Behind Every Cloud (17 page)

“
Naughty, naughty!
”
Chloe wagged her finger at Ellie.

“
Don
’
t be silly. That
’
s Sam, the wine lecturer. I just bumped into him
.”

“
Well, aren
’
t you the dark horse!
”
Keisha cried
. “
You never told us he was so sexy
.”

“
If you had, I would even have joined the wine course,
”
Chloe said, pouting
.

“
Don
’
t be ridiculous. Listen, I
’
m leaving now,
”
Ellie told
them as she spotted a taxi pulling up.

How unfortunate that they
’
d spotted Sam. Now they
’
d tease her unmercifully about him.

15

Things were so strained at home that Ronan was glad to have the excuse of going to work on Saturday to get away from Louise
.
He was looking forward to starting work for Sam but also a little apprehensive that he wouldn
’
t be able to cope.

He was amazed at the size of the shop inside.
“
I didn
’
t realise the shop was so big!
”
he remarked.
“
It looks quite small from the outside.
”

“
Yes, it
’
s deceptive. I extended it back, last spring, but it
’
s still not large enough for all the wines I want to stock,
”
Sam explained as he showed him around.

“
Oh, gosh, I hope I
’
ll be able for this.
”

“
Of course you will,
”
Sam assured him.
“
Look
,
it
’
s all quite simple. Come!
”

He walked Ronan around
,
showing him where everything
was stocked. Ronan observed that it was divided in sections by country and then subdivided by grape variety.

“
It
’
s well organised,
”
he said, admiring the clearly marke
d layout.

“
That
’
s thanks to Dermot here,
”
Sam said, as a young man appeared beside him, a big smile on his face.

“
Nice to meet you
,”
Dermot said to Ronan, giving him a strong handshake.
“
I
’
m really glad you
’
re here. Don
’
t worry about a thing. You
’
ll quickly get the hang of it
.”

He was charming and Ronan warmed to him immediately
. By now his fears had calmed somewhat. What have I got to lose, he asked himself. If he didn
’
t like it he could always quit
,
but he was determined to give it a damn good try. Sam showed him where everything was and how to work the register and card machine
.
He stressed to him the importance of watching out for underage drinkers. Under no circumstances could alcohol be served to anyone under eighteen or Sam could lose his licence. Ronan was to look for ID if he was in any doubt whatsoever.

“
It
’
s not always easy to tell, especially with young girls who are all dolled up, so we have to be ever
-
vigilant,
”
he stressed.

“
Gosh, there
’
s more to this than I thought,
”
Ronan said, trying to remember everything he
’
d been told. This was different to anything he
’
d ever done before.

“
Don
’
t worry about it,
”
Sam assured him.
“
Dermot will be here all day and on Wednesday and Thursday evenings, initially. Just ask him
if you need any help. You
’
ll be fine.
”

Ronan hoped he was right.

Sam left and Ronan walked around
,
trying to familiarise himself with where everything was until the first customer, a little old lady, walked through the door.

“
Hello, sonny. You
’
re new here. Where
’
s Fiona?
”

“
I
’
m afraid the doctor
’
s ordered her to rest for a few weeks so I
’
m helping out till she
’
s back.
”

“
That
’
s a shame. What
’
s your name, dearie
?”

“
Ronan.
”
He smiled at the little woman.

“
That
’
s nice. It must be hard for poor Fiona, pregnant and with no husband to help her. I don
’
t know what the world
’
s coming to – all these young ones having babies with no man on the scene!
”
She shook her head sadly.

This was news to Ronan. Sam had said that Fiona lived in the apartment above the shop but he hadn
’
t realised that she was a single mother. He
’
d assumed there was a partner involved somewhere.

“
It must be very hard for her alright,
”
he replied.
“
And what can I get you, Mrs . . .
?”

“
Delaney. The usual, sonny. A baby Power.
”

Ronan got the whiskey for her, checked the price and wrapped it in a paper bag. Mrs Delaney had exactly the right change ready so it was all quite straightforward.

“
Well, Ronan, you tell Fiona I was asking for her when you see her,
”
she said
,
before putting the whiskey in her bag.
“
Bye
,
dearie. It
’
s been nice meeting you.
”

With a little wave, she left.

“
My first customer! Well, that wasn
’
t too bad,
”
Ronan grinned at
Dermot who was hovering around. He was grinning broadly too and Ronan gave him the thumbs-up sign.

“
You
’
ll be fine,
”
observed Dermot.
“
We have a lot of regular customers like Mrs Delaney who know exactly w
hat they want. Daytime business is generally quiet. Thank your lucky stars that you don
’
t have to work Friday
or Saturday nights. Then all hell can break loose.
”

Ronan settled in quickly and the day flew by. He couldn
’
t wait now to learn more about this fascinating subject of wine and was looking forward to the Monday
-
night course with great anticipation.

He got to meet Fiona that afternoon. She came into the shop, her pregnancy very obvious
,
and introduced herself to Ronan. He passed on the message from Mrs Delaney.

“
Ah, the old dear,
”
Fiona smiled.
“
She doesn
’
t really approve of my being a single mother. She
’
s a bit of a nosy parker but she has a kind heart.
”

Ronan liked Fiona straight away. She was pretty
–
although not in the same league as Louise – and had a bright sunny nature. She looked very young, twenty-two or three he guessed, yet here she was about to become a single mother. Sam had said that she was a great worker and obviously thought very highly of her.

“
Do you mind if I sit and chat for a while?
”
she asked.
“
It
’
s usually quiet at this time. I get so bored sitting in the flat with my feet up all day.
”

“
Be my guest,
”
Ronan replied, bringing out a stool for her from behind the counter. She hoisted herself up on it.

She was very easy company and Ronan found himself warming to her. She seemed to know the few customers who came in
to the shop very well and it was obvious they were all pleased to see her.

“
Well, I enjoyed meeting you,
”
she said, smiling at Ronan
,
as climbed down off the stool.

“
Me too,
”
he assured her.
“
Drop down any
time. I
’
m
here Wednesday and Thursday nights and all day Saturday.
”

“
Yeah, Sam told me. I hope you enjoy working here. He
’
s a great boss. The best
.”

Ronan didn
’
t doubt it.

Ellie and David had a huge row that Saturday night. There was no doubt he had changed greatly since he
’
d started this job with Buckley Steadman. For starters, she now saw him only at weekends and then all he could talk about was work, work, work. Whenever she tried to talk
about the wedding, he brushed it aside. It was very upsetting
. He didn
’
t seem at all interested
in it.

Then
,
over a Chinese takeaway in his flat
,
he dropped a bombshell.

“
I think that we should maybe look for a house on the south
side,
”
he remarked casually
.

“
What?
”
Ellie gasped, hoping he wasn
’
t serious. He
’
d been talking for some time about selling his apartment in Malahide and buying something bigger close by and
,
now that they
’
d decided on a winter wedding, it was becoming urgent. Ellie often stayed over with him on a Saturday night but the apartment was awfully tiny and really only suitable for one person.
Once they were married they would definitely need something bigger and Ellie wanted to have a house with a garden. Until then Ellie insisted on living with her parents as she
’
d always done. She and David had looked at some houses in Malahide and Sutton, which would be very handy for Ellie
’
s work.

“
Yes. Frank was saying the other day that it would be a
much better investment and
,
of course, a better address
,
”
David remarked, unaware of the shock he
’
d just administered to his fiancée.

She looked at him
,
appalled at the idea
. “
You can
’
t be serious?
”
she cried, barely able to get the words out. He couldn
’
t be suggesting that they would leave the north
side where they
’
d both lived all their lives and where all their friends and family lived, could he
?

“
Yes, think about it
,
Ellie,
”
he continued, completely oblivious to her distress.

“
I work in Ballsbridge now and I would be much closer to the office, not to mention all my colleagues who live south
side too. Our social life will be there once we
’
re married.
”

“
You are serious,
”
she whispered, tears filling her eyes.