Changing Places (30 page)

Bridie looked him straight in the eye. ‘You should know better than anyone.’

‘Ah, now, Bridie, you promised you wouldn’t throw it back in my face.’

‘And I won’t, but don’t go casting the first stone,’ she warned.

He sat back in the chair, his hands in his lap, looking at her as if she were mad. ‘I can’t believe I’m hearing this. Are you defending them now?’

‘Of course I’m not! It’s just that Anna and Rachel don’t have any real proof yet.’

Shay shook his head. ‘I can’t believe it. They’re both lovely girls, pretty girls. Why would the lads want anything more?’

Bridie glared at him. ‘You’re really not helping yourself here.’

‘Sorry, sorry, it’s just I feel so helpless.’

Bridie nodded. ‘I know.’

‘So what did you say to them?’

‘I told them both to go home and talk to their husbands.’

‘Oh.’

‘Well, what else could I say?’

‘Nothing, I suppose. At least they can comfort each other, being in the same boat like.’

‘Ah, Shay, would you listen to yourself? They hardly talk to each other, never mind confide in each other.’

‘And what’s that about?’ Shay was bewildered. ‘I mean, you and Pat were like chalk and cheese but you were still friends.’

Bridie nodded. ‘We used to kill each other but it didn’t really mean anything. Anna and Rachel used to be like that too.’

‘So what happened?’

‘Who knows?’ Bridie said thoughtfully. ‘Like you said though, at least they have Jill.’

‘Come on, you two,’ Jill urged as she hurried towards the baggage carousel. Now that she was back in Dublin her tiredness had disappeared and she couldn’t
wait to get home. There was so much to think about, so much to work out. She wanted to make a huge pot of coffee, grab a pad and pen and spend the rest of the day alone with her thoughts.

‘The bags haven’t even started to come out yet,’ Anna pointed out. She was in no hurry to walk into Arrivals. Coming face to face with Liam, the thought of looking into his
eyes filled her with excitement and fear. What would she see there?

Rachel was the last to reach the carousel. Like Anna, she was a bit nervous about seeing her husband again, but apart from that, her feet were killing her and she was feeling slightly nauseous.
‘Are we at the right one?’ she asked, peering at the tiny monitor above them.

‘Yeah, this is it,’ Jill said.

‘It’s always the bloody same,’ one woman said loudly. ‘You’d be quicker going out and getting them yourself!’ There was a chuckle from her fellow passengers
and she flashed a rueful smile. ‘Ah, lousy weather and crap service, isn’t it great to be home?’

‘Hoorah!’ her son shouted as the carousel started up. ‘They’re coming, Ma, they’re coming!’

‘Don’t hold your breath, love,’ his mother warned him.

As the woman predicted, it was a good ten minutes later before the cases finally appeared.

‘If ours are last I’m going to cry,’ Rachel said, leaning heavily against a nearby pillar.

‘You go and sit down and I’ll get your case,’ Jill told her.

‘Thanks, Jill.’

‘She’s very pale,’ Jill said to Anna as Rachel went in search of a seat.

‘It’s fright,’ Anna assured her. ‘She’s always been terrified on planes. When she was small she used to throw up before the plane had even taken off! Oh look,
there’s my case, and isn’t that yours behind it?’

‘Thank God for that,’ Jill pushed her way into the carousel, grabbed the two bags and handed them to Anna. ‘Now all we need is Rachel’s.’

It was another ten minutes before Rachel’s bag appeared. ‘About bloody time!’ Anna snatched it up and carried it over to where Jill and Rachel were sitting. ‘Let’s
get out of this place.’

Rachel rose slowly to her feet and swayed slightly.

‘Are you okay?’ Jill took her arm.

‘Yeah, just a bit tired.’

‘You’ll be home in no time,’ Anna promised. ‘Come on.’

As they walked out into the Arrivals area, Rachel forgot her tiredness and aching feet as a small figure hurtled towards her.

‘Mummy!’

Rachel bent and pressed her son close to her chest. ‘Hello, darling, how are you? Oh, it’s so wonderful to see you. Have you missed me?’

‘Yeah, what did you bring me?’ Alex’s eyes went to her case.

‘All in good time.’ Gary had joined them. He bent and kissed Rachel’s cheek. ‘Welcome home, Rache.’

‘Thanks.’

‘I don’t see Liam.’ Anna looked around her.

‘He’s not coming,’ Gary told her as he led them towards the exit. ‘He got a call just before he was about to leave for the airport. His mother’s been taken
ill.’

Anna stared at her brother-in-law in disbelief. ‘And of course he went running!’

Gary shot her a strange look. ‘Well, he is the next-of-kin.’

Anna stopped. ‘What do you mean? What’s wrong with her?’

‘All I know is that she’s in hospital.’

‘Oh, my God!’

‘That’s terrible!’ Jill put a comforting hand on Anna’s arm.

‘I’d better get over there.’

‘We’ll drop you,’ Gary said.

‘No, that’s okay—’

‘We’ll drop you,’ he insisted.

Rachel shot him a grateful look. ‘Would you like me to come in with you?’ she asked her sister.

‘No, there’s no need. Anyway, you’re exhausted.’

‘I’ll come with you,’ Jill told her. ‘I can get a taxi home from the hospital.’

‘Thanks, Jill.’

They reached the car and Gary loaded their luggage into the boot.

‘Can I have my present now, Mum?’ Alex ventured, oblivious to the mood.

‘No, darling, you’ll have to wait until we get home.’

The little boy’s smile disappeared. ‘Ah, Mum!’

‘Another word from you, young man, and there won’t be any presents at all,’ Gary said quietly but firmly.

‘Sorry, Daddy,’ Alex said and hopped into the back seat, clambering into the middle so he could have Anna on one side and Jill on the other.

Rachel stared at Gary in amazement. What on earth had been going on in her absence? On the rare occasion that Gary corrected his son, Alex usually ignored him. But not only had Alex listened
this time, he’d obeyed Gary without question. Rachel got into the passenger seat, closed her belt and then stared out of the window as Gary guided the car out of the car park. She should be
thrilled at this new development but it actually made her feel surplus to requirements. Alex was more excited about his present than seeing her, and Gary’s kiss had been almost brotherly.
Rachel’s resolve to tackle her husband started to falter. She had a horrible image of a look of total relief crossing Gary’s face and him asking her for an amicable break-up.

‘Are you okay, love?’ Gary was looking at her, a frown on his face.

‘Fine.’ She smiled weakly. She twisted in her seat so that she could see her sister. ‘Had Josie been sick?’

Anna shook her head. ‘No. She’s always complaining about something or other but she’s basically quite healthy.’

‘Is she going to die?’ Alex chipped in.

‘No, of course not!’ Rachel rolled her eyes at her sister.

‘But she’s very old, isn’t she?’ he persisted.

Anna smiled and ruffled his hair. ‘Only about sixty.’

He wrinkled his nose. ‘That’s ancient!’

Gary laughed. ‘You’d better not say that to either of your grannies or you’ll be in big trouble.’

‘Why?’ Alex asked.

‘Ladies don’t like getting older,’ Jill told him.

‘I do, I love it. I’m five and three-quarters, nearly six, isn’t that right, Mum?’

‘Yes, sweetheart, you’re getting very old,’ Rachel agreed as Gary turned into the hospital grounds and drove around to the Accident & Emergency entrance.

‘Thanks, Gary,’ Anna said as he stopped the car.

‘No problem. Would you like me to drop your case off at the house?’

‘Oh, would you? That would be great.’

‘Sure.’

‘Call us when you have some news, won’t you?’ Rachel said as Anna and Jill climbed out.

As Gary went to the boot to get Jill’s bag, she bent her head to smile at Rachel. ‘I’ll give you a call later, Rache. Thanks for a great week.’

Rachel smiled back at her cousin. ‘Thank
you
. It wouldn’t have been the same without you.’

‘Bye!’ Anna called.

‘Bye, good luck. Give Liam our love.’

‘Will do.’

‘So, how was the holiday?’ Gary asked as they drove away.

‘Yeah, it was fine.’

‘And your dad?’

‘He’s great but giving out like hell about his diet.’

‘He must be missing his pint.’

‘He still has the odd one, not that we’re supposed to know that.’

‘And what about the cigarettes?’

‘He’s given them up.’

‘You’re kidding?’ Since Gary had first dated Rachel he’d been amazed at the number of cigarettes Shay got through in a day.

‘Well, apparently he’d already cut down to five a day so it hasn’t been too hard.’

‘I’m impressed.’

‘Yes, I was too.’

‘I thought maybe we could order in tonight,’ Gary told her. ‘I knew you’d probably be too tired to cook and I didn’t want to inflict my cooking on you.’

‘Sounds good,’ Rachel agreed, amazed that Gary had even thought about dinner. ‘We probably should do a shop on the way home,’ she added, stifling a yawn.

‘Alex and I did one yesterday.’

‘Oh!’

‘I’m sure we forgot lots of stuff,’ he laughed, ‘but we got the basics. There should be enough food to keep us going for a couple of days.’

‘Great, thanks.’ God, she was definitely redundant. What had prompted this New Man act – a guilty conscience, maybe? Or maybe he’d also decided it was time to talk and he
was preparing the ground.

‘Aren’t you visiting the obstetrician this week?’ Gary was saying.

‘Yes, Thursday.’

‘If you like, I could come with you.’

Rachel stared at him. ‘Why?’

He looked slightly embarrassed. ‘It’s just an idea.’

‘Yeah, that would be great, thanks.’ Now Rachel was completely confused. But she didn’t have time to think about it as Gary had turned into the driveway and Alex was bouncing
up and down.

‘Presents time, presents time. Come on, Mummy, hurry up!’ He opened the door and jumped out, hopping impatiently from foot to foot as his father fetched the case and Rachel levered
herself out of the car. Gary opened the front door and carried the case into the living room. ‘Are you okay?’ he asked, all concerned as Rachel gasped when she went to sit down.

She made a face. ‘Fine, just Baby is doing somersaults and giving me sore ribs.’

Gary crouched down beside her and put a hand on her stomach. ‘Not long now, Baby, hang in there.’

Rachel gulped at his tender expression.

‘Come on, Mummy,’ Alex pleaded. ‘Pleaaaaase!’

‘Okay, darling, okay.’ She laughed as she unzipped the case and handed him out his toys. ‘I’m afraid I went a little bit overboard,’ she told Gary, as Alex yelped
with delight at the jeep, the Yu-Gi-Oh cards, a
Dr Seuss
book and a
Pokémon
DVD. She’d also bought a model of a 737 in the plane on the way home.

‘It’s like Christmas,’ Gary said, smiling at his son. ‘Have you anything to say to Mummy, Alex?’

Alex ran to hug her. ‘Thanks, Mummy, you’re the best mummy in the world!’

Rachel sat in an armchair sipping her camomile tea and not watching
Coronation Street
. Gary had insisted she put her feet up while he put Alex to bed and read him his
new
Dr Seuss
book but she couldn’t concentrate on the soap. All she could think about was this dramatic change in Gary and what it meant. He had been very attentive all evening and
when he hadn’t been checking on her, he’d been on the floor playing with Alex. There was a change in Alex too, she’d realized as she watched them. He was more relaxed and there
had been no tantrums or sulking. At one stage when he didn’t win a Yu-Gi-Oh game, he’d started to moan but Gary had distracted him and defused the situation. Rachel had looked on in
amazement.

Her thoughts were interrupted as Gary stuck his head round the door. ‘Why don’t you order our dinner? I’ll only be ten minutes or so. He’s asleep on his feet.’

Rachel smiled. ‘The usual?’

He nodded. ‘Please.’

Rachel picked up the phone, dialled the number of their local Chinese takeaway and ordered the same food that they’d been ordering for years. Beef and green pepper stir-fry for Gary and
Satay chicken for her.

She sighed as she went to set the table. Neither of them had hit middle age yet and they lived such a boring, predictable life. It was no wonder Gary stayed out late. It was no wonder that she
was feeling restless. While she had grown to love the baby growing inside her and was feeling excited as her due date grew nearer and nearer, she still dreaded the humdrum, boring life that
bringing up a baby entailed. Every day the same – no adult conversation, no job satisfaction – God, how she envied women who worked!

Sometimes, when she was in the supermarket in her tracksuit and trainers and a woman passed her in a suit and high-heels, she felt like crying. How wonderful to dress up and wear make-up every
day! How nice it would be to feel proud of your appearance and get appreciative stares from men again. How lovely to go to fancy restaurants for lunch or drop into the pub after work without
feeling guilty.

Since Alex had started school she got out more, sometimes even going out for lunch. But the difference was that the conversation always revolved around children. It was as if
she
didn’t exist as a woman in her own right any more. That her sole reason for being was motherhood.

Rachel leaned heavily against the worktop and wiped a tear from her eye. The few days in Spain hadn’t really helped. Being surrounded by beautiful women in tiny bikinis had made her feel
like a monster, especially when she was lying beside her skinny sister. Listening to the conversations she and Jill had didn’t help either. They discussed everything from books and clothes to
famine in Sudan and the state of the Irish economy. Rachel didn’t really have opinions on anything other than education, healthcare and child-friendly restaurants.

Still, it had been nice to see her parents again. Gossiping with her mam made her feel almost normal and when her dad hugged her, she actually felt small! But leaving them had been hard. The
holiday had made Rachel realize exactly how much she missed them, and she knew it was the same for Anna. She wondered if her sister had tackled them about leaving. She’d said nothing in front
of her although there had been a few smart comments that Bridie and Shay either didn’t notice or chose to ignore.