Page 72 of Prudence
I thought I did a good job of hiding my nervousness in front of Derek. He had no idea I was about to confront my aunt for the possible lies she’d told me over eighteen years ago. My palms were sweaty as I entered the restaurant where she’d made us a reservation. I had to summon some of the breathing techniques from Roberta’s meditation class just to calm my anxiety.
I wasn’t good at confrontation. Plus, Aunt Nell had a way of convincing you that you were wrong. Bringing people around to her way of thinking was a skill she’d honed over her decades as a talent agent, negotiating deals and getting the best pay and conditions for her clients. It really wasn’t fun when she used those skills to win personal arguments.
“Milly!” she exclaimed, standing from the table as I approached. Her hair, now a striking silver grey, was cut in a sharp, stylish bob. Her cream blouse, gold earrings and flowy, navy pants were effortless. Unlike my mother, who’d aged a lot over the last two decades, Nell had fewer wrinkles, though a fresh appearance was often the benefit of having the money to spend on treatments. “It’s so wonderful to see you. I’ve missed you and that girl of yours. Where is she, by the way? I was hoping she’d join us.”
“She wanted to, but Gigi, a friend of hers from back home, came to visit so they’re spending the day together.”
“Oh, that’s a shame. I’m glad to hear Deirdre’s made a friend, though. How has she been settling into life in Ireland?”
“It was a bit of a rocky start, but as soon as she met Gigi, things took a positive turn.” I paused to sip from the glassof water on the table, deciding to bring the subject up early so we could get this whole thing over with. “Gigi is actually my old friend Nuala’s niece. Her brother, Derek, is her father. Remember them from back in the day?”
My aunt pursed her lips as if I was being silly even asking the question. “Of course, I remember them. You haven’t forgotten who their father is and what he did to me, have you?” I opened my mouth to respond, but Nell cut me off. “Goodness, it’s like I can never shake that man and his offspring even at this ripe old age. First, his children befriend you, my beloved goddaughter, and now, his grandchild has set her sights on Deirdre.”
She shook her head as though appalled, and an anger simmered within me. Gigi was an innocent kid, but Nell somehow managed to transfer malevolent intent onto her without ever meeting the girl. Her statement revealed something I hadn’t noticed in the past, a certain bitterness that held no logic. Even if Padraig were the heartless villain she’d described to me, it didn’t mean his granddaughter possessed those traits. This only had me questioning her side as I realised the likelihood that my aunt had misled me was ever more possible.
“They’re friends, Nell, and Gigi is a great kid,” I replied tightly. “You speak like there’s something predatory going on.”
She arched an eyebrow. “Need I remind you of my relationship with her grandfather?”
Again, she employed no logic, but I didn’t call her on it. “Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that.”
“Why ever would you want to discuss something so awful?” Nell griped. “I was hoping to enjoy this meal.”
I ignored her complaint and continued, “I helped Padraig a few weeks ago when he collapsed at Gigi’s birthday party. He has a benign brain tumour, and it was causing troubling symptoms. He’s having a surgery to remove it soon.”
“And this is pertinent to me how?” There was a snip in her voice, and she displayed no sympathy for Padraig’s health scare, which unsettled me. Over my career, I’d worked with an individual or two, namely other doctors, who’d revealed themselves to be not so nice people; however, I’d still have empathy if they found themselves falling gravely ill.
“I was alone with him for a short while, checking him over for injuries while we waited for the paramedics, and the subject of your relationship came up.”
My aunt stilled, a look on her face that was almost fearful, before she quickly wiped it blank. “Oh?”
“His account of what happened didn’t exactly match what you told me.”
She folded her arms and motioned for a passing server, who approached promptly. “I think we’re ready to order here. I’ll take the tuna steak. Milly, what do you fancy?”
I sent the waiter an apologetic look. “I’ll need a few more minutes, sorry.”
“Of course, madam.”
He left just as swiftly as he arrived, and my aunt huffed an annoyed breath as I narrowed my gaze at her. “Don’t you want to hear Padraig’s version?”
“Will you please stop saying his name? It pains me to hear it,” she begged with a long-suffering expression. I knew she used it to garner my sympathy and perhaps get me to drop the subject. Unfortunately for her, I was determined to have this out.
“Padraig said that you wanted to marry him. When he told you he couldn’t make that commitment, but that he’d still do everything he could to help raise the baby, you gave him an ultimatum that either he marry you, or you’d terminate the pregnancy.” I paused to take a breath, my hands shaking a little with nerves. “Is that true?”
Nell paled, then scoffed. “Of course not. He lied to save face.”
“Well, then, why are you acting so evasive?”
“Maybe because you’re reminding me of the worst period of my life,” she snapped.
“Right, and I apologise for that, but I really need to know if you lied because I … I made some decisions back then that really hurt me, but I made them because I felt a loyalty towards you.”
She blew out an exasperated breath. “What on earth are you blathering about now?”
“I’m talking about Derek,” I said, and Nell’s eyes narrowed. “You made me promise not to be with him, and I held to that promise. We were only ever friends, but I fell in love with him anyway. He fell in love with me, too, and then one day on the beach, he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him.” I paused, letting this information sink in. Nell’s only reaction was a slight tightening of her lips. “I’d wanted to say yes so badly, but I said no instead. I rejected the man I loved in a way I’ve never loved anyone else, even after all these years, and I did it for you. But now I’m finding out that what you told me about his father wasn’t entirely truthful, and perhaps I should have followed my heart after all.”
My aunt stared at me for so long I wondered if she’d ever respond. Then finally, in a dismissive voice, she said, “If you’d followed your heart, you might never have met Colin and had Deirdre. Would you give up that wonderful girl for some imagined teenage love that probably wouldn’t have lasted anyway?”
