A Taste for Love Read online

  Duggy had to split around lunchtime, as he was doing a bit of editing in Filmbase for a friend of his.

  ‘Give me a shout when you need me to pick up your stuff,’ he offered.

  By three o’clock the market had started to wind down, and Finn and Lucy realized that they had sold over fifty ‘Busy Stargazing’ T-shirts and had eight orders for them. Twenty people had bought ‘Busy Queuing’ and there were only three left, and they’d cleared out all of their ‘Busy in Bed’ ones. ‘Busy Busking’ had sold well, too.

  Lucy couldn’t believe it, but they had sold over a hundred T-shirts! Finn was incredulous – and glad that Lucy had insisted on keeping the prices low.

  ‘Everyone’s broke at the moment, and so twelve euros for a T-shirt that is original and different is a fair price. If we can keep getting them made up and printed for five euros it’s a good mark-up for us once we’ve paid for our stall and our overheads.’

  ‘I just can’t believe it.’ Finn laughed. ‘A hundred people walking around Dublin in something I designed … it’s kind of cool.’

  ‘You’re kind of cool.’ Lucy grinned, and kissed him.

  *

  That night they ordered in a celebration takeaway from the Balti House and drank some beers. It had been some day, and they were pretty knackered.

  ‘We’ve booked the stall for next week,’ announced Finn.

  ‘Great!’ approved Duggy, helping himself to some naan bread. ‘You know, I was thinking maybe we should put the T-shirts up on the internet and sell some that way … well, try it out, anyway. Set up a “Busy …” website.’

  ‘That would cost a fortune,’ worried Lucy. ‘But we could definitely do Facebook and Twitter!’

  ‘Yeah, great, but my friends and I are always setting up web stuff and sites like that for the film projects we work on, but this would be different as you would be selling, and people would have to pay online, and you’d send them T-shirts … I’m not sure how that works.’

  ‘I’ll ask my dad,’ Lucy offered. ‘He works in a bank, he’d probably know about that kind of thing.’

  ‘Well, here’s to Busy,’ toasted Finn, wrapping Lucy in his arms.

  ‘Here’s to a business that might actually get us all off the dole!’ Duggy and Lucy laughed in unison.

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Alice was busy down the garden clearing out the old leaves and rotting debris of last summer’s bedding. The crocuses were up, and the first of the daffodils were beginning to appear under the sycamore and lilac trees. It was damp and chilly, but with her fleece, woolly hat, gardening gloves and sturdy boots she was well-equipped for the occasion. She’d been out since mid-morning and had only taken a short break for a bowl of soup, and with the temperature beginning to drop was about to call it a day when she heard the doorbell go. No point going through the house; she’d go down the side passageway and see who it was.

  ‘Alice!’

  ‘Rob! How are you? Is everything OK?’ she asked, surprised to see Rob Flanagan standing on the footpath in his coat and a business suit.

  ‘I was on my way home from work, and decided to call in for a minute as there was something I wanted to ask you about.’

  ‘Oh, fine, come round this way, please.’ She smiled, took off her gloves, and led him around to the back garden and the back door. There she kicked off her muddy boots, took off her hat, and led him into the kitchen.

  ‘Is everything OK about cooking on Tuesday?’ she asked, concerned and hoping that Rob didn’t feel too overwhelmed by the class.

  ‘Alice, the class is fine. To my great surprise I am really enjoying it, and it’s exactly what I need.’

  ‘Well, that’s good,’ she said, relieved. ‘I was about to have a cup of coffee, would you like one?’ she asked.

  ‘That would be lovely,’ he said, settling his large frame on to one of the tall stools at the kitchen island.

  ‘I’ve some homemade peanut cookies. Sean is addicted to them, would you like one?’ she said, opening the biscuit tin.

  ‘Thanks.’

  ‘Everything going OK with cooking at home?’ she asked.

  ‘Yes, couldn’t be better. I had an old neighbour, a widower like myself, over for dinner on Sunday and I did the fillet of beef. It turned out perfectly, and as for those potatoes done in the stock, we ate far too many of them.’

  ‘Well, I’m glad that you are putting it all into practice.’ She laughed. ‘That’s what I like to hear.’

  She watched him over her coffee. He was a good-looking man, with an expensive suit and shirt, well-turned-out. He looked after himself.

  ‘The biscuits are great,’ he said, taking another one from the tin.

  ‘I must put them on my class recipe list,’ she teased.

  ‘Alice.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘The reason I called over was nothing to do with the class, and I didn’t want to ask you with everyone else around. I was wondering if you would be interested in coming to the opera with me next Friday. They are staging La Traviata in the Gaiety as part of the opera season. Kate and I used to go regularly, and I suppose I am still on some priority booking list or other. I have two tickets.’

  ‘The opera!’ This certainly was a bit of a surprise, but if he had two tickets it would be such a shame to waste them, and it was years since she had gone to the opera. It would be fun, and Rob, from what she knew of him, was good company.

  ‘That sounds very nice, Rob. I’d love to come along, thank you for thinking of me.’

  ‘There is a pre-opera supper in two or three of the restaurants close by. Kate and I always used to grab a bite before the show started. They all make sure to have you out in plenty of time before the curtain goes up.’

  ‘That sounds great!’ She laughed.

  ‘I’ll book Peploes, then, for about 6.00 p.m,’ Rob said, sounding very pleased with himself.

  Walking him to the front door in her socks, Alice suddenly realized that she had agreed to go on a sort of a date, her first date with a man since Liam had left her.

  Was she gone mad?

  ‘Calm down! Calm down!’ Joy advised her when she phoned her that night. ‘It’s just opera and a bit of supper … he’s not taking you off on a sexy dirty weekend!’

  ‘Ugh,’ said Alice, ‘don’t be so disgusting. It’s nothing like that. He’s a very nice man who also happens to be one of my cookery students. It’s just two friends having a night out together. Do you think I am breaking some code of ethics by dating one of my students?’

  ‘For God’s sake, Alice, you are both over the age of consent. Anyway, I thought you said this was just a night out with a friend,’ Joy teased.

  ‘I suppose he’s very lonely.’

  ‘Lovely,’ said Joy. ‘You should suit each other!’

  ‘You know I haven’t been out with anyone but Liam since I was twenty-three,’ Alice worried. ‘It’s just so weird going out with someone.’

  ‘You go out with me all the time,’ teased her friend. ‘So just relax and enjoy your date with that very eligible man, and don’t think too much about it. I believe the opera is totally sold out, so you’re lucky he got tickets.’

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Alice decided to take a taxi into town to meet Rob Flanagan at Peploes, the busy city centre restaurant on St Stephen’s Green. He greeted her warmly when she arrived.

  As she sat down the waitress hurried along to take their order. They both opted for the smoked duck starter and for her main Alice went for the hake on a bed of chive mash.

  Rob ordered some wine for the two of them.

  ‘If we don’t finish this bottle before we leave for the theatre we can come back for the rest after the performance,’ he explained.

  As she sipped her wine and ate, Rob entertained her with stories of previous operas he’d seen.

  ‘I’m not much of an opera buff,’ Alice admitted, ‘but I did get to see Aida performed in the open in Verona. It was such a magical night, and Liam
and I brought the kids along. I remember about halfway through the performance we heard a sound like thunder, and thought it was special sound effects at first, until we saw the flashes of lightning in the sky. Then it began to rain, and we all had to make a run for it and go to the little bars and cafés around the amphitheatre for shelter.’

  ‘What happened then?’ he asked, laughing.

  ‘We waited and waited, and had a few drinks, and the kids had some ice cream, and then the rain cleared and the orchestra started up again and we all made our way back up into our seats. It was well after midnight before the performance ended. I don’t think any of us will ever forget it.’

  ‘Verona is beautiful. Kate and I went there a few times.’

  ‘That was our only family holiday in Italy, and I haven’t gone back,’ Alice said.

  They had just finished their main course when they noticed a huge exodus as their fellow diners began to head for the theatre.

  ‘Come on, we’d better get going, too,’ urged Rob.

  Looking around the foyer of the theatre Alice was glad she had put a bit of effort into dressing and worn her oyster-coloured silk shift dress, as some of their fellow opera-goers were in full evening dress, and it was quite a swanky affair. They had wonderful seats only a few rows from the stage, and Rob was so attentive and kind to her that she could feel herself relax and be taken up by the music and story.

  Rob knew the opera well, and patiently explained some of its intricacies to her during the second and third acts.

  ‘Rob, thank you so much,’ she sighed as they watched the last act, with Violetta dying in the arms of her lover. ‘Why are opera stories all so tragic?’

  ‘That’s what opera’s about, and what brings people to it: life’s tragedies!’ he said quietly, as they went back outside. ‘Will we polish off the Merlot, or would you prefer to go for a nightcap somewhere else?’ he asked.

  ‘Another glass of the wine would be lovely before we head home,’ she agreed, as they walked back up on to the Green.

  The restaurant was quieter now, and some of the tables were empty. They sat in the corner and talked about their families. Rob was very proud of his two sons and their careers, but Alice felt it must be hard for him having them live away.

  ‘You must miss them both so much,’ she said.

  ‘I go and visit them, and they try to get home once a year,’ he said, putting a brave face on it. ‘You raise sons to be bright and intelligent and strong and then you can’t really complain when they want to go and live somewhere else and take on new challenges.’

  ‘I’m so lucky,’ reflected Alice. ‘My gang are still around so far, and they’ve been brilliant since Liam and I split. I don’t know how I would manage without them all.’

  They shared the taxi home, and when the driver pulled up outside her house Rob got out and gave her a big hug.

  ‘Alice, thanks for coming along tonight.’

  ‘Rob, it was lovely,’ she said. ‘More fun than I’ve had in a long time.’

  ‘Then we must do it again?’ he said softly.

  She gave a wave at the front door as she opened it and let herself in. Lexy rushed out past her to the front garden.

  It had been a lovely night and Rob had been far better company than she had expected. At first she had felt a bit awkward and ill-at-ease being out with a man, but Rob was so nice he had made her feel relaxed, and it had been such a treat to dress up a bit and go to the opera. Liam had hated theatre-going and opera and the like, and had only ever gone under extreme duress.

  Letting Lexy back in, she was about to go upstairs to bed when she got a text message on her phone.

  Are u home yet?

  Honestly, Joy was such a curiosity box! She’d make herself a cup of tea and get comfortable on the couch in the kitchen before ringing her best friend who would, no doubt, demand a blow-by-blow account of the night.

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Kerrie sipped at the red wine. Everything had gone perfectly: the prawn cocktail starter, the beef bourguignon with baby potatoes and a salad, and another of Polly’s Pantry’s specials – a chocolate tart, which she served with cream and ice cream.

  ‘Sinful!’ praised Justin, asking for another slice.

  ‘I’ll give the chef a rest,’ teased Matt, getting up to make the coffee for everyone.

  There really was nothing like having a perfect dinner for friends, Kerrie thought, as she sipped on the Burgundy.

  ‘The beef was great,’ remarked Lindsey. ‘Is there a lot of wine in it? You must give me the recipe.’

  ‘A glass or two of what we’re having,’ Kerrie smiled. She had absolutely no idea how Polly’s Pantry made their beef dish, but hopefully some of the ingredients were listed on the back of the packet. There was bound to be some wine in it, and truthfully she had tossed a glass of red into the beef herself while she was heating it up.

  ‘How are all the wedding plans coming?’ quizzed Lindsey. ‘Weddings are so exciting. There is so much planning, but I had such fun organizing mine. You and your mum must be busy with getting everything done!’

  Kerrie nodded. She knew her mum was still annoyed with her about wanting to go away. She was making most of the arrangements herself over the internet, which made it all feel distant and unreal.

  ‘Have you got the dress?’

  ‘No, not yet,’ Kerrie admitted. ‘It will be hot in early September in France, so I just want something white and light and summery. I’ve seen one or two nice ones. I went to that designer Rhona Coleman on Merrion Square, and she’s got some really great dresses that are perfect for France and kind of simple and classic, just the thing I’d like.’

  ‘Sounds lovely. Though she’s meant to be expensive,’ continued Lindsey. ‘Will you get your bridesmaids’ dresses there, too? How many are you having?’

  ‘I’m having just one bridesmaid, my friend Ruth, who was in college with me.’

  ‘I thought you had a few sisters, don’t they mind?’

  ‘Well, they understand we are keeping it small,’ Kerrie explained. ‘It’s going to be quite an intimate affair. Just a few close friends like you and Justin, and our families.’

  Kerrie had given no thought to her sisters being bridesmaids, and all the drama and shopping that it would have involved.

  ‘God, when I think of my crowd! Remember? I ended up with five bridesmaids.’

  Kerrie remembered five girls of various sizes and heights in layered pink ballet-type dresses all cluttered together up at the altar and later around the reception and in the photographs.

  ‘There was my best friend Vicky, and my three sisters, and Justin’s sister. It was mad, and we were months trying to get dresses that would fit everyone. Talk about arguments!’

  ‘Well, at least I won’t have that problem. Ruth will probably wear some kind of summery cocktail dress.’

  ‘Aren’t you having any flower girls or pages? Do you remember how cute little Ella and Ruby and Oisin were at our wedding? They were such cuties.’

  Kerrie thought of her little nieces and nephews. They were a wild lot, and even Matt’s little nephew Henry could throw a right strop at times. There was no way anyone was bringing kids to their wedding.

  ‘Well, being away in the South of France it’s a bit difficult,’ she explained. ‘Probably best the kids are left at home.’

  ‘I’m sure your mum is all busy getting her mother-of-the-bride outfit, getting something to suit a très chic French wedding! I know it’s going to be in France, but she is still going to be the mother of the bride!’

  ‘Mum’s not really into that much style, but we’ll go shopping nearer the time.’

  ‘God, it all sounds so simple and organized compared to our wedding. Poor Mum went on a diet trying to drop two dress sizes and ended up putting on half a stone with the stress of it all, and my three sisters went on the Atkins diet for months before and were cranky as a bag of cats. I spent more time worrying about their outfits than my own.’
/>   ‘Lindsey, your dress was amazing, and you looked beautiful.’

  ‘Thanks, Kerrie, that’s what happiness does.’ Lindsey laughed. ‘All I wanted was to be married to Justin. To start our life together surrounded by all our family and friends, the people we love.’

  ‘It sure was a big wedding!’

  ‘It was a hooley! I don’t think there was a cousin or an auntie left out. What a family! But they are a great bunch and it was such a huge party. Justin and I had such fun.’

  Kerrie remembered the big hotel outside Dublin, the food and dancing and long wandering speeches, loud music and everyone tucking into the midnight feast of sausages and sandwiches. She’d slipped away to bed at around 2 a.m. while Matt had stayed up singing and talking and hanging around with Justin and his pals till almost breakfast time. He’d been bleary eyed and hungover when they’d finally checked out of the hotel after lunch.

  ‘Your wedding was brilliant, Lindsey, but ours is going to be a lot smaller! I can’t wait till you and Justin see the church and the restaurant overlooking the harbour of Villefranche and the Mediterranean. It’s so romantic and a bit different.’

  ‘We’re both looking forward to it.’ Justin smiled. ‘I’m working on my best man’s speech already! Afterwards we’re going to hire a car and drive around Provence for about a week.’

  ‘Are you sure you two won’t mind having only a few people at your wedding?’ Lindsey asked, taking another sip of her wine. ‘If it was me I’d probably miss everyone!’

  ‘Not everyone wants a big lavish wedding with all the frills, and crowds of people,’ said Kerrie tartly.

  ‘Listen, if Kerrie had her way we’d be saying our vows all on our own on some far-flung beach in Mauritius or the Maldives.’ Matt laughed nervously. ‘Kerrie wants to keep everything as simple as possible. I’ve had a hell of a job to convince her even to have our families and a few friends there, believe me!’