Authors: Marita Conlon-McKenna
‘Alice, thanks for coming along tonight.’
‘Rob, it was lovely,’ she said. ‘More fun than I’ve had in a long time.’
‘Then we must do it again?’ he said softly.
She gave a wave at the front door as she opened it and let herself in. Lexy rushed out past her to the front garden.
It had been a lovely night and Rob had been far better company than she had expected. At first she had felt a bit awkward and ill-at-ease being out with a man, but Rob was so nice he had made her feel relaxed, and it had been such a treat to dress up a bit and go to the opera. Liam had hated theatre-going and opera and the like, and had only ever gone under extreme duress.
Letting Lexy back in, she was about to go upstairs to bed when she got a text message on her phone.
Are u home yet?
Honestly, Joy was such a curiosity box! She’d make herself a cup of tea and get comfortable on the couch in the kitchen before ringing her best friend who would, no doubt, demand a blow-by-blow account of the night.
Kerrie sipped at the red wine. Everything had gone perfectly: the prawn cocktail starter, the beef bourguignon with baby potatoes and a salad, and another of Polly’s Pantry’s specials – a chocolate tart, which she served with cream and ice cream.
‘Sinful!’ praised Justin, asking for another slice.
‘I’ll give the chef a rest,’ teased Matt, getting up to make the coffee for everyone.
There really was nothing like having a perfect dinner for friends, Kerrie thought, as she sipped on the Burgundy.
‘The beef was great,’ remarked Lindsey. ‘Is there a lot of wine in it? You must give me the recipe.’
‘A glass or two of what we’re having,’ Kerrie smiled. She had absolutely no idea how Polly’s Pantry made their beef dish, but hopefully some of the ingredients were listed on the back of the packet. There was bound to be some wine in it, and truthfully she had tossed a glass of red into the beef herself while she was heating it up.
‘How are all the wedding plans coming?’ quizzed Lindsey. ‘Weddings are so exciting. There is so much planning, but I
had such fun organizing mine. You and your mum must be busy with getting everything done!’
Kerrie nodded. She knew her mum was still annoyed with her about wanting to go away. She was making most of the arrangements herself over the internet, which made it all feel distant and unreal.
‘Have you got
the dress
?’
‘No, not yet,’ Kerrie admitted. ‘It will be hot in early September in France, so I just want something white and light and summery. I’ve seen one or two nice ones. I went to that designer Rhona Coleman on Merrion Square, and she’s got some really great dresses that are perfect for France and kind of simple and classic, just the thing I’d like.’
‘Sounds lovely. Though she’s meant to be expensive,’ continued Lindsey. ‘Will you get your bridesmaids’ dresses there, too? How many are you having?’
‘I’m having just one bridesmaid, my friend Ruth, who was in college with me.’
‘I thought you had a few sisters, don’t they mind?’
‘Well, they understand we are keeping it small,’ Kerrie explained. ‘It’s going to be quite an intimate affair. Just a few close friends like you and Justin, and our families.’
Kerrie had given no thought to her sisters being bridesmaids, and all the drama and shopping that it would have involved.
‘God, when I think of my crowd! Remember? I ended up with five bridesmaids.’
Kerrie remembered five girls of various sizes and heights in layered pink ballet-type dresses all cluttered together up at the altar and later around the reception and in the photographs.
‘There was my best friend Vicky, and my three sisters, and Justin’s sister. It was mad, and we were months trying to get dresses that would fit everyone. Talk about arguments!’
‘Well, at least I won’t have that problem. Ruth will probably wear some kind of summery cocktail dress.’
‘Aren’t you having any flower girls or pages? Do you remember how cute little Ella and Ruby and Oisin were at our wedding? They were such cuties.’
Kerrie thought of her little nieces and nephews. They were a wild lot, and even Matt’s little nephew Henry could throw a right strop at times. There was no way anyone was bringing kids to their wedding.
‘Well, being away in the South of France it’s a bit difficult,’ she explained. ‘Probably best the kids are left at home.’
‘I’m sure your mum is all busy getting her mother-of-the-bride outfit, getting something to suit a
très chic
French wedding! I know it’s going to be in France, but she is still going to be the mother of the bride!’
‘Mum’s not really into that much style, but we’ll go shopping nearer the time.’
‘God, it all sounds so simple and organized compared to our wedding. Poor Mum went on a diet trying to drop two dress sizes and ended up putting on half a stone with the stress of it all, and my three sisters went on the Atkins diet for months before and were cranky as a bag of cats. I spent more time worrying about their outfits than my own.’
‘Lindsey, your dress was amazing, and you looked beautiful.’
‘Thanks, Kerrie, that’s what happiness does.’ Lindsey laughed. ‘All I wanted was to be married to Justin. To start
our life together surrounded by all our family and friends, the people we love.’
‘It sure was a big wedding!’
‘It was a hooley! I don’t think there was a cousin or an auntie left out. What a family! But they are a great bunch and it was such a huge party. Justin and I had such fun.’
Kerrie remembered the big hotel outside Dublin, the food and dancing and long wandering speeches, loud music and everyone tucking into the midnight feast of sausages and sandwiches. She’d slipped away to bed at around 2 a.m. while Matt had stayed up singing and talking and hanging around with Justin and his pals till almost breakfast time. He’d been bleary eyed and hungover when they’d finally checked out of the hotel after lunch.
‘Your wedding was brilliant, Lindsey, but ours is going to be a lot smaller! I can’t wait till you and Justin see the church and the restaurant overlooking the harbour of Villefranche and the Mediterranean. It’s so romantic and a bit different.’
‘We’re both looking forward to it.’ Justin smiled. ‘I’m working on my best man’s speech already! Afterwards we’re going to hire a car and drive around Provence for about a week.’
‘Are you sure you two won’t mind having only a few people at your wedding?’ Lindsey asked, taking another sip of her wine. ‘If it was me I’d probably miss everyone!’
‘Not everyone wants a big lavish wedding with all the frills, and crowds of people,’ said Kerrie tartly.
‘Listen, if Kerrie had her way we’d be saying our vows all on our own on some far-flung beach in Mauritius or the Maldives.’ Matt laughed nervously. ‘Kerrie wants to keep everything as simple as possible. I’ve had a hell of a job to
convince her even to have our families and a few friends there, believe me!’
‘Kerrie, maybe you’re just not into weddings?’ offered Justin kindly. ‘Lindsey, on the other hand, as you can tell, is obsessed with them. Even though we are well and truly married now she still just loves talking about weddings, and finding out about them, and cries when she sees wedding photos and videos and magazines. She’s such a wedding junky!’ he teased, leaning over and kissing his wife gently.
‘Hey, I love weddings, too!’ protested Kerrie. ‘I loved your wedding, but it’s just that ours will be different.’
Kerrie tried to stifle her annoyance with Lindsey. They were lucky! They’d been going out for years, and both families were friends and not only lived near each other but had so much in common. Theirs was a totally different situation! If she’d had her way neither the O’Neill family nor the Hennessy family would be at their wedding. She could already see Matt’s mum being her usual snobby self and turning up her nose when she met the few members of Kerrie’s family that would make the trip to France. After a drink or two her dad would get on his high horse, his pride wounded, and God knows how they would all get through the day without some kind of row!
‘
Vive la difference!
’ toasted Justin, a little drunkenly. ‘And here’s to my best friend and his beautiful bride!’
‘Hey, do you two want to come to dinner at our place in a few weeks’ time?’ Lindsey asked. ‘You’ve made such a big effort having us to dinner tonight, I’ll cook something special. This whole doing-a-dinner-party thing is kind of nice, especially when Kerrie and I are foodies and both so into cooking. It’ll
be fun. Maybe we’ll ask Grace and Ritchie too, and what about Emily and Aongus?’
‘Count us in,’ agreed Matt, passing her the coffee pot. ‘Kerrie and I would love to come and have dinner with everyone, great!’
Kerrie felt sick to her stomach. She couldn’t imagine anything worse than getting involved in having rounds of dinner parties. She had only just started her cookery classes in Monkstown, and was only a beginner, and in no way ready to start entertaining their friends yet. Trying to cook for a few couples would be a nightmare! She could kill Matt for agreeing to it.
‘Matt, I know it sounds fun … but remember the next few weekends are very busy, as we’ve a lot to do with the wedding!’
‘Hey, but you guys have just told us you are keeping the big day low-key and having a small wedding,’ reminded Justin.
‘We are,’ she explained, ‘but, even so, there is a lot to do and organize with setting things up in France. So maybe we can leave having dinner together for a while?’
‘Sure,’ said Lindsey, looking disappointed as Matt got up and opened another bottle of wine.
‘Why did you shoot down Justin and Lindsey’s dinner party idea? It might have been fun,’ asked Matt as they were getting into bed, the kitchen tidied the way she liked it, with the dishwasher on.
‘It didn’t sound like fun to me, getting into a round of having to cook for people.’
‘They’re our friends, Kerrie! Don’t be like that.’ He groaned.
‘Lindsey was so annoying tonight,’ she complained. ‘It’s none of her business what kind of wedding we want.’
‘Justin is going to be my best man,’ Matt reminded her. ‘He’s my best friend, and we’ve been friends since we were twelve. They spent a fortune on their wedding. Lindsey’s folks paid so much, but he told me that they had to take out an extra bank loan to cover it all.’
‘Well, that was stupid!’
‘Honestly, Kerrie, sometimes I just don’t get you,’ said Matt. ‘I’ve known Lindsey since she started going out with Justin and she’s a sweetheart. She hasn’t a bad bone in her body. Tonight she was genuinely interested in what we’re doing about our wedding, and you just had to keep putting her down!’
‘I didn’t.’
‘You did! They’re our friends. It was embarrassing!’
Kerrie felt tears prick her eyes.
‘We’ve both been to so many weddings over the past few years, and the one thing we know is how important everyone’s wedding is to them. We just turn up and have a good time where they might have been planning it for years and spent a fortune. I know we are doing something a bit different, but I still feel guilty that we’re not inviting most of the people whose weddings we’ve been to, and that my granddad won’t even be there!’
She said nothing.
‘I’m tired, Kerrie,’ he said, unbuttoning his shirt as she climbed into bed. ‘I don’t want to fight with you, ruin a good night, but you have to lighten up! The past few months you’ve changed. I don’t know what’s got into you. Some days it feels like I don’t know you at all.’
‘Matt, I’m sorry,’ she admitted. ‘I’m just tired and stressed with the wedding and work and everything. I’ll phone Lindsey tomorrow, tell her we can go to dinner. You’re right, it will be fun.’
‘Good.’ Matt grinned, leaning across the bed and running his hand along the bare skin of her shoulder and neck. ‘Look, can we forget about Justin and Lindsey and think about other things …?’
‘Other things?’ she teased as he began to fling the rest of his clothes untidily around the room. Leaning against the pillows, she watched as he stripped off before flinging himself on to the bed to join her.
‘Tonight is our “fishy” night,’ laughed Alice as she looked around her group and started to lay out her ingredients.
Tessa was ready with her notepad, as was Rob, who really was trying so hard.
‘We are an island nation and yet it is a sad fact that so many of us rarely eat fish, let alone cook it. We have some of the best fish going, but most of it is exported to overseas markets!’ Alice couldn’t help but vent some of her frustration at the poor uptake of what should be an Irish staple. ‘Tonight’s dishes include a favourite of mine: prawns done with garlic, butter, wine and the sweetest of cherry tomatoes, which is a wonderful starter or can be served as a main course. And for mains I’m doing a lovely blackened salmon served with a creamy spring onion mash and asparagus in balsamic vinegar. First off I want to show you how you can tell if the fish you are buying is fresh. Come closer and I’ll reveal all.’
As they gathered around Alice showed them how to study the skin of the fish, its flesh and its eyes, and then to lift it up and smell it.
‘It should smell like it just came out of the sea, slightly salty. Any other bad type of whiff and it means it’s a bit older than they are telling you. If it is pongy, walk away. Then, with the prawns, look at the colour, smell them, and also feel if they are still firm. If they’re too jelly-like and soft, say no … Then to clean a fish …’
‘Yuk,’ said Kerrie.
‘Well, most of the fish you get will have been cleaned, unless you are catching them fresh yourself, but boning them is often necessary. For some, when you cook them, the bones will lift off fairly easy if you run a sharp knife under the skin, but for others you need to take out a bit before you cook them. Always check for bones before you serve your fish.
‘Now, to the prawns. These raw ones can be boiled quickly, and you will see the colour change. Then I tend to peel and top and tail them, and then remove that little black line you see that runs down the centre.’
‘I hate it when they give them to you in a restaurant in their shell with their feelers and claws and everything.’ Kerrie grimaced. ‘And then you are trying to eat them, and it’s so messy!’