The Carmel Sheehan Story by Jean Grainger

Author:Jean Grainger [Grainger, Jean]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781543175240
Published: 2018-10-01T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21

Joe leaned forward and pressed the doorbell beside the lovely ornate Victorian door with the stained-glass panels. Flowers grew in profusion all around the beautiful front garden, this was clearly the home of a gardener. Carmel gave him an encouraging smile as a shadow appeared behind the door.

‘Tim, great to see you again.’ Joe’s greeting was effusive to hide the trepidation he obviously felt.

‘Hi Joe, and Carmel, so glad you could come, it’s lovely to see you both, come in.’ Tim opened the door wide and they entered. The house was like others on the street, detached with a double bow front, but modest in size. Carmel thought it absolutely gorgeous. She’d been here very early on the morning Brian died but she took very little in during that visit. Her sole focus was on breaking the news to Tim and being there for him. Now that she had time to take it all in, Carmel thought it was like a picture you’d see in a child’s story book or one of those ads off the TV at Christmas. The décor was tasteful and unique. Nothing like what one would expect in the home of two bachelors in their seventies. There was no clutter, no hall-stand filled with jackets and outdoor shoes; instead, the house was calm and unfussy. The hallway was painted a dove grey with what looked like hand painted birds of paradise here and there. Coloured light flooded the space through an ornate stained-glass ceiling and straight in front of them were distressed pine double doors leading to a large open-plan kitchen and dining room that opened onto an amazing looking back garden.

‘I hope you haven’t eaten? I’ve made supper.’ Tim smiled shyly and Carmel knew at once he was as nervous as Joe. She wondered if she should have called him ahead of arriving, given him some indication that Joe knew the truth about his relationship with Brian, but she decided against it. She trusted Joe to be gentle with him and to let the story emerge in its own time.

‘We haven’t, not that we were expecting it, we were planning on going to the pub afterwards but this smells divine.’ Carmel was touched he’d gone to so much trouble.

‘It’s just chicken in white wine and some new spuds. I don’t bother cooking much these days, it’s nice to have the excuse.’ The pain at the loss of Brian was as raw as it had been at the funeral, but they could tell he was doing his best.

‘It’s a gorgeous place you have here, the house and the garden. It’s like a little oasis of peace in the hustle and bustle.’ Joe was looking around, admiring everything.

‘Well, I’m into interior design a bit, more the DIY side than the design really, I suppose, but the garden was all Brian. He would spend hours out there, doing God knows what. I’m clueless, wouldn’t know a dahlia from a daisy.’

Joe chuckled, ‘I’m the same, everything I plant I manage to kill, even the stuff they assure me I can’t destroy, I seem to have the knack.

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