Page 23 of The Widow’s Irish Secret (Magnolia Manor #4)

‘I’d love to meet him,’ Lily said. ‘He must have so many memories of Dad. Things we never knew.’

‘He’d love to see you, too,’ Tricia said.

She began to feel more relaxed about how everyone would react to her friendship with Cillian now that they might get close again.

That was partly the reason she had pulled away from him all those years ago.

She had been worried about the reaction to her dating Fred’s best friend.

But now she realised that the girls wouldn’t be upset – they’d be happy to meet him and talk about Fred.

‘You can meet him at the engagement party,’ she said. ‘Sylvia already invited him.’

‘That would be brilliant.’ Lily turned to Dominic. ‘Go and see what the kids are up to. They’re taking too long washing their hands.’

‘You’re right.’ Dom pushed the document across the table at Tricia. ‘Those figures and the work listed are all fine. I take it Ted has already started?’

Tricia nodded. ‘Yes. He said he couldn’t wait to begin so I gave him the go-ahead. I’ve never seen builders work so fast.’

‘Ted loves his work,’ Lily said when Dominic had walked out of the room.

‘I think it’s helped him get over his wife’s death.

When he retired, they had all these plans to travel and do things together.

But then she got sick and died soon afterwards.

That was four years ago, I think. I’d say he was lonely so he started working again but at his own pace.

He only works on projects he loves, so you were lucky to get him. ’

Tricia got up to lay the table. ‘That’s a sad story. Must have been hard to have had all those plans with his wife that came to nothing.’

‘Yes, I’d say it was.’ Lily pulled open a drawer. ‘The cutlery is in here, Mum. And the glasses are in the cupboard over the sink. I’ll pile everything onto the plates and we use paper napkins which are in the little shelf over there by the window.’

‘Okay.’ Tricia found the items and put them on the table. ‘I’d better remember where everything is if I’m to help you out on a regular basis.’

‘I’d be happy with any kind of help.’

Then Naomi ran into the room, dressed in pyjamas. ‘Granny Tricia,’ she shouted and jumped into Tricia’s arms.

Tricia laughed and hugged her granddaughter, who, at seven years of age, was promising to grow as tall and willowy as her grandmother. ‘Hello, Naomi. How come you’re already in your jammies?’

‘We got wet in the bathroom,’ Naomi said with a delicious giggle. ‘So Daddy thought we should get into our jammies instead of clothes. Why are you here again, Granny? Are you going to mind us tonight? Are Mummy and Daddy going on a date again?’

‘No, I’m just having dinner with you and talking about my cottage with your daddy,’ Tricia replied. ‘And I wanted to get out of Vi and Jack’s hair for a bit. They need to be alone and talk about the wedding.’

‘Why were you in their hair?’ Naomi asked. ‘Were you giving them haircuts? Are you going to get a new dress for Great-gran’s party?’ she asked in nearly the same breath. ‘Mummy said it’s a twenties party. Is that because everyone there will be in their twenties?’

‘Not quite.’ Tricia took Naomi by the hand. ‘Come and sit down and have your dinner and I’ll tell you all about it. Where’s your daddy and Liam?’

‘Here.’ Dominic entered the kitchen carrying Liam, who was dressed in a pyjamas with the Superman logo on the front. Not only that, he was also wearing a snorkel and mask and flippers on his feet. ‘He was diving in the bathtub. That’s how they both got so wet.’

‘I was trying to get him out,’ Naomi explained. ‘It’s dangerous to play in the bath all alone when you’re only four.’

‘It’s not dangerous when you have a snorkel,’ Liam said through the mouthpiece.

‘Dom,’ Lily chided. ‘I told you not to let him play with your snorkelling gear.’

‘I didn’t know he was going to use it in the bathtub,’ Dom argued.

‘I was practising,’ Liam said. ‘I want to dive like the men on the boat. They’re looking for a pirate ship out in the water.’

‘What men?’ Tricia asked. ‘Where did you see them?’

Liam took off his mask and snorkel. ‘In the bay when I was walking on Great-gran’s little beach with Daddy yesterday. They were in a rubber boat that went very fast. Whoosh and they were gone.’

Lily put plates with spaghetti and meatballs on the table. ‘Whoosh to the table and have your dinner, Liam.’

‘Pasghetti, yum,’ Liam shouted, wrenching off his flippers and wriggling out of Dominic’s arms. He proceeded to run to his place and started slurping spaghetti into his mouth at an impressive speed.

Naomi rolled her eyes and sighed theatrically. ‘No manners at all.’ She sat down and picked up her fork. ‘Come on, Granny, get it while it’s hot.’

They all laughed and joined the children at the table. Tricia smiled at Liam and thought about what he had just said. ‘What was that about a pirate ship?’ she asked Dominic.

‘Just a story we made up,’ Dom replied when he had finished a bite of meatball and spaghetti. ‘There’s no pirate ship. I think they were taking samples of some kind from the bottom of the bay.’

‘Did they really have snorkels?’ Lily asked.

‘I’m not sure,’ Dom said. ‘They were too far away for us to see them properly. But I did think it was strange that they were so far out. If they were taking samples or studying marine life, wouldn’t they be closer to the shore?’

‘Who are they working for, anyway?’ Lily asked. ‘The Department of the Environment?’

Dom helped himself to water from the jug. ‘Or maybe some private company? Could they be looking for something else, though? Like mineral deposits? You never know what hides deep down on the ocean floor.’

‘I’m going to ask around,’ Lily said. ‘People coming to my garden café might know. Nothing stays secret in this town. Mum, why don’t you come and have a coffee there tomorrow? You’re bound to meet some old friends there. It’s getting to be a real hot spot.’

‘It’s the in place in town in the summer,’ Dom said. ‘A great place to find out what’s going on in town.’

‘I’d love to,’ Tricia said. ‘I’ll pop over when I’m back from town. Vi and I are going to the vintage shop to see if we can find an outfit for the party. It’s only two days away.’

‘I know.’ Lily sighed and pushed away her plate. ‘Granny’s going bananas. She pretends to be all cool and collected. But she’s really up to ninety about it.’

‘Why is she going bananas?’ Naomi wanted to know. ‘I want to go and see that. I’ve never seen anyone going bananas.’

‘It’s just a way of saying someone is really stressed,’ Lily explained. ‘There are no bananas involved.’

‘Oh.’ Naomi went back to hoovering up spaghetti from her plate.

Tricia smiled at her granddaughter, thinking how smart and cute she was, and then her thoughts drifted to Cillian and their new friendship that could become something a lot more in time.

She didn’t want anyone to know, it was too soon and too new.

In any case, if it ended as soon as it had started, it would have been good not to share it with anyone.

But how lovely it was to sit here at the table having dinner with this young family who she loved so much.

She wanted Cillian to get to know them so he could talk about Fred and their student days together.

It would be lovely for the children to find out what their grandfather had been like as a young man, before he had met Tricia and had a family.

That was a little part of Fred that she couldn’t share with them.

Then Lily’s words drifted into her thoughts.

Nothing stays secret in this town.

She hadn’t heard anything from Terence or her solicitors since she’d arrived.

But her time was running out. She needed to find out if she could sell the drawings.

She needed to get into the Magnolia archives to see if the little boy whose drawings had been put in the old wardrobe was someone famous.

Or perhaps use this trip to the café to at least find out any clues as to who used to live in the cottage.