Three Weddings and a Proposal: One summer, three weddings, and the shocking phone call that changes everything . . . by Sheila O'Flanagan

Author:Sheila O'Flanagan [O'Flanagan, Sheila]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Headline
Published: 2021-05-19T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter 20

The following day I text Martha and tell her that I plan to go to Palmyra to get her stuff. She responds by asking me to let her know when I arrive at the house so that she can open the door for me. I hope the app works. I’ve never seen it in use, and I’ll feel a bit daft if I end up standing on the step unable to get inside.

Erin, Sheedy and I talk about the visit at breakfast, which is served in a bright room that overlooks the garden.

‘Do you want us to come with you?’ asks Erin as she loads a dollop of Seville marmalade onto a slice of toast.

‘I assumed you would.’ I look at her in surprise.

‘We thought you might prefer to do it alone,’ she says.

I shake my head. ‘I’d rather have company,’ I say. ‘I’m not sure how I’ll feel.’

‘Whatever you want,’ Sheedy says.

‘Thank you.’ I give them both a grateful smile. ‘Thanks for everything, girls. For supporting me. For coming with me. For being around.’

‘All for one, remember?’ says Sheedy.

I smile at her.

‘Will we head over after breakfast?’ asks Erin.

‘Sure.’ I hesitate slightly.

‘What?’ Sheedy looks at me.

‘Before we go to the house, I’d like to go to the scene of the accident,’ I say.

‘Oh, Delphie! Are you sure? Isn’t that a bit morbid?’ asks Erin.

‘Maybe,’ I concede. ‘But there’s something in me that needs to see where it happened. I’d like to be able to tell Martha I went too.’

‘Martha isn’t really your concern,’ says Sheedy.

‘She kind of is,’ I counter. ‘I’m already getting her stuff. I’d like to be able to say that I . . . well, that I paid my respects at the scene.’

‘If you must.’ Erin looks concerned.

‘It’s a closure thing,’ I tell her. ‘There’s a part of me that thinks he’s not really gone. That it’s some sort of cosmic joke. That he’ll turn up and fix everything. Give me my job back. Make me a director. Be there for me again. Until I see where it happened, I can’t stop myself thinking that way.’ I rub the back of my neck, where tension I haven’t felt all week is suddenly building up. ‘I used to think it was really weird of people to want to go to the place where a loved one died, but now I understand it.’

‘A loved one?’ Erin gives me a quizzical look.

‘I didn’t love him,’ I assure her. ‘Of course not. But he was an important person in my life and I . . . I cared about him.’

‘OK.’ She folds her napkin and drops it on the table. ‘Let’s go.’

‘You haven’t finished your coffee yet.’

She drains the cup and grins at me.

‘Now I have.’

We get up from the table and leave.

I’m wearing a long-sleeved tunic top over my shorts because even though it’s not yet 10.30, the sun is high in the cloudless blue sky and I want to protect the arms that I managed to burn by falling asleep at the pool the other evening.

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