door staff and straight to the club’s VIP section where three bottles of champagne were waiting on ice.

‘Was this your doing again?’ asked Helen as they all sat down.

Aiden shrugged nonchalantly. ‘My only concern this evening, my lady, is that you have a good time.’

Before Helen could respond Caitlin appeared at Aiden’s side and dragged him over to Heather and Ros under the pretext that they were desperate to hear more of his celebrity stories.

Aiden flashed Helen a look of apology that she felt obliged to acknowledge. Even Helen could see that whatever her future sister-in-law’s attractions, he was paying too high a price for the privilege.

Helen rounded up those of her friends that were up for a dance and led them to the dance floor just as the DJ played a track that seemed to be so well known that the whole room erupted. Helen had never heard it before, but with her friends by her side and the champagne flowing through her veins she didn’t care. Tonight was her hen night and she was going to have a good time no matter what.

‘I know it’s all been a bit mad,’ slurred Yaz, knocking back the last of the drink in her hand and lighting up a cigarette as they stood looking out across the city on the club’s outside terrace after a solid hour on the dance floor, ‘but you have to admit it’s been an absolutely amazing night. Beats my Blackpool bash hands down!’

Helen kissed her intoxicated friend’s glowing cheek. ‘I don’t remember you complaining too much.’

‘You know what I mean,’ said Yaz. ‘It’s been brilliant hasn’t it?’

Helen nodded. ‘It’s like we’re all twenty-one again! Last week I would’ve put good money on us all being in bed by now. It’s fantastic.’

‘And Caitlin’s not ruining it for you?’

Helen plucked Yaz’s cigarette from her hand and took a deep drag. ‘She’s good,’ replied Helen, savouring the smoke in her lungs before exhaling, ‘but not that good.’ She handed the cigarette back to Yaz. ‘I’m just grateful that you talked me into coming. It would have been awful if tonight hadn’t happened just because of her.’ She hugged Yaz. ‘You, my lady, are easily the best friend a girl could have. Someone should clone you so that everyone can have one.’

Yaz laughed and then shivered. ‘It’s colder than you think,’ she said rubbing her bare arms. She took one last drag on her cigarette and stubbed it out. ‘I’m going back inside. Coming? I’m gasping for a drink.’

‘Are you sure you haven’t had enough? You’ve been knocking it back since we got here. Why don’t you give it a rest?’

‘What for? So I can spend the rest of the night thinking about what Simon’s up to in Amsterdam? No thank you very much! I’ll take being clattered over being sober, clattered is good, sober is just too much of a ball ache.’

Helen watched as Yaz turned and headed unsteadily down the stairs to the club. She thought about trying to talk her around but with everything going on in her own life, she thought Yaz had made a good point.

Helen turned her attention to the illuminated cityscape behind her. She loved imagining the lives behind the lights, lives she would never know, people she would never meet. It was like a visual representation of her job as a DJ.

Helen was lost in thought when she heard footsteps and turned around to see a young man standing in front of her. He looked to be in his twenties, tall and handsome and, judging from the surreptitious glances of some of the girls out on the terrace clearly something of a catch.

‘Hope you don’t mind me talking to you,’ he said. ‘You look miles away.’

‘Got a few things on my mind,’ said Helen.

He raised an eyebrow cheekily. ‘Anything I can help with?’

Helen laughed. ‘I doubt it.’

He held out his hand. ‘The name’s Paul but my mates call me Biz. Couldn’t help but notice you on the dance floor earlier. You have one amazing body. Can I buy you a drink?’

‘That’s very kind of you . . . er, Biz . . . but apart from you being way too young for me . . . I’m actually getting married next weekend. So thanks but no thanks.’

‘Well tell him from me he’s one lucky guy.’

Helen smiled. ‘They’ll be the first words from my lips.’

He nodded, and gave Helen a wink. ‘Knocked back by the pretty lady, you know you’ve broken my heart don’t you?’

‘You’ll heal.’

He laughed. ‘I probably will as well.’ He offered a wave of his hand. ‘You take it easy and have a good wedding, yeah?’

Grinning, Helen returned her gaze to the Manchester streets. Chatted up by a hot young guy in a trendy nightclub! The girls were going to love this story.

She picked out a minicab snaking its way through the late-night traffic and tried to imagine who was in there and where they might be going. That was the key to being a good local DJ, being interested in people and their stories. It was true what Aiden had said about her ability to make something out of nothing. It was a skill that not everyone possessed.

Shivering slightly she rubbed her arms and was considering heading back inside when she saw the familiar figure of Aiden outlined against the night sky. Although she could barely see his face she knew he was looking at her. Every instinct told her to walk away but she didn’t move.

13.

‘Have you been out here long?’

‘A little while,’ said Helen. A group of young girls were pointing in Aiden’s direction and sniggering, clearly having recognised him. ‘Where’s Caitlin?’

Aiden shrugged. ‘She went off to powder her nose or whatever. It’s cold out here. You must be freezing.’

‘It’s not that bad,’ shrugged Helen, ‘but I was going inside anyway. I’ll leave you to have your cigarette in peace.’

Aiden held out a hand to stop her. ‘I don’t smoke,’ he said. ‘I told you the day my gran died I’d never smoke another cigarette and I haven’t.’

Helen was flooded with shame. Aiden’s gran had died of lung cancer in the third year they were together and losing her had affected him deeply.

‘That’s good,’ she said. ‘I’m glad you stuck to it.’

It was clear Aiden had other things on his mind.

‘I came out here to find you,’ he said as if daring her to challenge his assertion.

Helen didn’t speak. Engagement in conversation was tantamount to encouraging him and that was the last thing she wanted to do.

‘I’m out here because you’ve been avoiding me all night and I think I know why,’ he continued.

Helen could no longer remain silent. ‘Well, since we’re here,’ she said coldly, ‘why don’t you enlighten me?’

Taken aback by the sharpness in her voice Aiden held her gaze. ‘I don’t get it, why are you being so hostile? This can’t be about your sister-in-law surely?’

Helen flushed with anger. ‘Can you even hear yourself? You really think that nine years after you cheated on me I’m going to get upset because you’re sniffing around that wannabe wag? Get over yourself! She could be moving into your penthouse and having your kids and I still wouldn’t care. I can’t think of two people who deserve each more.’

Aiden put his hands in the air in an effort to placate her. ‘Helen, please, just calm down for a second! I’m not interested in Caitlin. I thought you would have guessed that straight away. The only reason I accepted her invitation to come out tonight was because I knew it would be the only way that we’d ever get a chance to talk.’

‘About what exactly?’

It was Aiden’s turn to be indignant. ‘Oh come on, don’t play games, Helen. When I told you why Sanne and I split up I could see in your eyes that you wanted to know the reason why, but were scared to ask.’

‘Well, if that was all so bloody obvious what are you even doing here? It’s my hen weekend, Aiden! This time next weekend I’ll have promised to be with the man I love for the rest of my life. Is this some kind of joke? A game where you waltz back into my life just because a very long time ago, we used to mean something to each other? I don’t want to know why you split up with your wife. It has nothing to do with me.’

‘You know that’s not true. When you read about the divorce in the papers it must have been no surprise to you. Because you know the truth.’

‘That you’re a lying, cheating womaniser? I’m pretty sure everyone knows that truth.’

‘Come on, Helen, you know me better than that. Why do you think I begged you to meet up all that time ago? Why do you think I got engaged? Why do you think it didn’t work out with Sanne? It was all because I needed to prove to myself that I wasn’t still in love with you.’

Helen shook her head in disbelief. ‘That’s such a lie! You didn’t love me. You never loved me. If you did you would never have hurt me like that.’

‘I just wasn’t ready for that life.’

‘Meaning once you’d hit the big time you didn’t need a girlfriend!’

‘It was never like that!’

‘It was exactly like that! I chose you over my career and you knew that you would never be brave enough to do the same. That’s why you cheated and that’s why you’re here because you’ve finally realised what I, and more than likely your ex-wife, have known all along. You’re an emotional coward. You always have been and you always will be.’

‘Fine,’ snapped Aiden. ‘Rage at me all you like, but it won’t change a thing. I know you still have feelings for me. I know you still care. I know because my feelings for you haven’t changed. The moment I laid eyes on you last night at the hotel it was like the last decade hadn’t happened. Above all I know because I saw the doubt in your eyes when you told me you were getting married. You might think you love this guy and that might be enough to push you through but you’ll never feel about him the way you felt about me. Never in a million years.’

Helen felt a surge of anger. She wanted to scream, she wanted to shout, she wanted to let out all the rage his arrogance and presumption had stirred up. But more than anything she wanted for him not to be right.

Pushing past him she ran across the terrace and back through the huge double doors into a wave of heat and sound that threatened to drown her. For a few moments she was lost in a sea of unfamiliarity, but as she slowly gathered her wits things began to make sense and once she spotted the tops of the bright red doors through which they had arrived, she headed for the exit.

The club was more packed than it had been. On the far side of the dance floor she could just about make out Carla and Ros although Caitlin and Yaz were nowhere to be seen. Helen began weaving her way around the edge of the dance floor but as she did so the DJ played yet another song that everyone in the club seemed to know and everyone flooded to the centre of the room taking Helen with them.

She almost lost her footing but quickly regained her balance and snaked in between dancing couples and groups of friends towards her destination. Every two inches gained seemed at the expense of one in the wrong direction as she struggled against the rising tide of happy clubbers. Finally she managed to break through when a group of girls dancing frenetically in front of her fell over. In the resulting commotion a few lads who had seen what had happened began holding people back and seizing her moment she dodged her way around them. She could almost see the edge of the dance floor when she felt someone grab her wrist. She turned around to see the young guy that had spoken to her earlier on the terrace. Grinning inanely he motioned that she should join him and his friends but Helen simply shook her head, wrenched her wrist free of his grip and continued on towards the exit.

There was one final obstacle to overcome before she reached the doors. A line of men, poseurs every last one of them, stood, drinks in hand eyeing up the talent. Helen bowed her head and barged right through them refusing to respond to or even acknowledge their comments as she did so. All that mattered was getting out. All that mattered was being somewhere safe.

As the large double doors closed behind her, muting the music, she stopped running so as not to attract the attention of the door staff. She left the club and scanned the street for any sign of the limousines that had brought them. There were lines of minicabs touting for business, but the limos were nowhere to be seen. Just as she was wondering whether she had enough money in her purse to cover the minicab fare if she could find one that would take her back to Ashbourne she heard Aiden’s voice calling after her. She had slowed down too soon. Too exhausted to run any more she stopped and turned around.

Aiden walked towards her, encircled her in his arms and held her tightly to his chest. Overcome with emotion, Helen couldn’t hold in her feelings any longer and as tears began to flow down her cheeks she looked up and melted into his kiss.