The Guest List (2 page)

Shane read the invitation, his eyebrows climbing higher with every sentence.

‘Christ on a bike,’ he guffawed. ‘Single male guests should not bring female guests the bride and groom do not know?’ Who
are
these people?’

Cara walked to the cabinet and removed two wine glasses. ‘Well, I only know the bride.’ She poured two glasses of wine and handed one to Shane as she took a sip. ‘Look at this. They’ve even included their bank account number.’ She pointed at the series of numbers lining the bottom of the invite.

‘This really is tacky. Where did you meet this girl? At a fundraiser or something? She seems to have a good understanding of the concept in any case.’

‘Stop it,’ Cara smiled as she swatted at him. ‘And when did you ever see me at a fundraiser? I think you’re mistaking me for your mother again.’ She threw the invitation on the countertop. ‘We don’t have to go to that wedding; I would prefer it if we didn’t actually.’

‘Ah don’t say that, we’ll go and have a bit of craic,’ Shane said wickedly. ‘Surely you don’t want to miss the ice sculptures, or the doves, or the fifty-piece orchestra serenading the beautiful bride as she walks down the aisle in a dress that probably cost the same as this place?’

‘Sounds like you know plenty about the goings-on on at weddings these days,’ Cara joked. ‘I’m still not sure about going, though. When I opened up the invitation, and read all those demands . . . honestly I felt like telling Audrey McCarthy where she could stick her wedding list and bank account number. And I wouldn’t mind but I have a wardrobe full of Coast and Karen Millen, and she’s telling me I can’t wear any of it?’ And if Audrey expected Cara to go out and spend even more on something new she could go sing. Money was tight for everyone these days, so such a demand truly was a bit rich. ‘Seriously, I thought that kind of nonsense was finished with nowadays.’

Elaborate wedding celebrations and one-upmanship had been rife throughout Ireland’s Celtic Tiger days, when the banks were happy to lend for such excesses as helicopters for the bride and groom, but the ensuing recession had put a welcome stop to the worst of it.

‘Ah, you really shouldn’t let people like that bother you.’ Shane shook his head and paused briefly. ‘I’ve never understood it myself though, these couples who go into massive debt for just one day – especially now. I understand that a wedding is a big deal, but really, shouldn’t it be all about the commitment you’re making to the one you’re marrying, rather than trying to impress some relatives you don’t even know by flying in beluga caviar from Moscow?’

Cara smiled. This was why exactly why she loved him so much; they felt the same way about so many things and were always completely in tune with each other.

‘I knew I was with you for a reason. You are so smart.’

‘And I know I’m with you for a reason. Sadly one that definitely doesn’t involve your cooking.’ He sniffed the air, and nudged her arm as she turned to place her wine glass on the counter. ‘Sorry to break it to you, but I think your grilled cheese is burning.’

‘Oh no!’ Cara exclaimed, quickly turning her attention to the stove. Shane laughed as she grabbed the frying pan and removed it from the hob. The cheese was nicely charred and looked deeply unappetising.

Shane raised his eyebrows. ‘So what’ll it be then – Indian or Thai?’

She blushed guiltily. ‘I suppose a takeaway might be a good idea at this point.’

‘My thoughts exactly,’ he grinned as he pulled her close and kissed her on the forehead. ‘Cooking is way overrated anyway. Don’t worry; I know you have a great phone voice.’

‘Ha! Conor says the same thing,’ she laughed, reaching for the phone.

A slight shadow crossed his face at the mention of Conor, and Cara mentally cursed herself for mentioning him. Shane had never quite been able to get his head around her close relationship with her boss. She supposed they had a rather unorthodox employer/employee relationship, but Conor Dempsey had taken her on straight out of college when he was first setting up Octagon, and she’d been working for him for close to a decade. But notwithstanding the fact that Conor must be almost twice her age, Shane never seemed especially comfortable with their easy-going friendship. Possibly because Conor was still unmarried, drop-dead gorgeous and had most of the female half of Dublin chasing after him.

Truthfully though, Cara never thought of her boss as anything other than just that, but it seemed Shane remained unconvinced.

She winked, hoping to deflect his attention away from that last remark. ‘Good to know I have
some
redeeming qualities.’

As she dialled the Indian restaurant down the road she noticed Shane once again pick up the wedding invitation from the countertop. ‘“The bride and groom kindly request . . . ”’ he read out loud, shaking his head. ‘At least that won’t be us.’

Cara was on the line waiting for the restaurant to pick up, but Shane’s words made her turn suddenly and face him. What on earth did that mean?

‘I’m sorry, what?’ she asked.

Shane looked steadily back at her. ‘I said . . . no way will that be us.’

‘Oh.’ Cara didn’t have much time to think about it just then, as the restaurant answered her call.

But as she placed their order, she couldn’t help but wonder what Shane meant. Did he mean that they wouldn’t dream of creating as much fuss around their wedding as Audrey McCarthy – or, more worryingly, she thought, gulping, that a wedding wouldn’t be them at all?

Heidi Clancy looked at the pink and white plastic wand in front of her, and waited for the oracle to announce her future.

Or at least for the two pink lines to show.

She
would
be pregnant. After all, she had willed it to be so. It was the way things were supposed to happen. She’d been married almost a year now, this was the next natural step, and heaven forbid someone or something cross her in her quest.

She stared expectantly at the pregnancy test that rested on the marble counter of her master bathroom, and then looked at her watch, tapping her foot impatiently on the porcelain-tiled floor.

‘Anything yet?’ called out Paul, her husband, and Heidi looked nervously at the door. She knew he was just as excited by the prospect as she was and she didn’t want to let him down.

‘Still waiting.’ She turned to the bathroom mirror and exhaled heavily, just as her yoga instructor had told her to do. It would help her circulation and ultimately promote a healthy pregnancy. She studied her reflection – while her chestnut (albeit artificially enhanced) hair was always glossy, today it had an additional sheen to it, and her skin looked clear and dewy. Heidi nodded satisfactorily.

She had to be pregnant.

She glanced down at the counter again, but there was no change.

Hmm
. . .

Heidi reached for her make-up bag and grabbed her MAC lip-plumping gloss. Quickly she swiped her lips and fluffed her bouncy hair and prepared to become a mother. It had to happen this year, and preferably this month. She was tired of waiting around now, and this was the fourth test she’d taken this year.

She had played by all the rules, followed all the tips and invested a small fortune in the techniques and strategies for conceiving or ‘getting knocked up’ as her sister-in-law Kim would so tackily put it.

What her brother, Ben, saw in the woman she would never understand. She was so crass, so vulgar. She remembered the way Kim had been all throughout her last pregnancy, acting as if it was no big deal, as if it was simply something that was completely run-of-the-mill.

The woman hadn’t even held a baby shower, for heaven’s sake! Heidi shook her head. She couldn’t think of a better reason for getting gifts and being smothered by attention – it was called a
shower
after all.

She knew for sure her baby shower would be a great celebration of life – the fact that she was giving life to another human being. She imagined herself sitting in the midst of friends and family, tummy swollen, face glowing, surrounded by gifts and being waited on. Or no, wait, being massaged would be even better. That’s what she’d do, Heidi decided: it could be a baby shower weekend at a spa hotel and there would be massages and lots of relaxation. Perfect.

She smiled with excitement at the thought of it. Yes, she simply
had
to be pregnant.

Heidi took another deep breath and considered the test in front of her.
Just one more minute and then I’ll look,
she decided – really, the suspense was killing her, and she didn’t think she could wait much longer.

‘Honey?’ Paul asked again from the other side of the door. ‘Anything?’

‘Not
yet
,’ Heidi replied somewhat testily. ‘When there is of course you’ll be the first to know. Now better leave me be, you are disrupting my aura. We need to be surrounded by positive energy when we learn of our impending child,’ she continued. ‘I don’t need any extra tension just now, honey. The baby will immediately sense its mother is anxious and stressed. And what kind of start in life is that?’

‘You’re right, you’re right, I’m sorry, of course we don’t want any of that, please relax. Would you like a foot rub while you wait? I could come in,’ he offered lamely.

‘No Paul, just . . . go and sit in the living room, and watch the rugby on TV or something,’ she replied reassuringly. ‘I’ll be out shortly.’

There was silence from the other side of the door, and Heidi guessed that her husband had taken her suggestion and was – hopefully – somewhere far away from the bathroom. Paul was wonderful, but he did have a tendency to fuss.

She thought of all the things she would have to do once the test came back positive. Or rather, she thought of all the lists that she would have to make during the nesting process. She wondered if she should hire a nanny soon, to assist her with getting the house ready and going about buying all the things that they would need for the baby. And the nursery . . . oh the nursery! Heidi couldn’t wait. It would be great to have another room to decorate. Truthfully, she’d been kind of bored, now that she’d finished decorating the house and there were no more interior designers to meet with or builders to keep in check. She could have great fun organising a nursery, going to Mamas and Papas and all the baby stores to pick out the paraphernalia. She’d need help though, especially as Paul was always so busy with his work at the bank. Yes, Heidi would need someone, preferably a professional.

Would coming along to baby stores and organising a nursery be in a nanny’s job description though, or would it make more sense for her to go and hire an assistant for the duration of the pregnancy at least? Heidi wondered. Actually, that seemed like a better idea, and would make much more sense, she decided.

A nanny might just get in the way if there wasn’t actually a baby to deal with just yet, whereas an assistant would be there to assist in every sense of the word – they’d be someone who would do exactly as Heidi pleased. After all, she would need help; she couldn’t be expected to do much of anything once the pregnancy was confirmed, could she?

She wondered how much help her family would give her. She could depend on her mother Betty, of course, but not Cara. Never Cara. Her older sister was so career-focused and selfish, not to mention completely consumed by that boyfriend of hers.

Heidi harrumphed. She had to admit though; her sister had done well in nabbing the likes of Shane Richardson, heir to the Richardson millions. As for what he saw in Cara, she’d never know.

It had also slightly miffed her that Cara hadn’t actively entered into the spirit of competition a couple of years back when Heidi was intent on getting engaged to Paul. She didn’t seem to care that Heidi would be the first Clancy sister to reach the altar. Their oldest sister Danielle didn’t count; she was swanning around in Florida somewhere, and for all they knew she could be married by now – possibly three or four times over for as much as they knew about her life.

But back then, when Heidi was doing her utmost to make sure Paul put a big diamond ring on Heidi’s finger, Cara herself acted like she didn’t care that her little sister was moving miles ahead of her in the relationship stakes.

Didn’t she understand that stuff like that was important? That these things – and not stupid work – was what life was all about? Milestones – diamond rings, wedding showers, big weddings, even bigger houses, then pregnancy, babies and all the rest of it . . .?

Heidi looked again at the pregnancy test. She frowned. Was that a
single
line that was forming? There was only a hint of a shadow on the second line . . .

Shit
, she thought, concentrating harder. She knew she had control over this. She grabbed the box with the instructions. She was looking for two lines, wasn’t it? Not a single. She read quickly and confirmed that yes, she was indeed looking for two pink lines. She glanced back down at the pregnancy test again.

The second line was indeed developing and becoming more pronounced. Two lines.

Two solid pink lines.

Yes, yes, yes!
She smiled, satisfied, impressed by her own intuition.

Two lines. Pregnant.

She was actually pregnant!
Heidi cheered to herself and watched, fascinated, as the second line became even clearer. Two parallel twin lines.

Twins . . . Maybe she would have twins! What could be better than one baby but two? Heidi thought about the attention she would get. Everyone adored twins, and if she had them it would be almost as if she had more talent for childbearing than women who only produced one baby at a time.

And of course they would be identical, rather than fraternal twins. Identical girls preferably, as everything in pink was so much lovelier and prettier than boring old blue. Oh, and think about the presents she’d get at her baby shower, she thought gleefully. Double everything!

Heidi picked up the pregnancy test and looked at it again.

She was with child
, she confirmed sagely. She wondered if her own mind power had assisted in the conception; she wouldn’t doubt it. She was strong like that, had a great ability to make things happen, merely by concentrating hard on them. Like Paul, for instance. She’d known right away that they were perfect for each other, and had concentrated very hard on making sure he knew it. And look at them now, barely married a year and now pregnant with their first child.