The following morning Margaret’s back. I’m up and showered and feeling human again.
‘So what are you going to do now?’ she says, taking more tea from Dan who’s been working away on his computer.
‘Well, I’ll hang around until the festival and then … go on to my mum’s, I suppose.’ I try and sound upbeat but I’m not sure it’s coming across. Margaret looks crestfallen.
‘Actually, that’s what I wanted to talk to you about.’ Dan puts down his mug but Margaret’s in full flow.
‘Ah no, don’t leave.’
‘I can’t stay around here without a job, and besides, I don’t think I’d be very welcome.’ Sean’s angry face comes flooding back to me.
‘You would! I could ask if there are any shifts at the pub.’ Margaret’s on the edge of her seat.
‘It’s kind of you but you know that there’s hardlyenough for you. I’m amazed Patsy can keep going.’ I put down the mug and stand up. I think it’s best not to think about this too much right now. ‘Look, I have to go and get my stuff from the farm. Sean will be at Galway market today.’
‘Then let’s go out for lunch,’ Dan pipes up.
‘Well, it’s just …’
Dan’s face becomes serious, he frowns, and it makes me want to laugh. ‘Actually, there’s something I want to talk to you about, Fi.’
I’m intrigued now, and to be fair he has been very kind letting me stay here.
‘As long as it’s not a date,’ I say.
‘Not a date,’ he crosses his heart with his finger. Margaret’s looking from me to Dan and back again with an incredulous look on her face.
Chapter Thirty-four
Sean will be out at the farmers’ market by now, I think, as we bump and sway towards the gates. The lane is so familiar; it’s odd that the place I disliked so much when I first got here feels strangely like home now.
‘I’ll just nip in and get my belongings. I’ll be straight back out,’ I say to Dan.
‘Great, then I can take you for that lunch,’ he beams a shiny white smile.
‘Stop!’ I suddenly put my hand on the gear stick. He slams on the brakes and shoves his sunglasses up on top of his baseball cap. He looks down at my hand and so do I. I whip it away but he’s still looking at me with a wide smile on his face.
‘The van’s still there,’ I quickly explain, looking through the sparse hedge. I scan the yard but there’s no sign of Sean.
‘Perhaps we should come back later, after lunch.’ Dan shifts in his seat. He moves the 4×4 slowly into the drive and starts reversing into a three-point turn.
Sean’s van is on the drive with the back doors open, but it’s empty.
‘He should be long gone by now,’ I say out loud. I’m puzzled. Dan’s now got the truck turned round and is pushing the gear stick into first. He tilts his head back towards the main road.
‘Let’s get out of here and come back when he’s out.’
I wind down my window and can hear the hens making an almighty racket; they haven’t been let out yet. There’sno sign of Grace either. Now that is odd.
‘Sorry, Dan.’ I undo my seatbelt. ‘I really think I should go and see what’s going on.’ I push open the truck door.
‘Hey, now hang on. He was in no mood for chit-chat the other night. I don’t think he’ll be ready to make small talk just yet. Let’s just go into town,’ he says slowly and deliberately, as if telling me to ‘back away from the gun’. ‘Let’s get some lunch and I can run my idea past you. Then I’ll bring you back and we’ll collect your stuff while he’s out.’ He pats the heated leather seat.
He’s right. Sean isn’t going to want to talk to me.
‘Look, I wanted to save this and talk to you over lunch, but seeing as you’re proving tricky to pin down I’ll tell you now. Mary Jo is leaving, like I told you, and I’m going to need someone to run my office, deal with all the organisational stuff. I thought it might suit you.’ He looks at me and cocks his head.
‘What? Where?’
