The Guest List

by Melissa Hill

  ‘I’m the boss,’ Conor said, interrupting him. ‘And I own this building. That means I get to say who stays and who goes. And you two are going.’ He put his hands up once again, as if he could corral them out the door.

  ‘Really . . .’ Lauren blustered, unused to such harsh treatment. It was clear that she had never been kicked out of anywhere before. She tried to look around Conor’s bulky frame. ‘We just need to talk to Cara.’

  ‘You have done enough talking. She is still wearing the scars.’

  ‘Cara, please, call him off, we need to talk to you,’ Gene pleaded with the woman who would have been his daughter-in-law.

  Call him off? They were talking as if Conor was some kind of guard dog! Taking in the entire scene, Cara had to admit she was somewhat amused, even though she was worried by the couple’s appearance at her office.

  Didn’t they understand it was inappropriate for them to interrupt her at work? Well maybe she would just tell them what she thought of them right now.

  ‘Conor. Hold on, it’s fine. I have something to say actually.’

  Her boss looked over his shoulder as Cara got to her feet and made her way to the front of the office.

  The Richardsons looked relieved. ‘Cara, thank you, we have never been treated in such a manner . . .’ Gene said, looking at Conor disdainfully.

  ‘Stop, I don’t want to hear it.’ She looked to Lauren, a withering look on her face. ‘Just who do you think you are? Where do you get off? Coming here, messing with my life, and messing with Shane’s too. Do you have any idea how much misery you’ve caused?’

  Lauren and Gene both took a tentative step backwards. They weren’t used to such emotional displays amongst the circles they ran in. Yelling at another person in public, even if it was just an office, was quite unheard of and quite startling, too.

  ‘Er well, Cara—’ Gene began nervously, but she cut him off again.

  ‘I don’t know what I ever did to you. I don’t know what I did that made you dislike me so much—’

  ‘But dear,’ Lauren interjected, ‘We don’t dislike you . . .’

  ‘Really? Then you certainly have an interesting way of showing you care,’ Conor put in. ‘I’d hate to see what you do to your enemies.’

  Cara looked at Conor gratefully and Lauren took a deep breath, as if steeling herself. ‘You’re right. I probably deserve that,’ she conceded.

  Cara’s eyes widened in surprise. ‘Excuse me?’

  ‘It was wrong, Cara, what we did. What I did. I wasn’t thinking about anyone, about you or Shane or what would make you happy. I was only thinking of myself and what I wanted,’ she said, her voice barely above a whisper. ‘Shane won’t talk to us; he says he wants nothing to do with us. And I realise that I made such a mistake, a huge one.’

  ‘Well, of all the great observations of our time,’ Conor’s voice was heavy with sarcasm. ‘For all your protestations about class and society, you are nothing but a selfish woman with an unwarranted opinion of herself.’

  Cara nodded, emboldened by Conor’s rather heroic efforts to defend her, and she wondered if there was something in the fact that he, and not Shane, was the one doing so?

  Lauren lowered her eyes and Gene patted her on the back. Cara looked at their pained and troubled faces, suddenly realising that all of their defences, their petty pretences, had been dropped. They were standing before her, beaten and bruised, sad parents who were being cut out of their beloved son’s life.

  Then, much to her horror, Lauren started to cry. Gene immediately moved to put his arms around her, all of his swagger and pomposity now absent. As she watched them, looking so shell-shocked and broken, Cara once again felt as though her heart was breaking. Her mother’s words from her childhood echoed through her mind: try to be the bigger person. Shane’s parents might have wronged her, they might have hurt her and trampled her feelings without a second thought, but that was the difference between her and them. They might have thought she was crass and common, but she knew that it was her behaviour and not her background that would identify her as a lady. ‘Lauren . . .’ She reached out and brought the woman who might have been her mother-in-law into her arms. ‘Please don’t cry.’

  Lauren welcomed the embrace. ‘Oh Cara. I know I was so horrible to you – and Shane. The point is; I came here to apologise.’ She turned to look at her husband. ‘We both came to ask for your forgiveness. Forget about our stupidity about the wedding; our motivation was coming from another place, a selfish place. We realise now that all we want is for our son to be happy, and there is no denying that he is happiest with you. Please, we hope that you will reconsider cancelling the wedding? If not for us, then for him.’

  ‘Your motivation was coming from a selfish place?’ Cara repeated, raising an eyebrow. ‘What do you mean by that?’

  Shane’s parents looked at one another, before glancing uncomfortably at Conor.

  ‘I’ll leave you to it,’ he said, taking his cue to give them some privacy. He looked at Cara. ‘As long as you’re OK?’

  She nodded, intrigued as to what the Richardsons were going to say.

  Once Conor had retreated to his desk and was out of earshot, Gene spoke again. ‘Cara, Richardson Construction is as you know a family business, and has been for a long time. It was my father’s business and I had hoped that one day Shane would take the reins from me, despite his protestations to the contrary.’

  Cara nodded. She knew this was a sore point between Shane and the family; it had been as long as she could remember.

  ‘But if it’s not to be, it’s not to be and he remains the sole heir in any case.’ He cleared his throat uncomfortably. ‘Anyway, the company like most has been going through a difficult time recently. Business is slow and the recession means that work has died down significantly.’

  Lauren took up the reins. ‘To cut a long story short, we wanted your and Shane’s wedding to help rebuild our reputation within the industry. Society gatherings oil the wheels of the industry, but of course no one is throwing parties anymore, mostly because it seems in bad taste to do so without good reason. So our contacts are drying up and we had hoped that by having certain “influential” people on the guest list of your wedding that things might get moving again. You and Shane going abroad for a small intimate ceremony would have made this impossible.’

  Cara shook her head. Of course. Moving and shaking. This was the Richardsons’ world. The world of big business – wheeling and dealing and backslapping. Nothing like ordinary people who were merely trying to ride out the recession by working hard day to day.

  ‘You wanted to turn your son’s wedding into a business opportunity?’ she said, flabbergasted. But yet, Cara had seen it before, had seen the pictures in the newspapers of an extravagant bash on behalf of the son or daughter of some big Irish businessman. It was sickening but it was indeed the way things worked in Ireland.

  What was it that Shane had called them – ‘The Golden Circle’?

  Gene looked abashed and to her credit Lauren did too. ‘We’re sorry Cara – we’ve been so focused on trying to get things going again without losing face that we completely lost sight of how important the occasion was on a personal level, not just for us, but for you and Shane.’

  ‘I realise how pathetic it must sound to you,’ Gene said in a small voice. ‘And yes, while the business is of course important to us, it’s not as important as Shane and both your futures.’

  ‘We have never seen Shane as happy as he is when he is with you, Cara,’ Lauren put in. ‘He loves you and I know he is miserable now and it’s all because of us. Everything you have been going through is our doing, and for that we are so sorry.’

  Lauren sniffed again, and Cara tried to get her head around what the couple were saying to her. She was trying to figure out if there was some other angle to all of this, something she hadn’t considered. After all that had happened it was difficult to trust them.

  ‘Cara, we are begging you to reconsider. Shan
e was devastated after you left,’ Lauren said.

  Cara shook her head. ‘But Shane lied to me too, about the money I mean. I don’t want any of your money. Not now, not ever.’ She raised her chin in defiance against their belief that she could be bought.

  ‘We know and we were wrong to assume otherwise,’ said Gene in supplication. ‘And as far as lying goes, well, I wouldn’t say Shane lied. He did make an investment in some stocks, but on my advice really. All of that is my fault. I told him it would be good for his future and I was wrong. I was wrong about a lot of things. I’m so sorry Cara. Really, my son is a good egg. Better than his old man, that’s for sure,’ he offered with a small smile.

  ‘Cara, I always wanted a daughter, but it just never happened,’ Lauren said. ‘And Shane is a wonderful son, more than I could ever wish for. When you two told us you were engaged, we really were so happy.’ She bowed her head. ‘Unfortunately our desire to turn the wedding into a big shindig very quickly overshadowed everything else, and it was wrong. It was unforgivable of us to push ourselves into your day, and completely disregard what you both wanted, for our own selfish ends. I in particular know that now. I hope you will forgive us and most of all, I hope it’s not too late.’

  Cara considered the pleading looks on their faces, trying to forget that just moments ago she’d wanted to throttle them both. Were they telling her the truth? Did they really want the wedding back on, or were they just looking to get back in Shane’s good books?

  She considered another idea. ‘And now? What about the wedding? I mean, there’s nothing to say that Shane will even take me back, but if he did, what are your thoughts about St Lucia?’

  Lauren and Gene looked at one another, weighing up their options. It was Lauren who spoke first. ‘We have been to St Lucia before. It’s a lovely island,’ she said simply. ‘Perfect for a wedding.’

  ‘And the business . . .’ Cara pressed.

  Gene sighed. ‘We’ll find another way.’

  Cara exhaled the breath she hadn’t realised she’d been holding. She felt her heart soar. She turned to her boss, who was sitting at his desk, silently taking in the entire scene.

  ‘Conor, I need a favour,’ she said meekly.

  He shook his head indulgently. ‘Let me guess, errands to run and bridegrooms to woo?’ he said with a wink.

  ‘Something like that.’ Cara winced apologetically.

  Conor grinned. ‘Go get ’em, sweetheart.’

  Cara jumped from the Jaguar almost before Gene had been able to pull it to a stop in front of the apartment. She anxiously looked around for Shane’s car and saw that it was there.

  According to Lauren, they had driven past several times over the last few days, twice even attempting to stop to try to gain an audience, but he wouldn’t talk to them. They knew he was home; they had heard the TV on as they stood on the other side of the door.

  Lauren started to get out of the car too, but was held back by her husband. ‘No Lauren, you stay here. Let Cara and Shane have their reunion. This isn’t about us, remember?’

  His wife looked abashed for a moment and opened her mouth to speak, but then remembered that his words were true.

  Cara bounded up the stairs as if she was racing to beat time, working her hardest to close the seconds between when she and Shane would once again be together.

  ‘Shane!’ she yelled as she neared their front door. She barely had time to stop herself. She jiggled the doorknob. It was locked.

  Damn! She’d left her keys at work.

  Instead, she met it outright with her fist, knocking frantically.

  ‘Shane? Open up, it’s me!’ she cried.

  Seconds later the door opened. Shane stared at her in shocked silence. ‘Cara?’

  She looked at him and thought that he looked like hell. He had apparently been taking their separation just as hard as she had been. His skin was grey, his eyes bloodshot and his hair was all over the place. In all honesty he looked as if he hadn’t slept in days. She threw herself in his arms.

  ‘Shane, I’m sorry, I’m sorry for leaving, I love you so much. Please, will you take me back?’ she sobbed, tears running down her cheeks.

  Without saying a word, he pulled her closer and kissed her hard on the mouth, his hands finding her hair and moving along her body, as if he was trying to remember just how she felt, rekindling a memory.

  ‘Oh Cara. I missed you,’ he said eventually. ‘And I don’t care what my parents say or do. I don’t care about any of it.’

  ‘I know you do. I believe you.’

  He pulled away and looked into her eyes. ‘You believe me now. Why?’

  ‘Because they brought me here. Your parents. They’re outside.’

  ‘What?’ he said angrily. ‘What are they doing outside? Talk about nerve—’

  ‘Shhh . . .’ she cooed, placing a finger over his lips. ‘It’s all OK. They apologised, they came to my office and said they were sorry—’

  ‘Big deal,’ he spat.

  ‘No, Shane, no, I could tell they meant it. It was genuine. And what’s more I accepted their apology and I think you should, too. I need you to, OK? They made a mistake and they accepted that. We are having our wedding in St Lucia. They understand that and they will be there. Look Shane, we are starting our lives together and this is how I want it. I want it to include your parents and my parents, our families. That’s how it should be. That’s the commitment we are making to each other, we are making a family and it includes everyone, OK?’

  Shane stood, looking at her as if in awe. ‘You really are the total package,’ he said smiling. ‘Do you know that?’

  She shrugged and a smile played at her lips. ‘What can I say? I try.’

  ‘And I promise that I will never keep anything from you again. No secrets. You will know everything, no matter what, OK?’

  She smiled, recalling her sister-in-law’s wise words about lessons learned. ‘Can I come in? We have a lot of catching up to do.’

  He picked her up off her feet and kicked the door shut behind them, covering her neck with kisses.

  Cara laughed, and the sound felt comfortable on her lips. The familiarity of all of this was welcome after what had been a week of hell.

  Suddenly she remembered something. ‘What about your parents?’ she asked, breathless, looking back to the door. ‘They’re waiting outside . . .’

  ‘Let ’em sweat it out for a while,’ he laughed, carrying his bride-to-be to the bedroom. ‘Preferably a long while.’

  Chapter 29

  Danielle pulled her soft-top Mercedes into the driveway and took a quick look at her watch. It was late evening and the warm Florida sun was high in the sky at this time of day, before making its gradual descent into the horizon.

  Maybe she could convince Zack to go for a swim with her in the ocean. They hadn’t had a romp in the waves for some time, preferring instead to stay close to the climate-controlled pool on the back deck. She was gathering her briefcase and her suit jacket when her phone started to buzz. Her hands full, she tried to negotiate to see who it was before answering, but by the time she was able to read the display, it clicked through to voicemail. It was Cara.

  Danielle raised an eyebrow, wondering what was up now. It had been over a week since she’d told her about the wedding being cancelled, and she wondered if now there was a change of plan. She’d call her back later.

  But as Danielle neared her front door, she heard the landline ringing from inside the condo, and a burst of panic flooded through her veins.

  Shit, what if that was Cara was calling the house – and double shit! What if Zack picked up?

  Danielle dropped her briefcase on the front porch and launched a full-on assault on her purse for her keys. Why, oh why did she have a car that only required the keys to be somewhere in the vicinity of the driver and not actively in the ignition? Furthermore, her Louis Vuitton bag had a hook right inside its interior, perfect for keys, so why in the bloody hell didn’t she use it!

&
nbsp; The phone rang again. Maybe Zack was out back? Maybe he hadn’t heard it?

  She shook her purse violently and heard the keys jingle at the bottom. She opened the bag as wide as it would go, prepared to rip it to pieces if she had to. Finally, she found them and shoved the front door key in the lock, which finally granted her entry.

  But the phone had stopped ringing.

  The moment she walked in the door, a cold sweat already breaking out on her back and under her arms, she realised that she was too late. What’s more, she also realised that she had been correct: Cara had indeed called, and right now she was talking to none other than Zack.

  ‘Well, it’s nice to talk to you, too,’ her boyfriend was saying, smiling. ‘Yes, I was beginning to believe you were a figment of Danielle’s imagination too.’

  She crossed the room with determination and held her hand out for the phone. He backed away, keeping his grip on the handset, his friendly expression turning to annoyance at Danielle’s unexplained behaviour.

  ‘Give it to me,’ she hissed, gesturing.

  He regarded her quizzically and held up a finger, instructing her to wait just a minute.

  ‘Yes, I hope I get to meet you soon too,’ he said. There was silence and Danielle focused in on the phone, willing Cara on the other end to finish up the pleasantries so that Zack would just give her the phone. At least before she said too much.

  ‘Yes, I’m sure she’ll be delighted to hear it. I’m sorry, what’s happening in St Lucia?’ he queried and Danielle felt her heart stop. She diverted her eyes from Zack’s gaze, which was now steadily focused on her face. ‘The wedding is back on? Really? That’s wonderful news. Remind me, when was it supposed to be again?’

  Danielle clenched her fists. She was caught. The cat was now well and truly out of the bag. How on earth would she explain this?

  He raised an eyebrow. ‘In September, I see. So soon. Well, fantastic that everything is going ahead, I’m so pleased. Yes, it will be lovely to have the entire Clancy family all together and I definitely look forward to meeting all of you,’ he said, his voice full of sarcasm wholly directed at Danielle. She met his eyes and she knew that there were plenty of questions there, but there was also anger. He had put all the pieces together and she had been fully caught in a lie. She had a lot of explaining to do.