“Ah, she’s gone, is she – that’s good. When are you going to see her?”
“In February.”
“Great, so I guess you’ll be calling in to me on the way?”
“No, sorry – I forgot to tell you that I’m flying Emirates through Dubai – it’s much quicker – saves flying through London.”
Michael put on a sad face. “Not fair. You have to come and see me. I’m hurting bad over Lydia.”
“You’ll be fine,” Julia assured him. “I’m surprised you haven’t found some Asian beauty by now to cheer you up.”
“I’m a reformed character, Julia – I keep trying to explain – I’m holding out for Lydia. Hey, what about if I come down to Perth for a couple of days while you’re there?”
It sounded like a good idea to Julia. “I don’t see a problem with that – I’m sure Ruth will have room.”
“Cool – maybe you can ask when you speak to her?”
“I’ll give her a chance – she’s probably only at Duty Free in Dublin airport by now!”
“Okay, I have to get a few bits done here before I finish up for the day – I’ll look forward to that little trip.”
“Okay, Michael – I’ll let you know what I think of that email – give me a day or two though, won’t you?”
“Will do.”
And then he was gone.
Julia felt very alone again.
Michael’s email came through and she braced herself before reading it.
Dear Michael
It was good to meet you at Christmas and I hope that you had a safe trip back to Singapore. Things are extremely busy in work since I’ve returned with more redundancies on the cards. I’m hoping that things will pick up when we have pared our expenses down.
I’m looking to buy somewhere nearer the city and although I’ll lose a bit on my own apartment there is great value at the moment and you know how I’ve always wanted a place in Sandymount.
I’ve taken up horse-riding too which I know is a strange departure for me but I really enjoy it. I may be going to New York with work in February which will be a lot of fun and no doubt I’ll do some shopping.
As you can see my life is very busy. I hope that things are going well for you.
Thinking of you
Lydia
Julia read it a second time just to make sure that she hadn’t missed anything. It seemed like an email that Lydia would have sent to a stranger. She worried about what Michael had been expecting from his ex. It was perfectly clear to Julia as someone from the outside that Lydia was not interested in rekindling the relationship. She did wonder what Michael was confused about. The last three words ‘thinking of you’ could just be taken as ‘take care’ but Julia knew her brother well enough to realise that these were the three words that he had focused on and possibly read and re-read to himself, wanting to believe there was more to the email than it was saying. She didn’t want to give him any false hope. Yes, Lydia had agreed to meet him and got emotional on seeing him, but from this email Julia deduced that she had fallen back into her comfortable lifestyle with Peter and didn’t want to pursue anything more than a friendship from afar with her ex. She would have to consider her reply to Michael carefully.
Ruth put her feet up on the comfortable lounger on the Emirates Airbus. She was finally on her way to her new home. It was kind of Steve to book a business-class seat for her journey. Ruth was thrilled by the upgrade and comforts that accompanied travelling in style. It compensated for Ian’s ‘no-show’ at Duty Free. Instead she’d got a text saying that he had to report for a meeting in Ops and that he would Skype her later. Ruth felt incredibly proud of herself for not getting upset and it seemed to her a clear indication that leaving Ireland and Ian behind was the right move.
She took the glass of champagne handed to her by the beautifully attired air steward. With fresh flowers in a metal bowl hanging from the wall in front of her, Ruth felt like a star. She sipped from her glass and settled down to watch the first new movie on her individual entertainment system. She had read the novel One Day and was keen to see the movie.
After three glasses of champagne and several damp tissues the film ended. She imagined Ian and her as the characters Emma and Dexter and was truly miserable until she spotted Downtown Abbey – she’d watched the full series before but it would take her mind off Ian.
The air steward was a charming Aussie – he told her that he was from Western Australia.
“Are you stopping off in Dubai?” he asked her.
“No, I’m travelling on to Perth.”
He giggled, showing gleaming white teeth. “You won’t have to worry about missing your connection then.”
“Why not?”
“The Perth flight is full of Irish people emigrating – it’s been known to wait for the connecting passengers if this flight is ever delayed.”
“Oh, I’m not emigrating. I’m only staying for two years.”
“You’re gonna love it – might want to stay a bit longer!”
“Oh, I’m not sure about that but I’m looking forward to spending time there – my mother lived in Australia in the seventies.”
“Whereabouts?”
“South Perth – are you from Perth?”
He nodded again. “It’s a great city if you like the outdoors life. I grew up in Cottesloe which is a really nice part of the city beside the beach.”
“Is that near Peppermint Grove?”
He nodded. “Peppy Grove – yeah, it’s only a couple of blocks away. Fancy part of town, Peppy Grove – they have their own shire for a handful of houses – it’s the smallest shire in the entire country.”
She knew that ‘shire’ was the word they used for a local government area.
“Mansions, really,” he added. “Worth seeing. You should go and check them out.”
“I intend to – my mother knew someone who lived there.”
“What street?”
“Eh, I’m not sure.”
“Well, good luck with that. Now, would you like some more champagne?”
Chapter Sixteen
Julia was feeling truly bereft. On a Friday evening normally she would have called Ruth and made arrangements to hit one of the nicer bars in the Grafton Street area. Now it looked like she would have to settle for a depressing evening in.
Her sister had invited her to a fund-raising quiz in the yacht club the next night and she had quickly declined but Odette had assured her that there would be an eligible bachelor friend of Craig’s at it. Dear sweet Odette! Could she not figure out by now that Julia liked the single life and didn’t need to be fixed up with one of the sailors from the yacht club? Mind you, if Ruth was here she would probably go along and try and introduce her to new company – the company of anyone that wasn’t Ian Hawkins.
Gillian came into the office and disturbed Julia’s musings.
“Is there anything else you need me to do?”
“Oh, is it that time already, Gillian?” Julia looked at her watch. “You probably have somewhere to go – it being Friday.”
Gillian shook her head. “I’m off home to watch a DVD – nothing exciting lined up for me unfortunately.”
Julia didn’t know Gillian very well – she had worked for her for seven months and was a reliable and efficient member of staff but Julia had been too busy to pay much attention to her. She didn’t even know if Gillian had a boyfriend or had much of a social life.
Julia was desperate to go out and blurted the invitation before she thought about it. “Would you like to go for a drink – if you aren’t rushing home, that is?”
Gillian’s green eyes widened – she was astonished at the proposal. Julia was somehow out of her league – not just because she was her boss but because of the way she carried herself with such confidence and panache. Gillian was at least eight years younger than Julia but not a sharp dresser.
“Eh, I’d love to but I’m not dressed for going out,” she said, shaking her mousy brown hair
.
“It’s Dublin on a Friday night – lots of people will be dressed in work clothes. I could do with the company.”
“Okay. Great!” Gillian said and then felt terrible. How was she going to look standing in a trendy bar next to Julia?
“I’ll get things cleared up here and we can pop off in ten minutes.” Julia smiled.
When she emerged from her office Gillian was waiting patiently at the door, with the keys in her hand to lock up.
Julia threw her bag over her shoulder and held the door open for Gillian.
“Right, first stop BT’s,” she said, looking at her watch. “I’ll just catch my friend Tony before she clocks off. She touches up my make-up at the end of the day if I decide to stay in town for a drink.”
So much for being casual because it was Friday night, thought Gillian. She plodded along a couple of steps behind Julia. She had nothing better waiting for her at home than her cat. Her mother always went out on Friday nights to play bingo.
“This way,” Julia said, opening the large swing doors of the department store.
Gillian followed. She had been in Brown Thomas a few times but couldn’t honestly say that she had ever bought anything there except an eye liner. She remembered feeling terribly guilty afterwards as it had cost a day’s salary.
Julia walked up to the Clinique counter and gave the perfectly primed girl at the counter a warm hug. She turned to Gillian.
“This is Gillian – Gillian meet Tony, my lifesaver!”
Tony held out her hand and at the same time scanned Gillian’s face, observing the poorly applied layer of make-up with no colour at all on her eyes or cheeks after her day in the office.
“Lovely to meet you, Gillian – would you like me to touch up your make-up as well?”
Gillian nodded. She had never had her make-up applied professionally.
Tony set to work on Gillian, first fixing her eyebrow line which was scraggy. Then she put some warm brown tones on her eyelids.
Julia sat browsing through the catalogue of new colours while all the time chatting to Tony about where she was going to holiday that year. Julia always gave Tony a special rate when she came to book her holidays – so special that it ensured a make-up artist on tap for the duration of the year.
“I think you should try Egypt – there’s nothing like a bit of sun in winter,” she chirped on.
Gillian listened attentively, scared to move in case Tony’s hand slipped. But of course Tony was a skilled professional and, when she lifted the mirror to eventually show Gillian how she looked, the young girl nearly fell off the stool.
“Is that me?” she exclaimed in amazement.
“It sure is and you have beautiful eyes – don’t hide them under that fringe – try keeping your hair back from your face.”
‘Beautiful’ was a word that Gillian would never use when describing herself but she did feel good.
“Tony will look after you if you ever want to be fixed up – just pop in as you pass by!” Julia said.
Tony nodded her head. “Any time, Gillian – just pop in!”
The two girls left BT’s with shining faces. It was a mild January evening – almost ten degrees. Julia couldn’t help but wonder what the temperature must be in Perth and what it must be like for Ruth. She missed her friend so much. She would treat herself to a cocktail and get to know Gillian better. She needed more girlfriends – life was definitely changing.
As they walked to Dakota on South William Street, they passed a little boutique and stopped to try on some tops – the shop was about to close but Julia was interested in a shirt that was priced 150 euro so the shop assistant was happy to leave the doors open a bit longer.
Gillian fingered through a stack of tops that were perfect for the party season. She winced as she looked at the price-tags. She bought most of her clothes in Penneys.
“That red top is gorgeous – I bet it would look great on you, Gillian,” Julia said with a nod.
“Oh, do you think so?” Gillian trusted Julia’s taste in clothes – she never came to work looking less than stunning. “Maybe I’ll try it on?”
“Go ahead,” the shop assistant said enthusiastically.
When Gillian came out of the changing room she was like a new person.
“Gorgeous!” Julia said. “You have to get it.”
Gillian looked at the tag. It was seventy-two euros – a fortune! But she was too swept up in the moment to argue. She reached into her purse, pulled out the money that she had put aside to pay her mother for housekeeping and put it on the counter.
When the two left the store Gillian walked with a spring in her step. She watched how Julia held herself and tried to keep up.
The Dakota bar was packed for so early in the evening and people were smoking at the tables outside. When they got to the long bar Julia asked Gillian what she would like to drink.
“Oh, a bottle of Bulmers, please.”
Julia clicked the roof of her mouth with her tongue. “It’s Friday, Gill, you have to have something more special – what about a Cosmo?”
Gillian just nodded. She was in shock that somebody had called her Gill. She liked it – it sounded cool. Could she actually be looking the way she did and feeling this confident?
Two men walked into the bar wearing tight leather jackets and trendy haircuts. They were tall and handsome and would never normally notice Gillian. But they stopped at the part of the bar where the two girls sat on high stools. One started to chat to Julia but she was having none of it. Gillian copied Julia’s snooty expression and sipped on her cocktail glass in the same way as her boss.
“That looks good,” the shorter of the two men said to Gillian. “Can I get you another?”
Gillian looked over her shoulder. Was that gorgeous guy really talking to her?
“We are having a quiet drink, thanks, guys!” Julia interrupted.
Gillian turned her head in the direction of the counter but could see the two guys staring intently at them in the reflection in the mirror behind the bar. She felt her heart pound and was gutted when they walked away.
“Honestly!” Julia exclaimed. “What must we do just to have a bit of peace at the end of the day?”
Gillian had often wondered what it felt like to be one of those women who pushed men away like that. Now that she saw Julia in action she understood a little more. She liked the feeling of power. How wonderful to be as confident and in control of your life, she thought. She listened as Julia rambled on about her plans for the business and the trip that she was taking to visit her friend in Perth in February. All the time a terrible mixture of admiration and jealousy rumbled in Gillian’s stomach. She had liked being called Gill earlier. She would do everything in her power to learn from Julia and improve herself. This job was turning into a wonderful opportunity.
“Do you fancy another here or would you rather go on somewhere else?”
Julia asked.
“Oh, I don’t mind!” Gillian’s purse was beginning to feel the strain – first from the top that she had bought and secondly from the round of drinks that she had bought. She couldn’t remember the last time that she’d had a cocktail.
“It’s my round – we’ll have one for the road?”
Gillian was feeling a little light-headed but would enjoy one more drink. She nodded graciously.
No sooner had the waiter put the glasses down on the bar than Julia flinched as another handsome man came over to her. Gillian’s eyes widened as the gorgeous man put his palm on Julia’s upper arm.
“I didn’t know this was one of your haunts!” he exclaimed.
How did she know so many men and attract so many others, Gillian wondered. This one was particularly delicious.
“I seldom come in here – but I felt like a change,” Julia said, deadpan.
“Aren’t you going to introduce me to your lovely friend?” he asked.
“Gillian – this is my sister’s brother-in-law – Dylan.”
He h
eld out his hand and shook Gillian’s.
“Pleased to meet you,” she beamed. She looked him up and down and was too much in awe to say anything more.
“Can I get you a drink, ladies?”
“No, thanks, we’ve just got ours,” said Julia.
“I’m going for a bite to eat in the Trocedero with a couple of the lads that I used to work with – would you ladies like to join us?”
“No – this is our last drink and then we’re going home, thanks,” Julia replied curtly.
Dylan leaned forward and whispered in Gillian’s ear, loud enough for Julia to hear.
“She’s mad about me really – but my brother got the nice sister in the Perrin family!” He then winked at Julia. “Are you coming to the yacht club tomorrow night?”
Julia shook her head. “There’s a holiday-information day on Sunday so I’ll be having an early night.”
“Ah, why don’t you come and bring the lovely Gillian with you?”
Gillian looked from Julia to Dylan and back – she would so much like to go to the yacht club – she had never been – never even dreamed before of entering such a place.
Julia tilted her head. “Would you like to go to the yacht club tomorrow night, Gillian?”
Gillian didn’t know what was the best answer to give – if she said yes Dylan would be pleased – if she said no she felt that Julia would be pleased.
“Whatever you think, Julia.”
“Don’t let her bully you, Gillian – what do you want to do?” said Dylan.
Julia sighed. “Gillian has a mind of her own – if she wants to we’ll go to the yacht club tomorrow but I won’t be staying late.”
Dylan shrugged. “Okay, ladies – I see you want a bit of peace and quiet – I’ll see you tomorrow evening then.”
He had only left when Julia apologised. “He’s always such a pain, Gillian – he is so naughty to put you in that awkward position but he seems to thrive on embarrassing people and putting them into difficult situations.”
“I thought he seemed quite nice and polite.”
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