Page 41 of Dancing Fools and All That Jazz

Monica

It all happened so quickly I can barely recall the detail. I’d been on my phone… No wait… I was about to answer my phone. Yes, I was hoping to have a response from Jean-Claude…

I scratch my head to summon up the chain of events as I recover in a comfortable chair in the boat lounge.

A waiter brings me a glass of water. Clarissa is next to me, gently patting my arm.

Ruby is sitting at some distance with an ice pack on her raised leg.

I nurse my sprained hand and rewind the events in my head.

Let me think, I had called Joanne to check all was OK and to tell her we made the finals. I also asked her to send the clip of our “Roxanne” performance.

‘Has your father called?’

‘No. Isn’t he at that conference thingy? James tried ringing him earlier, but it went to voicemail.’

I had checked my watch. I knew exactly where Vince was, or where he was heading. Not long before his first spontaneous encounter of the evening.

Joanne wished me good luck in the finals and – phone-in-hand – I’d stared up at the Eiffel Tower and contemplated my twenty-year marriage.

Vince had been a monumental mistake, but at least I’m in no doubt about my next moves. I’m ready to take back control of my life and Vince is out of it.

I’d then texted Jean-Claude about the finals, a fleeting fantasy of attending fashion shows with this attractive Frenchman skittering through my mind.

Imagine being with someone who shares your interests…

My imagination took another flight of fancy as I daydreamed managing my own business, meeting lots of exciting fashion gurus, taking my time choosing someone I really wanted to share my life with.

Heck, I could even use dating sites like the ones Ruby used…

I’d then snapped back to the moment and looked across to Ruby. She was by herself, leaning against the railings at the edge of the river and staring despondently at her phone. I’ve never seen her so miserable.

I felt a stab of guilt. Did I have to tell Max?

Yes, how else was I to have responded when he’d asked me why I wouldn’t forgive Ruby a silly mistake.

Those bloody words again. Infuriated with this minimisation of her actions, I had lashed out.

Max – who I have to say seems a nice enough person – was incredibly shocked when I told him, ‘She’s sleeping with my husband.

Hardly a silly mistake.’ OK, I know this implied it was recent and ongoing… Not kind, Monica. I know, I know.

But at that moment I wanted Ruby to experience the hurt I felt.

Seeing her so dejected, I began to regret my words.

Two wrongs don’t make a right. Besides, my future’s waiting for me to grab it and run – new job, new relationships, new Monica – but there’s no denying Ruby was hoping for a future with Max.

As if she could hear my thoughts, Ruby had suddenly looked up and our eyes met. I expected her expression to change to one of accusation, but instead she dipped her head and turned away.

My stomach had churned. Oh, Ruby. Then my phone vibrated in my hand.

Thinking it could be Jean-Claude, I lifted it to look at the screen when it was suddenly snatched from my fingers, and I found myself pushed to the floor.

It’s a miracle I was able to reach out with one hand to break my fall.

A small, hooded person dressed in dark clothes was racing away from me, my phone in his or her hand.

‘Stop!’ I screamed, but all the dance ladies apart from Ruby were on the boat. A few passers-by rushed to my aid as I cried, ‘My phone.’

They tried to help me up, and I lost sight of the thief. But then I heard a shout and cry from others in the area and a screech above it all.

‘Take that, you little prick.’ Ruby’s voice was unmistakeable.

I wobbled to my feet and strained to see Ruby on the ground, grappling with my assailant, who could have only been a young teenager. They both had my phone and were tussling to get sole possession of it.

The thief twisted and kicked out at Ruby. The phone flew up in the air and the youth sprang up and ran off into the distance, quickly disappearing into the crowds.

Ruby shouted a good number of obscenities before slowly getting to her feet. She picked up the phone and started to hobble across to me when a deckhand from the cruise ship ran down the gangplank, jumped on her and pulled her arm behind her back.

‘ Voleur .’

‘What the fuck?’ Ruby tried to pull away from the man.

‘Let her go,’ I screamed.

‘ Voleur . Thief,’ the man shouted.

‘You bastard.’ Ruby turned her head to scream in his face, ‘Let me go.’

‘Let her go this minute. She is not the thief you bloody bigot.’ I rushed to Ruby to pull her away from him.

The deckhand glared at Ruby, spat on the floor, and returned to the boat.

‘What an arse.’ Ruby rubbed her arm and glared in his direction.

‘Are you OK?’

She nodded. ‘You?’

‘Just hurt my hand when that kid pushed me to the ground.’

‘Little bastard kicked me in the shin.’ She bent to rub her leg. ‘Ouch. I’m afraid your mobile’s smashed.’ Ruby handed me the phone. The screen was completely shattered and blank.

‘Thank you. But honestly, Ruby, you put yourself in such danger. You could have been badly injured. I mean, he could’ve had a knife.’

‘Yeah, I know,’ Ruby mumbled. ‘Guess I was lucky. Although it would’ve been no more than I deserve… after I’ve stabbed someone in the back, even if I didn’t know it at the time.’

I watched her limp away as Bonnie and Cath rushed across from the boat, gushing out their concerns and wrapping me in their arms.

‘Oh, Monica.’

‘Are you OK, lass?’

‘We saw the whole thing from the boat.’

‘It was spectacular how Ruby managed to jump that gobshite… Oh no. Will you look at your mobile? That’s well and truly smashed.’

‘Shall we call the police?’

‘No, I’m OK. I just need to sit down.’

They helped me onto the cruiser where Clarissa dismissed them and took over my care.

Now Ruby’s words are going round and round in my head.

Even if I didn’t know it at the time… I rack my brains to recall any occasion where Ruby had been in the same place as Vince and it dawns on me I can’t remember a single one.

Of all the school plays, fundraisers, parents’ evenings, sports days and socials, Vince hadn’t attended one.

He saw that as my role, plus he was away most of the week.

We had never had Ruby round to our house when Vince was at home.

He always maintained he hated socialising, as he had to do so much for work.

Ha. The lying bastard. The more I think about it, I realise none of my friends have met Vince.

Hell, it wasn’t just Ruby who assumed I was a single parent.

I give an involuntary shudder as any remnants of outrage start to ebb away.

‘Are you all right, Monica?’ Clarissa’s voice interrupts my thoughts. ‘You are shivering. I hope you are not going into shock. You need to be in good shape for the finals tomorrow.’

‘Sorry, I was far away. I’m fine, thank you, Clarissa. Just a bit bruised. Annoyed my phone is broken but it could have been much worse. I’m extremely glad the thief didn’t get away with my bag. My passport and cards are all in that. Far less easy to replace than a handset.’

‘Well, the captain has reported the matter to the Gendarmes , but he says they will do nothing other than give you a log number so you can claim insurance. He says there is a lot of theft near the key tourist spots. I am glad we will be on this cruise for the evening where no one can target us. The key thing is that you and Ruby are able to dance tomorrow. We are already one dancer down.’

I see Ruby stand and tentatively test her leg. She smiles at Clarissa when she manages a few steps and puts her thumbs up. ‘All good here. Loads better. Now I need a good stiff drink after all that drama.’ She moves towards the door leading to the dining area.

‘Ruby, wait a minute.’ I touch the chair next to me. ‘Clarissa, can you give us a moment?’

Clarissa nods and discreetly leaves saying no more.

Ruby looks reluctant, but I pat the chair. She shrugs, joins me and sits down.

‘Thank you. For out there.’

‘No problem. It was a bit mad really. I wasn’t thinking. I mean that little shit could’ve had a knife. It was a stupid risk to take.’

‘You always take stupid risks. It’s who you are.’

‘I guess.’

‘And as for that horrible deckhand…’

‘Bastard. Did you see he had a tattooed swastika on his neck?’

‘Vile. What a lowlife.’

Ruby looks down at her feet and there is a long awkward silence.

I attempt to rehearse what I am going to say in my head and wait for Ruby to look up at me.

As she does, we say in unison, ‘We need to talk.’

Ruby smiles nervously. ‘What can I say? I’ve committed the ultimate crime. I can’t change that no matter how much I wish I could. I slept with your husband. Not that I knew that at the time, but I guess ignorance is no defence. I can’t begin to say how sorry I am…’

‘I know. I mean, I’ve finally realised you didn’t know it was Vince. I’ve thought about it and ridiculous as it is, I can’t remember you ever having met him.’

‘I haven’t, not once. I mean how nuts is that? But Monica, if I’d known it was him, I would never have met up with him and I would’ve told you he was using the site and cheating on you. You surely knew I would never deliberately hurt you like that?’

I nod and we go quiet for a few minutes before I explain, ‘What can I say? I flipped… I guess it’s testament to how little Vince is involved in my life when you think that in all these years you’ve not as much as encountered him.

Same goes for my other friends. When he was at home, he just wanted it to be the twins and us; no visitors, no one else.

Plus, we had completely separate social lives. ’