“
To a very beautiful woman
!”
he toasted her.
“
To the future
!”
she replied. She didn
’
t know what had made her say that. It had somehow slipped out.
Slightly embarrassed, she went and brought out the oysters
,
which she
’
d placed on a bed of ice and seaweed, and placed them on the table.
“
Mmmm
. . .
oysters . . . my favourite,
”
he said smiling at her.
“
I hope you don
’
t have an ulterior motive, serving me an aphrodisiac food.
”
“
I
’
m sure you have no need of it,
”
she replied seductively
, looking up at him with her cat-like eyes.
He laughed. He enjoyed sparring with her. He was enjoying himself enormously.
When they
’
d
finished the champagne and oysters
,
she led him to the dining area where she lit the candles. The table was set with a white linen tablecloth and napkins
,
silver cutlery
,
crystal glass and there was a low bowl of white roses in the centre. It was charming and elegant
.
She surprised him constantly.
She opened the white wine he
’
d brought and then served the lobster salad that she
’
d finally decided on. It was divine. They flirted back and forth as the delicious wine made them ever more relaxed. By the time she served the tender rare rib
-
eye beef they were laughing and joking as if they
’
d known each other forever, but underlying this was a sense of excitement, a sexual chemistry which both of them knew would ultimately lead to the bedroom.
It was as if they were playing a mating game.
She served the tiramisu which he tasted and declared to be the best he
’
d ever had. He took a spoonful and fed it to her and
,
closing her eyes sensually, she licked the cream and chocolate from the spoon, leaving a trail on her upper lip. He reached over and ran his tongue slowly over her lip.
It was the most erotic caress she
’
d ever experienced and
,
sitting transfixed
,
she parted her lips
,
feeling the desire rising inside her. He probed his tongue into her mouth
,
tasting the sweetness there. With a passion that surprised them both, she kissed him back and then they were frantically pulling their clothes off as she propelled him into the bedroom where they collapsed on the big four-poster bed.
Afterwards, Zita marvelled at the tenderness he
’
d shown as he
’
d slowly made love to her. It was something she
’
d never experienced before and it opened up a world of pleasure to her. He was an expert lover, knowing where to touch and caress her, driving her crazy with desire and making her cry out for him. She lost count of the times she came with him and
,
when they finally lay
exhausted, he told her that he
’
d never felt like that in his life before either
.
They drifted off to sleep, wrapped around each other
,
and it was some time later that he woke with a start.
“
Holy shit!
”
he cried, looking at his watch.
“
My God, how did I fall asleep like that? Sorry, my darling
,
I have to rush off and leave you. Even Rachel will not believe I
’
ve been at a meeting till this hour.
”
It was the first time he
’
d mentioned his wife
’
s name all night. It was as if any mention of her would have spoilt the magic. Zita felt a surge of jealousy towards the other woman.
“
It
’
s been a wonderful, wonderful evening. I hope we can repeat it soon.
”
He kissed her gently and then he was gone.
Zita felt somehow deflated after he
’
d left. The apartmen
t felt big and empty. She tried to go back to sleep but it was
useless. Finally, she got up and made herself hot chocolate
. Pacing the room, she felt a loneliness engulf her. Damn him! It wasn
’
t meant to be like this. It was meant to be just sex but somehow he
’
d made it into something else. He was different from any man she
’
d ever met. Very different! It unnerved her.
Ronan was looking forward to the evening at Rachel
’
s. For so
mebody with such a high public profile and such wealth, she was amazingly down to earth. He was surprised
to see that Carl wasn
’
t there.
“
He sends his apologies but has a crisis at work. The life of a politician!
”
Rachel laughed but it had a hollow sound to it. He could tell she was upset.
“
I
’
m afraid Zita cried off too. So it
’
s just you and me till Ellie arrives later.
”
“
I can
’
t think of a nicer companion,
”
he said, bowing from the waist.
She made a little curtsy, smiling at his gallantry.
She served a starter of scallops and black pudding, which was very unusual but delicious. The main course was a lovely dish of sole stuffed with prawns. Of course
,
living in Howth meant there was always wonderful fresh
fish to be had
,
though he suspected that she hadn
’
t prepared it herself. She opened a bottle of Chablis to go with it but he had only two small glasses as he was driving.
Rachel was very sweet and he found himself telling her all about his life and his disastrous marriage to Louise. It was a relief to be able to talk about it and Rachel was a good listener, which surprised him, as she was usually so chatty.
“
Maybe it
’
s for the best,
”
she commented
. “
Sometimes we don
’
t understand at the time why things happen but later we see that they
’
d happened for a reason.
”
Somehow, he felt comforted by her words.
“
Maybe you
’
re
right. To be honest, if I
’
d stayed with her, she
’
d have bankrupted me. Now
,
at least, I don
’
t have that worry.
”
“
Things will work out for you, I
’
m sure,
”
Rachel said sympathetically, reaching across the table and patting his hand.
“
You
’
re still young enough to meet someone new.
”
He laughed.
“
I can
’
t see that happening somehow. On
ce bitten . . .
”
“
Well, you never know,
”
Rachel stated as she opened a second bottle of wine.
“
No more for me thanks, I
’
m driving,
”
Ronan said, putting his hand over the top of his glass.
Rachel refilled her glass with alacrity.
He was surprised at the speed with which she drank.
“
Well, at least you seem to have a charmed life,
”
he observed as he relished the last of the sole and prawns dish.
“
Oh, how I wish that were true,
”
she said wistfully.
“
Everything is not always as it seems
.
I was so happy when Carl was elected and the first few weeks were wonderful but I quickly learnt that most of the people I meet are insincere and hypocritical. Besides that, I hardly ever see Carl any
more. It
’
s as if his political life has replaced me. It consumes him and I feel like a nagging wife when I ask him to spend more time at home.
”
Ronan saw the tears well up in her eyes and now it was his turn to reach across and pat her hand.
“
I
’
m sorry,
”
she blubbered as he handed her a white handkerchief. She dabbed her eyes with it
,
thinking what an old-fashioned gesture it was.
This made her smile and he smiled with her.
“
I know it
’
s stupid but I feel like my life is getting out of control. I seem to spend every night alone, with a bottle of wine. It
’
s the only thing that helps. I feel so lonely and isolated.
”
“
But drinking isn
’
t the answer, you know. You really need to be careful, Rachel. I
’
ve seen too many people ruin their lives with alcohol.
”
She nodded numbly again.
“
You
’
re right,
”
she whispered.
“
I must try and cut down
.”
“
There is help out there, you know,
”
he said gently.
“
Oh, I don
’
t think I
’
m that bad,
”
she laughed.
“
It
’
s just that I
’
m lonely
.”
“
Well, you
’
ve got the support
of all of
us now. We
’
re your friends
–
Sam and Ellie
,
Zita and me – we really like you for yourself. We
’
re not two-faced like those other people you meet.
”
“
I know, I know,
”
she agreed with him, smiling through her tears
. “
I really appreciate all of you
.
I
’
m sorry, I
don
’
t know what
’
s wrong with me. I seem to cry at the drop of a hat these days.
”
Just then the bell rang. Rachel looked at her watch.
“
That must be Ellie
!”
She stood up, then paused and said,
“
Thank you so much, Ronan
.
You
’
re a real friend and I
’
m sorry for off-loading on you when I
’
m the one supposed to be comforting you tonight.
”
“
You
’
re welcome, Rachel.
”
The bell rang again and she
hurried into the hall to answer the intercom.
“
Hi
,
Rachel, it
’
s me
!”
came Ellie
’
s sing-song voice as she leaned out the window of the taxi she
’
d come in. She gave a little wave at the camera.
Rachel smiled.
“
Come on in, Ellie,
”
she replied, pressing
the button which opened the electric gates, then going to open the front door for Ellie
.
A minute later, Ronan was amused to see Ellie bounce into the room and halt in surprise.
“
Where
’
s everyone?
”
she asked.
“
It
’
s just us, I
’
m afraid
,”
said Rachel.
“
Carl and Zita are both working and couldn
’
t make it
.”