Chapter 36
36
Considering I hadn’t seen either of my daughters for a good few months and was really looking forward to seeing them both, I was feeling disappointed that we hadn’t had much time together to catch up. My handbag vibrated on my foot and I reached down to pick it up. As I reached for my phone, my hand brushed against the organza bag and my heart lifted. Perhaps Lucy would feel differently when I gave her the surprise gift that I’d brought.
When Michael and I got married, Mum had given me the most beautiful horseshoe on a ribbon. As she gave it to me the morning of my wedding, she told me that she loved me more than she ever dreamed it was possible to love a child and when she walked me down the aisle and gave me away to Michael, there were tears in her eyes. At the time, I hadn’t realised what an emotional moment that must have been for her, doing the job that a bride’s father would normally do. I had saved the horseshoe for the first of my girls to get married. I just needed to find the right moment to give it to Lucy.
However, it was as if Mum knew, as the next words she spoke gave me the perfect opportunity.
‘Lucy, darling. Have you got your something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue?’
Lucy laughed. ‘Well, you know I don’t normally go in for all that bollocks but I did think that maybe it wouldn’t hurt.’ Everyone laughed and leaned in as she continued. ‘My something new is my dress, something borrowed is Melissa’s necklace, something blue is the garter that Luke bought me. Cheeky bugger. Just need something old now.’
Clearing my throat and reaching into my bag, I went to speak.
However, the very last person I wanted to hear from right then beat me to it.
‘Lucy, your dad and I were talking and we’d like to give you something which is the perfect thing for that old category.’ Claudia beamed at my daughter as she handed her a parcel across the table. God! She’d already taken my husband and my house in Spain. Was she going to get my daughters too? I felt like my heart could break into two at any moment.
Mum saw me put the organza bag back in my bag and smiled narrowly at me. She mouthed ‘Stay classy!’ and I blinked away the tears that were starting to form.
Lucy carefully unwrapped the parcel and squealed when she saw the gift.
‘Oh my God. This is Granny’s veil. Melissa, you big sneak! Is this why you wouldn’t let me get a veil?’
My two daughters grinned at each other. Lucy stood and moved towards Claudia, embracing her in a tight hug.
I thought that when Michael left me, I felt awful, but this seemed even worse. Melissa, Michael and Claudia had clearly been in cahoots about their little plan and Lucy was beside herself with emotion. Michael’s mother had died when the girls had just become teenagers and they had adored her, devastated that she had been taken far too young for their liking.
‘Claudia, no one has ever have done anything more thoughtful for me. Thank you so much. You’ve made me so happy.’
Melissa joined their hug and I had never felt so excluded from something in my life. Quietly, and hoping that no one would notice, I removed myself from the table and headed for the ladies’, locking myself in one of the cubicles and trying to pull myself together as quietly as I could because I could hear that there was someone in the cubicle next door.
As I was wiping the tears from my eyes, I heard the main door go and someone walk in. There was no way in the world that I was going to go out there. I didn’t want anyone to see me right now and certainly not before I had put some more make-up on. I ferreted around in my bag, pulling out a compact, and used the mirror to wipe the mascara from my cheeks, then applied some bronzer to hopefully cover up the streaks and finished off with some lipstick. Not sure why, but lipstick always made me feel better. I think from my youth, when whenever I was feeling down, my own nan used to take me shopping and treated me to a new one, insisting that a new lippy always lifted your mood.
I heard a few doors banging open and closed again and was pretty sure that I was alone. But when I entered the main bathroom area, I realised that I had company. Familiar blue eyes stared back at me from the mirror.
‘Jo, how are you? You look lovely, by the way.’
‘Claudia.’
I nodded, not knowing what on earth to say to her now we were alone. What did you actually chat about to the woman who used to be your friend and behind your back shagged and then stole your husband? She turned so that she was standing with her backside resting against the basins with what looked like a martini in her hand. All I could focus on was the olive floating around on the top of her glass. Then the cocktail stick she was nervously twizzling between her fingers came to my attention and I thought about how much I’d quite like to ram it in her eye at that very moment.
‘I hope you didn’t mind me giving Lucy the veil. I probably should have asked you first. Michael said I didn’t need to but I did look at your face when I handed the parcel to her and you looked a little uncomfortable. I hope it was OK with you.’
All I could think of was what Mum would say now if she was next to me. I channelled my inner Jacqui and took a deep breath just as Claudia speared the olive and put it into her mouth.
‘It was really nice of you, Claudia. Thank you.’
As I turned, I heard a choking sound. She clearly wasn’t expecting me to thank her and it would appear from the retching sound that was now coming from her that the olive had got stuck in her throat.
My head went into a frenzy. What should I do? What would I do? Two very different things. Claudia struggled to catch her breath, now going quite a strange shade of purple, and went from grasping her throat to grabbing hold of the wash basin as she slid to the floor. Her eyes locked onto mine as the most horrendous noise gurgled from her throat and I could just about make out the words that she’d spoken.
‘Help me, Jo. Please. ’ I turned on my heel and slammed the door behind me.