“
They all say that.
”
“
No,
”
Louise said dreamily.
“
I think he meant it. In fact, I
’
m sure he did.
”
Melissa was shocked when she got back to the car and saw the amount of stuff Louise had bought.
“
Lou, you can
’
t be serious! How much did you spend?
”
“
Not that much really. It was all so cheap and then Alan
. . .”
She broke off sheepishly.
“
Ronan will have a fit.
”
Melissa couldn
’
t believe that Louise would risk his anger like this.
“
Well, I was going to ask you if you would take care of this stuff till later,
”
she asked her friend.
“
Of course, but I don
’
t know how you
’
ll manage to avoid
Ronan finding out.
”
“
Don
’
t worry about that. I
’
ll sort it,
”
Louise replied, speaking with more confidence than she felt
.
She changed into some of her new clothes in the ladies
’
before they set off for Dublin. She made sure to pull off all the labels first. Ronan would never notice that they were new. He never noticed what she wore. Tired and happy, she arrived home with just the Le Creuset bowls
,
to find that Ronan was out, thank God. He
’
d left a note to say he was going out for a pint with his friend Jim.
“
Blast!
”
Louise cursed aloud. She could have taken all her new clothes home with her after all! Now she
’
d have to wait till later in the week to retrieve them from Mel.
To be on the safe side she even hid the Le Creuset
bowls under the bed in the spare room. Better wait until things were resolved with Ronan before bringing them out! He
’
d never believe her that they
’
d cost so little.
8
Ellie was searching for Sam
’
s card. She was trying to remember which bag she
’
d been using the night she
’
d met him. Having trawled through the top eight bags in her bag closet, she eventually found it. That
’
s the problem with changing my bag to match my outfit every day, she thought, frustrated at the time she
’
d lost looking for it. Château Wines, she read.
“
Of course, how stupid of me! I should have remembered that.
”
She dialled Sam
’
s number.
“
Hi
,
Sam, I don
’
t know if you remember me. It
’
s Ellie
.
I was sitting beside you at the Buckley
s’
dinner party last week.
”
“
Ah, Ellie from Mars
!
I was wondering if you
’
d gone back there in your spaceship,
”
he laughed.
Ellie was glad that he couldn
’
t see her blushing. She was embarrassed that he
’
d remembered what she
’
d said.
“
I wanted to ask about your wine course. When is it starting?
”
“
Next Monday actually.
”
“
Oh, right. Good! Would you have space for me on it?
”
she asked tentatively
.
“
Even if I didn
’
t, I
’
d make space,
”
he replied gallantly.
She found herself blushing again.
“
Well, I
’
d like to enrol, if it
’
s okay with you.
”
“
Of course. You
’
re very welcome.
”
“
Can you tell me where and when and how much it costs?
”
He gave her the address and time it would start.
“
It
’
s
€3
00, payable before the course starts, I
’
m afraid,
”
he added.
“
So many people used to book and not turn up that I now have to ask for it upfront
.”
He sounded apologetic.
She had been hoping it would be less, while not really knowin
g what such a course would cost. But, never mind the price – she was determined to do it.
“
Of course, I understand. I don
’
t have a cheque-book but I could drop the cash around to you, if you like.
”
“
That
’
s fine.
”
“
I can come around straight away, if that
’
s okay with you
.”
“
No problem. I
’
m here all evening. See you soon, Ellie.
”
“
How did she think I wouldn
’
t remember her?
”
Sam spoke aloud, scratching his head. She was exceptionally pretty and Sam always had an eye for a pretty girl. She was also funny and had made him laugh. She
’
ll add some spice to my course, he thought, grinning to himself.
He was looking forward to the course very much. He was a born teacher and loved imparting his passion for wine to his pupils. It was wonderful to see a student become enchanted with the subject, as always happened to at least one or two out of every class. He wondered who it might be on this course
.
Ten minutes later Ellie arrived at the address he
’
d given her
.
It was a massive house with steps going up to an impressive front door. The house was so huge that she assumed it was let in apartments but she couldn
’
t see any bells with names on them, just one brass bell
,
which she
rang. As she waited, she noticed that the drapes in all the windows were the same. It looked like a private dwelling. Sam could hardly live in this massive house all alone, could he? Maybe he lived with his parents or else he
’
d married an heiress. Stranger things have happened, she thought
.
She rang the bell a second time
,
wondering if he
’
d had to go out. Looking over the railing, she noticed that there were steps down to a basement as well. Just then a breathless Sam flung open the door. He had a phone under his chin.
“
Sorry for taking so long,
”
he whispered, his hand covering the phone speaker,
“
but I was in the basement, working.
”
He ushered her in as he continued speaking on the phone
–
in French, she noticed. It surprised her that his French was so good. He was looking really cool in a pair of torn jeans and a denim shirt. He could have stepped out of a Levi
’
s ad. She couldn
’
t help but admire his butt as he led her into a massive room. It had high ceilings and beautiful big windows that let in lots of light. It was breathtaking
.
“
Make yourself at home here, I
’
ll just be a few minutes,
”
he said, loping away.
Ellie caught her breath as she took in the beautiful room. It looked like something out of House Beautiful or H
omes and Gardens
.
She noticed both magazines lying on a coffee table. As she looked around she knew instinctively that the décor had a woman
’
s touch. There must be a Mrs Buckley lurking around somewhere. Obviou
sly no children
,
as the place was immaculate.
Sam interrupted her thoughts as he returned brandishing a bottle of wine and two wineglasses.
“
Sorry about that but I was on to a producer in Bordeaux about a delivery. Well, how are you?
”
“
I
’
m fine!
”
“
You look lovely,
”
he remarked as he opened the bottle.
Ellie blushed at the compliment. What was it about this man that made her blush?
“
I love your house. It
’
s so elegant. Do you live here alone?
”
What a dumb thing to say, she thought as soon as the words were out of her mouth. He
’
ll probably think I want to know if he
’
s married or not.
“
I
’
m afraid so. My last girlfriend departed about four months ago – luckily, or else we would have killed one another.
”
He grinned as he said this and handed her a glass of white wine.
“
I remember you liked the Chablis Frank served at the dinner.
”
“
How thoughtful of you,
”
she said, smiling, and raised her glass to him.
“
Sláinte
!”
“
Santé
!”
he replied
,
smiling back.
“
Well, how about you? Do you live with your fiancé?
”
She laughed.
“
Oh, no, I still haven
’
t flown the nest. David
’
s place is far too small for us both. Anyway, I like living with my family. Of course, once we
’
re married that will change. We
’
re looking for a house at the moment.
”
“
Well, it
’
s a good time to buy. When are you getting married?
”
“
We haven
’
t set a date yet. I
’
m just enjoying being engaged at the moment.
”
She held out her left hand and looked at her ring.
Sam hid a smile. She was so transparent. The words
‘
an innocent abroad
’
came to his mind.
“
Enjoy it while you can,
”
he advised.
“
Getting married is no joke.
”
“
Yes, everyone tells me it
’
s nerve-wracking, planning a wedding,
”
she said, biting her lip.
“
How about you? Did you find it so bad?
”
“
Oh, I wouldn
’
t know
.
I
’
ve never been married but I think I
’
d elope if I were you.
”
“
Oh, no
!”
she squealed.
“
I adore weddings. They alway
s make me cry.
”
“
You
’
re a romantic. Do you know how many wedding
s end in divorce?
”
“
Don
’
t say that!
”
She felt her voice quiver.
“
I
’
m sorry. I
’
m an old cynic. Of course there are many happy marriages out there and I
’
m sure yours will be one of them.
”
He could have kicked himself. Here was this sweet young girl, newly engaged and dewy-eyed
,
and he
behaves like an insensitive lout. Just because he didn
’
t believe in marriage or romance didn
’
t mean he had to throw cold water on her dreams.