Page 27 of Prudence
Don’t get me wrong, he was in good shape. He’d filled out, with his shoulders broader, arms more muscular, but his eyes were dull, his hair shaggy and overgrown. Plus, there was a week’s worth of stubble on his face. His shirt was rumpled, like he’d been wearing it for days. I barely recognised him.
“Derek, hi, how are y—” Before I could finish the sentence, he stalked by me and just strode right out of the room.Okay. Well, that was that, then. Perhaps he did recall proposing to me and the subsequent rejection. I didn’t imagine after allthese years he’d still be sour about it, but stranger things had happened. Taking my glass, I returned to Nuala and Charli, feeling unbalanced from the tense exchange. If you could even call it an exchange at all.
“Everything okay?” Nuala asked as I joined them.
I sipped some wine. “Yes, I, um, I just saw Derek.”
She and Charli shared a look before Nuala replied carefully, “And how did that go?”
“Well,” I began, swallowing down the strange hurt in my throat. Why was his silent dismissal affecting me so much? “I tried to say hello to him, but he just glowered and walked right by me. He acted like I wasn’t even there.”
Nuala’s hand came to rest on my arm, giving a comforting squeeze. “I’m sorry. It’s nothing to do with you. My brother is just … He’s been going through a really rough patch these last few months. He’s not been himself.”
“Oh, I see,” I replied, relaxing slightly. So, his gruffness wasn’t about the rejected proposal. It was something else. I was curious to know what the rough patch entailed, but it was none of my business.
“Honestly, Milly, don’t take it personally. He’s been like this with all of us. I’m surprised he even turned up tonight. He’s been keeping to himself a lot lately.”
“You two were pretty close back in the day, right?” Charli said, empathy marking her features.
I bobbed my head. “Yes, we were good friends, but … I guess that was a long time ago.”
“Do you have any new pictures of Deirdre?” Nuala asked then, obviously keen to change the subject. I sensed it was because she was trying to keep whatever Derek was going through private and not because she didn’t care. “I haven’t seen her in years.”
“Yes, I have a few,” I smiled. “She’s a couple inches taller than me now. I suspect she’ll be very tall like her father when she’s done growing.” I produced some recent pictures on my phone, handing it to Nuala for her to peruse.
“So, you and her dad aren’t together, then?” Charli asked.
“No, we actually only dated for a short while before I got pregnant. Then the relationship kind of fell apart. Colin and I were never very compatible romantically, but we’ve managed to remain good friends as we co-parent Deirdre.”
“That’s refreshing,” Charli said. “I’ve known a lot of people who struggle to remain cordial after a breakup.”
“Right, it can be tough, depending on the circumstances. Luckily for us, we make it work.”
Nuala was distracted by her phone vibrating, and whatever the message was, it appeared to excite her. She reached across and shook Charli’s shoulder. “Aunt Faye and her husband just arrived outside,” she practically squealed, and Charli’s eyes lit up with similar excitement.
“That’s Mam’s sister who lives in Australia,” Nuala explained to me. “She’s flown over as a surprise. Oh! This is going to be so good. I can’t wait to see Mam’s face.”
“Will you be okay on your own for a little bit?” Charli asked.
Suddenly, my nerves were back, but I didn’t let them show. “Of course. Go see your aunt.”
They both left, and a trickle of discomfort seeped in. I couldn’t spot anyone I knew from back in the day, and making small talk with strangers had always been difficult for me. It was odd because I could talk endlessly to patients at the hospital about their symptoms or diagnosis, but ordinary chit chat was different. If I didn’t have a direct reason to speak to someone, I often found myself at a loss for what to say.
I wandered through the party, taking it all in. There was lots of excitement and fuss when Nuala and Charli walked in withtheir aunt. Nuala’s mam just about keeled over from surprise as she embraced her sister. Supposedly, it had been years since Faye had last visited. Then the candle on top of Jo’s cake was lit, and everyone sang “Happy Birthday” to her. Padraig was by her side the entire time, the picture of a doting, loving husband. It was hard to reconcile him with the person Aunt Nell had described. Then again, he was only a teenager when they were together.
When the cake was cut and passed around, I made sure to grab a slice. Sitting in a quiet corner, I observed the celebrations while stuffing my face with cake. I made a note to ask Nuala where they’d ordered it from so I could get Deirdre’s birthday cake from the same place when she turned sixteen.
I noted that Nuala’s aunt from Australia had not only travelled with her husband but also her daughter and her daughter’s friend. Both women were attractive and looked to be in their early thirties. I was only vaguely earwigging on their conversation when Derek stalked through the room. My gaze followed him unbidden. He cast a grouchy, frowning figure as he endeavoured seemingly to leave the party, but then his mother called him over and began motioning to his aunt and uncle. They made small talk, and Derek appeared to tolerate the conversation before his cousin’s friend, a beautiful redhead with the highest cheekbones I’d ever seen, was ushered forward.
“This is Kayla,” Nuala’s mam said. “She’s moving here in a few months and came on the trip to scope out some rental properties before the big move.”
Derek only gave a vague nod of acknowledgment, but then, as though he sensed my attention, his dark eyes flashed to me. His expression was inscrutable, his face hardening somewhat before he brought his attention back to his mother and Kayla. His demeanour changed, his features forming something less formidable than his previous frown as he took in Kayla.“What made you decide to move to Ireland?” he asked, acting interested all of a sudden.
His mam brightened at his change in attitude, and a part of me wondered if he were doing it because he now knew I was watching.
“I’m a medieval history expert. I’m going to be working at various historical sites providing tours.”
“Really? That’s fascinating,” Derek replied, giving her his full attention. Why did my stomach suddenly bottom out?
