Chapter 2
“When you said, ‘Let’s holiday in the south of France,’ this was not what I pictured,” Megan muttered from the side of her mouth.
“I haven’t been lying in this wet field for an hour so you can scare everything off with your moaning.” Tierney Walsh focused her attention back on the viewer and squeezed off another few shots of the birds feeding in the long grass a couple of feet ahead of them. She wished her best friend had gone to the beach. Staying still for hours on end wasn’t often her first choice either, but when she captured an image that was really special, one which encapsulated the true glory of the natural world, the waiting made it worthwhile.
“What kind of birds are they, anyway?”
If she ignored her, Megan would persist, and her whispers would likely spook the birds. “Little bustards.”
Megan’s snort of laughter sounded like a gunshot in the silence. The birds took off, their wings whirring close overhead. Tierney continued to take shots, her lens following as they took flight. “Damn it, Megan!”
“I’m sorry, but that is one dumb name for a bird.” Megan eased herself up off the matting where they’d been lying for over an hour. “I guess you don’t want me to come along tomorrow.”
Tierney thumbed through the images she’d just taken. Some were pretty good. Megan may have done her a favor by disturbing the birds, but she wouldn’t share that just yet.
“Are you telling me you sabotaged my shoot so you wouldn’t be invited tomorrow?” She retrieved her camera bag and attached the lens cap. “‘Hey, Tierney, I think I’ll sit on the beach tomorrow’ would’ve sufficed. It’s your holiday too, Meg, and God knows you need it more than I do with the shit you have to deal with at work.”
Megan laughed and rolled up the mat while Tierney picked up the last of her equipment. “I’ve enjoyed our day. I love these little insights into the slower-moving side of Tierney Walsh. You’re really passionate about this stuff, and it’s a joy to watch.” She stretched her arms, and muscles audibly creaked in her back and shoulders. “However, you are correct that I need to relax for a couple of days before I return my nose to the grindstone, so I will spend the rest of my vacation messing about on the beach.” She took a bag from Tierney and swung it over her shoulder as they started their walk back to the town. “Are we going back to that cool bar?”
Tierney turned slightly. “Can we try a different place tonight?”
Megan groaned. “I like it there. It’s not full of men trying to hook up, and it has a really friendly vibe. Why do we need to go elsewhere?”
She wished she could change the subject. “We’ve been there every evening. How about somewhere new for our last couple of nights?”
Megan caught her arm. “This isn’t anything to do with that woman you were smooching with last night, is it? What was her name? If you even asked.”
“Francine. Of course not. I just want to check out somewhere different.” They both knew it was a lie.
“Tierney, you’re going to have to spend more time getting to know women if you want to meet someone for real.”
Megan was right. Tierney always started out with good intentions, but it didn’t take long for her attention to wander. Once she’d lost interest, it seemed unnecessary to keep things going. “I don’t have time for relationships that are going nowhere. And you can talk; you haven’t been on a serious date for years.”
Megan let go of her arm. “We’re not talking about me. I’ve chosen to focus on my career, and I don’t have time to date. But I’m not the one who mopes on about never being able to find the right person. You can’t have it both ways.”
“Okay, we’ll go back to the bar. I’ll talk to Francine again if it makes you happy.” She increased her pace, hoping to leave the conversation behind.
“Since when was anything about making me happy?” Megan’s longer legs made it easier for her to catch up. She overtook Tierney and strode on ahead. “Let’s go and get cleaned up. Your dad bankrolled this trip, and the least we can do is be on time for his Zoom call.”
Tierney followed behind. Much as she’d wanted a change of subject, the reminder of her call with her father further lowered her mood. What did he need to talk about so urgently while she was on vacation? She was sure he relished ruining her free time with his insistence on talking about business. Unlike Megan, she no longer worked for Walsh Property full time, but he still managed to find ways to pull her in.
“Meg, wait up. I’ll be ready for Dad. You don’t need to face him alone.”
“I don’t mind facing him, buddy. I’m not the one who pisses him off.”
Megan was right. No one could push her dad’s buttons like Tierney. She didn’t mean to, though, and sometimes it was easier just to avoid him. Megan, on the other hand, had always been able to make her dad smile. Admittedly, she also worked her ass off for his business.
Back in their apartment, they went their separate ways to prepare for her dad’s call. Tierney got ready as quickly as she could. She didn’t want him to find Megan the only one available. She was already the dutiful daughter he’d never had. When Megan had moved in with them at thirteen, after her shitty family situation had become dangerous, Tierney’s dad had been quick to pay off Megan’s abusive father, an ex-employee, and make it a permanent arrangement. Tierney didn’t envy Megan her childhood. But her easy relationship with Tierney’s dad? Yeah, maybe a little. Get a move on. Navel-gazing over my complicated relationship with my father is not a suitable excuse for being late to the call.
She was still squeezing water from her hair when Megan stuck her perfectly styled head around the door. “I’ll get the laptop set up. You nearly done?”
“Yep, two minutes.” Leaving her hair to dry naturally, she pulled on some clothes. Even on vacation, she felt the pressure to make an effort for her father. She pulled a cotton shirt on over her sports bra, ran her fingers through her hair, and went to find Megan in the lounge.
Her best friend sat cross-legged on the couch, laptop perched in front of her. That was just one of the many differences between them. It would never occur to Tierney to take a laptop on vacation. Who did that? It would just take up precious space better used for camera lenses or snorkeling equipment. She settled next to Megan as the Zoom window came to life and her father’s face appeared.
“Megan, Tierney, how’s your vacation?” His slight Irish accent was always more obvious on a call than in person.
Tierney decided to ignore the order in which he greeted them. She’d had a long time to get used to it. “Hey, Dad, we’re having an amazing time. How’s it going back in Boston?”
He rubbed the close-cropped graying beard that covered his square jaw. “We’ve closed on the Schenker house,” he said, looking directly at Megan.
“Fantastic. All our work paid off.” Megan’s wide smile faded. “I’m sorry, Kevin, I should’ve checked my email today.”
“Nonsense, you’re on vacation. But I’ll expect you to be up to speed before you return to the office on Monday. I want you to oversee this one. It’s worth a lot to us.”
“Dad, about Monday.” Tierney ignored the hard jab to her knee. “We thought it would be a fantastic end to the trip to spend a few days in Paris. Seems a shame not to while we’re in the country.”
Her dad’s lips twisted. “You can’t help yourself, can you, Tierney? You’ve enjoyed a ten-day vacation, and you have to ask for more.”
“It’s just a missed opportunity when we’re here already.” She swallowed the instant guilt of disappointing him. Again.
Megan gripped her leg out of view of the camera. Her dad’s face was expressionless as he stared at them silently, and she knew when she was beaten.
“I’m sorry, you’re right,” she said. “We’ve had a good time, and we’ll head back at the weekend.” She gave a small smile, hoping she sounded as contrite as she should.
Her dad shook his head. “I need Megan back here, but I’ve got another job for you.”
What sort of boring errand was he planning for her? “What? But I need to?—”
“Need to what, Tierney? You’ve just made it clear you have nowhere better to be. For once, could you just do something for me when I ask without trying to wriggle out of it?”
He never asked; he always instructed. And she couldn’t help rebelling against that. “Don’t you need me for the Schenker house photos?” She was clutching at straws now, but much as she found photographing properties tedious, she always felt a frisson of pride when her dad was pleased. And it was literally her only contribution to the family business.
“Megan will find someone else, won’t you?”
Megan nodded quickly.
“And the mansion is exquisite. Anyone could make it look good.”
Tierney raised her hands in defeat. “Okay, I’m all yours. But where am I headed?”
“I need you to go to Inishderry and check in on the Waterside. Make sure that the manager is keeping things up to standard.”
“Why? What are you going to do with the Waterside?” She’d been wanting to ask him since he’d shared the news that he’d inherited the family hotel on a tiny island off Ireland’s west coast. But she’d been about to head off on vacation, and she’d figured it would wait. While her dad was an efficient businessman in all other areas, the complicated nature of his relationship with his family and the island was likely to make any decisions around the hotel difficult. Tierney loved the island; she’d spent her childhood holidays there, loved and nurtured by her granny.
Now Granny was gone, and her hotel was all that was left of her memory. Tierney wanted the Waterside to have a future, but she wondered if her dad had been away for too long to remember how special it was.
Her dad shuffled papers on his desk. “I haven’t made a decision.”
“Then why do you need me to go, Dad?” She heard the whine in her own voice, but she couldn’t bear the thought of turning up on the island to face the wrath of her uncles and the questions everyone would have about the hotel. Questions she couldn’t answer.
“I want you to go and find out how the hotel is being run. When the estate is settled, that manager will be my employee. I want to know if she’s worth keeping on.”
“And what if your brothers question me?”
“Tell them you don’t know anything. It’s not as if that’s not believable.”
Megan squeezed her knee, so Tierney bit her lip at the insult. “They’re going to be furious at having been overlooked for their share of the hotel.” Her uncles had always intimidated her, especially the elder one, Desmond.
“Nonsense. Anto inherited the ferry business when Dad passed, and Des got his payouts when he bought his first hotel. They had their fair share. It’s only right I get something.”
“The first thing they’ll want to know is when you’re coming over. What am I supposed to say? You haven’t been to Inishderry since I was old enough to fly alone, and neither of us made it to Granny’s funeral.” The guilt came flooding back, and she sucked in her breath to hold back a sob.
“Just go and see what’s happening and report back to me. Can you do that, Tierney?” His tone made it clear the conversation was over.
She would go; they both knew it. As soon as he was satisfied she would book the flights, he hung up.
“How are you feeling about going back without your granny there?” Megan unfolded herself from the sofa and busied herself with putting away the laptop.
Tierney rested her head on the back of the couch and squeezed the bridge of her nose. “Thanks for asking. It wouldn’t even occur to him that it might be difficult for me.” She rolled her head to the side to watch Megan. “Mixed feelings, I guess. I’ve missed the island, but it’s gonna be so different without her.”
“You need to get over the guilt of missing her funeral.”
“I can’t imagine that seeing the hotel without her there is going to help with that.” Grief burned in her chest as it did every time she thought of her granny. It had been over six months. Surely it would start to fade soon.
“But you know there was no way you could’ve gotten there in time. You’ve beaten yourself up enough.” Megan sat back down opposite her. “When we were little and you and all the kids with families in Inishderry used to spend your summers there, I was so pissed my parents could never afford to go. I thought I was missing out on so much. But now I’m kind of glad I don’t have the bond. It seems like a lot of work.”
“And when you finally got there, you hated the place and rarely went back.” Tierney pushed out of the seat. “Can we stop talking about that fucking island and go and get wasted, please?”
Megan followed her to the door. “Or we could just get a good meal and have a lovely evening.”
“Yeah, I guess.” She led the way down to the restaurant unthinkingly, her mind on other things. Her return to her family’s home was long overdue, even if her dad had long ago cut his own ties. Her last stay more than four years ago had been a flying visit. She’d been too eager to avoid Joey, her childhood friend, and any awkward conversations with them.
“Should I just order and let you sit there moping?” Megan waved her menu in front of Tierney’s face. “We’ve got two nights of our vacation left. Could you please be present?”
You sound like Dad. “Sorry. I was just thinking about the island and Granny.”
“You’ll be there in a few days. Make the most of the end of our break.”
Tierney shook herself out of her mood. Megan was right. Who knew when they’d get another break together. Tierney had trips planned around her freelance photography jobs, but Megan was a full-time employee of the business and subject to her dad’s less than generous vacation time policy. “Okay, I’m all yours. Let’s eat and then get down to your beloved bar. Perhaps you’ll meet a sexy Frenchman to share your last nights with.”
“I couldn’t think of anything worse.” Megan was still laughing as the server came to take their order.
Tierney decided to put aside thoughts of the island until she arrived. But when she did, she’d make the trip worthwhile. It was too late to spend more time with her granny, but she could make things right with Joey.