‘I’ll get it.’ She placed the glass on the table in front of Aiden and rushed to answer it. Her first thought was that it might be Jenny or Phil, come once again to retrieve their daughter, as they had on the night of the fateful scream and pyjama party incident. She wondered how best to greet them, and braced herself, deciding to be firm yet friendly, and not let herself be pushed around or derided in her own home. But no, it wasn’t either of them.
‘Iris!’
Enya felt her blood run cold, as she tried and failed to think of how to keep the two young women from meeting each other. Wishing for the first time that she did indeed have a bigger house, an east wing, or at the very least a network of tunnels down which she might hide. So much for a drama-free scenario.
‘Can I come in?’ Iris looked along the hallway, seeking out the man who she had argued with.
‘Of course, of course.’ Enya stood back.
It felt like the world turned in slow motion as the girl stepped over the threshold.
Chapter Thirty
Enya kept her sights on Aiden, watching as his face broke into a smile at the sight of Iris and then his eyes instantly widened with something close to horror as he registered the predicament.
It would have been hard to voice her biggest fear in that moment, but it was certainly screaming. She wasn’t sure how she might react or cope if the young women in her kitchen started screaming, because that was what movies and the media told her might happen, that when women who loved the same man came face to face, they might scream, loudly. And while she feared it, she understood. It seemed the easiest of ways to stake a claim, to be heard. To be seen.
She blinked away the image of her and Trish, shouting until their throats bled and they were hoarse.
Holly, without a word being spoken, knew instantly who the visitor was and shrank back in her chair. Her demeanour altered; gone was her sparkle, her energy, as she folded her hands into fists and placed them on her thighs, head down, shoulders hunched, as if trying to disappear altogether. It broke Enya’s heart to see this visceral display of raw pain.
‘Can I get you a cup of tea, Iris?’ she almost whispered. It felt the right thing to do, how she greeted anyone whenever they walked through the door.
‘No, thank you.’ Iris too kept her voice low, as if aware of the delicate bubble of glass in which they all waited, and that one loudnoise, a single jolt, could see the whole thing come crashing down around them.
‘Hi, Aiden.’ Iris lifted her hand in the smallest of waves, and he gave a slow smile of response, closing his eyes briefly.
‘Hi,’ he managed.
And just like that, Enya understood that all was forgiven. The wedding was back on.
It felt like a privilege to witness the very thing he had described to her, a look that was so much more than just a look but was in fact a connection. She saw it, and shefeltit. A look between two people so in love that they almost knew what the other was thinking. So in tune that they knew how to handle any situation just by looking at the other. In sync. One team...
Witnessing it had a strange effect, helping her understand in that moment that this was not a fleeting thing, was not simply impetuous infatuation, but was real. Her son was moving on to his next chapter, a complicated chapter, but a new chapter no doubt, and if he could do it, so could she. It meant not that she was redundant, but rather that she was free.
Enya noted the way Iris had called him Aiden, not AJ, not taunting Holly with their closeness, the use of a nickname. It was mature and kind.
The four stayed still, as if wary of movement, unsure of their next line in a play that was as improvised as it was unpredictable.
‘You must be Holly.’
Iris took a step forward and Holly looked up, as if surprised that she could be seen, suggesting she had been wishing so hard to disappear that she might, just for a second, have believed it possible.
‘Yes.’
The two girls locked eyes, taking the opportunity to unashamedly study each other.
‘Do you mind if I sit down?’ Iris pointed to the seat next to Holly, deliberately, it seemed, choosing not to sit next to the man at the centre of this muddle, understanding that it might be more than Holly, or Aiden for that matter, could cope with, the idea of him watching Holly watching them, while Enya stood by the island and watched them all.
‘This must be as weird for you as it is for me.’ Iris, her tone soft, addressed Aiden’s ex directly and Holly nodded, silently.
‘I want to say congratulations on your baby, but I’m not sure that’s the right thing to say. Truth is, I don’t know what to say, I don’t want to get it wrong.’ Iris swallowed, her voice low, and Enya felt her nerves from the other side of the room.
‘It’s fine to say congratulations. It’s a good thing, a lovely thing.’ Holly almost unconsciously ran her palm over her stomach, where a bump was yet to materialise.
‘In that case, congratulations. Have you had morning sickness?’
‘A bit,’ Holly looked up, ‘but nothing terrible. I think the worst symptom is that I’ve got an odd taste in my mouth. I love baking, but even the thought of cake...’ She stuck out her tongue.
