from my mind but it won’t leave. Have I room for another secret? Maybe I should tell Conor. Or Amanda. That’s what I’ll do. I’ll show my sister the card. Amanda will know what I should do.
Chapter Five
What the hell is that? Lifting my head off the pillow, I hear the sound of people’s laughter travelling up from downstairs. I glance at the clock. It’s after ten, almost eleven. Above the fading laughter, the unmistakable voice of Conor’s mam offering something to someone dominates the proceedings. Dropping my head back into the comfort of the pillow, I inhale. Don’t get annoyed, Laura, it won’t go on forever. But I am annoyed, it’s impossible not to be. What kind of a place is this? Has no one any boundaries?
I drag myself to the shower and change into a pretty shabby-looking tracksuit, reflective of how I feel – pretty shabby. I wanted to spend today alone with Conor and Shay but now the house is full of people who knows when we’ll get a moment to ourselves?
Anxious to see little Shay, I hurry downstairs. Only four visitors have created all that havoc: Maggie, of course, her face still beaming from the excitement of her new grandson; Olive, her blond hair tied back showing her perfect bone structure. Brown eyes set in sallow skin allows her beauty to shine even without makeup. She hasn’t removed her heavy jacket yet, so she mustn’t be planning on staying long. I don’t blame her. It must be awkward for her, standing in her ex’s house as he dotes over his newborn child that he had with another woman. The file in her hand tells me she’s only here to give Conor something from the brewery, but Conor is busy laughing with Noel and Abbie, Conor’s closest friends.
Abbie is lovely but there’s something about Noel that doesn’t sit well with me. I don’t trust him. He’s too confident, all me me me. He practically dismissed me when I first met him, looking at the bump, sneering, like he thought I had purposely got myself pregnant to hold on to Conor. I’ve never seen him show any empathy for anyone. It’s like he lives in his own world, writing his own rules. But Conor seems to love the guy so I can’t say anything.
Abbie is the first to notice me. She looks fabulous, as always, in a leafy green dress and expensive-looking boots. Apparently, her family are dripping in money and it looks good on her. Unlike me, standing here in a tracksuit. Feeling like I don’t belong amongst the expensive furniture and top-of-the-range appliances that were chosen by someone else. I wonder whether Maggie had a hand in decorating this place. Or worse still, Olive.
Abbie’s smile is just as impressive as her clothes, brightening her face. It’s dampened with a hint of sympathy when she sees me enter the room. Her expression reinforces my self-doubt.
‘There you are Laura,’ she says, walking over to my side, taking my arm with both hands and pulling me over to the group. ‘I hope you don’t mind us calling in but Noel has to leave for Dublin and he insisted on seeing little Shay before he left.’
‘No problem, thanks for calling.’ The subtle smell of floral perfume hovers in the air as my eyes search out the magazine on the countertop with the cards hidden beneath it. It’s still there and from what I can remember, I was so fraught with fear, it’s still in the same position that I left it. I move from Abbie’s grasp in the direction of my baby. Maggie jumps up from where she’s sitting, close to the crib.
‘Now, you sit down, my dear. It’s time for you to rest. I’ll make you whatever you want.’ She walks over to my side.
Maggie has arrived with a full face of makeup, which she moves close to mine, her eyes calculating my appearance. She’s probably thinking, she could have put on a bit of lippy.
‘What would you like?’ she says.
I’d like you all to leave. ‘Just a cup of tea, thanks.’
‘Tea it is, so.’ Maggie fills the kettle and stands waiting for it to boil. My heart is thumping hard in my chest, watching Maggie’s every move as she hovers close to the magazine. I pray to God she doesn’t lift it. If she sees the cards, she’ll want to read them.
‘The baby is great.’ Noel’s loud, deep voice echoes through the room, distracting me. He’s standing with