Page 34 of The Granddaughter's Irish Secret
Henri looked at the waiter and cleared his throat. ‘Hey, wait a minute. I just want to say sorry for being rude earlier. Didn’t mean to upset you. I was just—’ Henri shot a look at Rose ‘—being a bit snooty.’
‘So you were,’ the waiter said. ‘But as you apologised so well, I’ll forget all about it. No hard feelings at all.’
Henri nodded. ‘Great. Thanks.’
‘No problem. I’ll go and get your drinks,’ the waiter said with a little wink at Rose before he left.
‘I’m so glad you did that,’ Rose remarked. ‘I couldn’t have stayed here with you if you hadn’t.’
‘I know,’ Henri said with a rueful smile. He picked up his spoon. ‘So let’s enjoy our dinner and talk, okay?’
‘Oh yes.’ Rose picked up a crab claw and dipped it into the little bowl with mayonnaise. ‘Don’t look. This could be messy. I don’t think anyone could eat these in any other way.’
‘I’ll slurp my soup just to make you feel better,’ Henri offered.
Rose had to laugh and suddenly she felt the ice had broken between them. Maybe Henri wasn’t so bad. She felt like she could finally enjoy the evening. They started to talk while they finished their first course, about trivial things, and then about themselves. The wine seemed to cheer Henri up and, as the evening wore on, and the main course was eaten, he was relaxed, funny and much nicer than ever before. He told Rose about his childhood, how his mother had died when he was a small child, and how his father had been doing his best but seemed to bury himself in work to dull the pain of having lost his wife.
‘My mother was much younger than him,’ Henri explained. ‘My father was in his forties when I was born, my mother only twenty-eight. He adored her and then, when she became ill withcancer and died soon after, he was devastated. Couldn’t get over his grief, and really struggled to look after me. I think he found work more comforting than being with a child, so I had a number of childminders and nannies until I was old enough for boarding school.’
Rose put her hand on Henri’s. ‘How terrible to lose your mother when you were so young. I’m so sorry.’
He shrugged. ‘Well, I don’t actually remember much about it. I was only six years old and the memories of my mother faded with time. I didn’t really missher, I was only sad not to have a mother like everyone else. It made me feel different and inferior, somehow.’
‘Yes,’ Rose said. ‘Exactly. I do know what you mean. I used to say that my father was away at sea when I was in school. Then I was told off for lying when my mother found out. But I was ashamed of not having a father like the other kids. Of course I understood later that some of my friends’ parents were divorced, and their dads didn’t spend much time with them. Must have been worse to not be loved than to have lost a father who really cared.’ Rose sighed and sipped her water. ‘Nobody escapes sorrows in life, do they?’
‘I suppose not.’ Henri looked at Rose with sympathy. ‘But you lost both your father and grandfather at the same time. That must have been terrible.’
‘Yes it was.’ Rose paused. ‘But I had my mother and grandmother, who took great care of us and helped us through it all. My mother was so brave and Granny was amazing. Mum married again a few years later and now she lives in Donegal with my stepfather, who we like a lot. And you know how close to Granny we all are. So we’re very lucky, really.’
‘I think you’re all so brave.’
‘We have a lot in common, I think,’ Rose remarked.
‘Yes, we do.’ Henri took a swig of wine and finished his fish and chips, then looked at Rose. ‘But I know you are angry with me for some reason. I’d like to know why. It can’t be because of that old story.’
‘Why couldn’t it?’ Rose bristled, all her pent-up resentment towards him bubbling up to the surface. ‘I’d like to know how you could do what you did to my grandmother.’
‘You love her very much, I take it,’ Henri said in a matter-of-fact voice.
‘I adore her,’ Rose replied. ‘She was there for us after the accident. She was our rock then, and still is.’
Henri nodded. ‘Yes, so you said. But I want to explain what happened at our end. We found out about your great-grandfather’s gambling debt, and that he paid it by gifting Magnolia Manor to my grandfather by sheer accident. Our accountant was going through all the old papers and records when we were merging with another company. He was the one who suggested we take possession. We had no idea who you were or what Magnolia Manor was at all. The letter that was sent to your grandmother was drafted by him, and then I just read through it and signed it and it was posted. My father didn’t know anything about it at all.’
‘And you didn’t stop to think how the recipient would feel when they got the letter?’ Rose asked, her tone scathing. ‘How very considerate of you.’
Henri looked a little guilty. ‘Not very nice, I agree now that I know the details – and the people. Sylvia is a remarkable woman who has given my father a new lease of life. He told me how upset she was when she thought she was going to lose Magnolia Manor.’
‘And that is why I’m so very angry with you.’ Rose met Henri’s gaze, her eyes blazing.
‘How about forgiving me?’ he asked.
‘How about apologising first?’ Rose retorted. ‘If you do, I’ll think about forgiveness.’
‘I have apologised,’ he said quietly. ‘To her.’
‘You did? Really?’ Rose asked incredulously. ‘She never said anything about it to me.’
‘It was between her and me. We were on our own and we had a long talk. She was very nice about it.’
