If the Shoes Fit

by Pauline Lawless

  “He was a great man,” Bart said.

  “Aye, and a great friend,” Jeffrey added.

  Tessa felt loved and cared for as never before as the two men told hilarious tales of her dad’s fantastic life. They had all her friends in stitches and she felt that they came to know a little of the wonderful man that was her father. After many, many, drinks – she lost count – it was time for everyone to leave.

  Tessa was staying on in Galway as the reading of her father’s will was taking place the next day.

  “I suppose my stepmother will be there,” she remarked to Bart.

  “Without a doubt,” he replied. “But don’t you worry, little lady, Jeffrey and I will be there to look after you, as your father asked us.”

  This started her crying again.

  “Now, Carlo, I think it’s time you took the lady home,” Jeffrey said. “She’s had a tough day.”

  “I thought you’d never ask,” Carlo sighed dramatically and they all laughed.

  Hugging everyone goodbye she felt the tears flow again. “Oh, God, I’m becoming a real blubberer,” she said. What she didn’t realise was that all her friends had tears in their eyes also as they hugged her goodbye.

  On the way out Kate caught up with Amber. “Does she really not believe that guy is in love with her?” she asked.

  “She just doesn’t know it yet,” Amber replied, smiling with satisfaction, as she linked arms with Luke and headed towards the car.

  Rosie left the funeral and travelled on to Clare. She was very excited about the news she was going to spring on her family there. She’d had a quiet word with Carlo in the aftermath of the funeral and he’d said that he’d be delighted to have her start again in Clare. “And would you consider covering Limerick City?” he’d asked her. “It’s very close to Clare and I’d dearly like to have someone in there as soon as possible.” Would she ever!

  “We didn’t expect to see you so soon again,” her brother joked, as they all gathered in her sister’s house that evening. She was so excited telling them her news that she could hardly get the words out. The news that Gail and her family were also moving to Limerick was also a cause for celebration and they certainly knew how to do that in Clare, Rosie told Jack as she lay in bed that night, her feet aching from all the Clare sets that she’d danced.

  “Thank you for looking after me, love,” she whispered to the sky, as she turned the light out.

  Carlo had booked a luxury two-bedroom suite for them, in a hotel overlooking Galway Bay. When they got there, he sat her down on the luxurious sofa and poured her a brandy while he went and ran a bath for her in the sumptuous marble bathroom.

  “You look exhausted,” he said gently. “Go and have a long soak and I’ll order some food from room service for when you’re finished.”

  She gratefully accepted his suggestion. In the bath she lay back, letting the warm water soothe her as she reflected on the day. One hour later she emerged, wrapped in the cosy towelling bathrobe. Her hair was piled on top of her head and her face scrubbed clean and Carlo thought she looked more like sixteen than her thirty-six years.

  “Oh, that felt good,” she said, stretching.

  “You needed it,” he replied, happy at how easy and relaxed she felt with him.

  “Dinner,” he announced, as there was a knock on the door.

  When the waiter had left, Carlo lifted the silver domes from the plates to reveal a delicious meal of scallops, prawns and lobster.

  “Perfect,” she smiled at him as he poured her a glass of Chablis. The meal was delicious and when she was finished she sat back, feeling very sleepy. Within seconds, she was sound asleep. He smiled at her as she slumped on his shoulder. For all her sophistication, she was really just like a little girl. Gently lifting her, he carried her into her bed, surprised that she weighed so little for such a tall girl. He left her sleeping and went back into the living-room and poured himself a brandy.

  He was finally accepting that he loved this woman. She was beautiful both inside and out. He had been so proud of her today and how she had carried herself. It hurt him to think how devastated she was by her father’s death and her stepmother’s behaviour. He wanted to protect her and care for her, if she would have him.

  Going into bed, he fell into a restless sleep. He woke some time later aware of a noise in the living-room. Getting up to investigate, he found Tessa at the fridge, pouring a glass of milk.

  “I had a terrible nightmare,” she told him. “I had to get up to get over it.”

  Putting his arms around her, he said, gently, “Come to bed with me.”

  She took his hand and followed him meekly into his room. He slipped her robe from her shoulders and started kissing her face and then her neck. Within seconds they were on the bed, caressing and kissing each other, escaping from the world into each other. He was gentle and passionate with her and, just before she climaxed, he took her face in his hands and, looking into her eyes, said, “I love you, Tessa.”

  “I love you too,” she replied as she lost herself in the joy and pleasure that erupted in her being.

  Afterwards they lay spooned together, his arms around her as he buried his face in her silken hair. He loved the scents of her body, from the coconut of her hair to the musky smell of her skin. He felt that he would never get enough of her as he inhaled deeply.

  Tessa loved his strong body and felt safe and secure as she fell into a warm, dreamless sleep.

  They made love again the next morning, slowly and sensuously this time and she was amazed at how easy they were with each other. It felt like they’d been together forever. She was amazed to hear him say he loved her once more. It hadn’t been a dream after all, she told herself, smiling.

  They arrived at the solicitor’s office at the appointed time, to find Bart and Jeffrey waiting for her. They were joint executors of her father’s estate. There was no sign of her stepmother. They were ushered into the room and she asked that Carlo be allowed in also. He was holding tightly to her hand throughout, a fact not lost on Bart and Jeffrey, who winked at each other.

  They couldn’t start without Claudia who arrived, fashionably late, to the annoyance of everyone present. She was dressed in a bright red suit and accompanied by a very dapper younger man. She ignored Tessa.

  “Her mourning didn’t last long,” Bart muttered to Jeffrey.

  Carlo overheard and had to agree that the red was a touch tasteless. Tessa was wearing a black trouser suit over a white shirt and looked very businesslike.

  The elderly solicitor began and after outlining a few bequests by her father to some of the staff and both Bart and Jeffrey, he continued: “I leave the bulk of my estate, the land, the horses and the house to my beloved daughter, Tessa. I know she’ll take good care of them for me.”

  There was an audible gasp from everyone present, not least Tessa and Claudia.

  “He can’t do that!” her stepmother cried.

  “I’m afraid he can, and he just has,” the solicitor remarked coldly. “Pray, let me continue.”

  “To my wife, Claudia, I leave €1,000,000, our house in Barbados, where I know she would prefer to live, and an annuity of €25,000 a year, until such time as she may remarry.”

  “That won’t be long, I’m sure,” Jeffrey muttered to Bart. Luckily no one else heard.

  “That concludes proceedings,” the solicitor said, smiling at Tessa who sat looking dazed.

  “I’ll appeal,” Claudia cried shrilly, sweeping out of the room, her lackey chasing after her.

  “Can she do that?” Carlo asked.

  “She can try but she doesn’t have a leg to stand on. The land and house have been in Edward’s family for generations and he very wisely got her to sign a prenuptial agreement before their marriage. No, she won’t get far with an appeal.”

  “Well, I think this calls for a celebratory lunch,” Bart said.

  “This one’s on me,” Carlo said as he took Tessa’s hand. It was finally beginning to sink into
her brain that she was now the owner of Gloucester.

  Chapter 49

  It was back to business for the girls.

  “God, so much has happened to us all since the Christmas party,” Amber remarked to Tessa as they headed down to La Spa Therapie in Malahide the following Saturday. They had decided to treat themselves once a week to the fantastic treatments on offer and both of them were really enjoying it.

  They were having a girls-only weekend as Carlo had gone back to Rome and Luke was working the Los Angeles route.

  “Niamh had that dreadful accident, Rosie decided to decamp to Clare, you’ve found Carlo and I’ve found Luke,” she laughed.

  “We don’t hang around, do we?” Tessa grinned. “Not to mention Phoebe and Val getting the boot,” she added, making a face.

  “They bloody deserved it,” Amber said vehemently. She would never forgive Val for her part in Niamh’s accident.

  “And what about Lesley’s little fling with Pete and then finding Val having it off with her husband,” they both pealed with laughter at the vision. This little snippet had come to them via Grace’s brother Tim. They both found it hilarious.

  “Well, we’ve a lot more changes to come,” Tessa said, thoughtfully. “I really have to decide soon what I’m going to do with Gloucester.”

  “What do you want to do?” Amber asked her.

  “Well, seeing as how Dad has entrusted it to me, I really would like to keep it up and running,” she confided to Amber. “I love it there. I’m a country girl at heart.”

  “Have you discussed it with Carlo?” Amber wanted to know.

  “We’ve talked about nothing else for the past week.” Tessa blushed as she spoke. “He’s very keen for me to move there and, as he’s going to be working in Ireland for the foreseeable future, he could make it his base.”

  “Wow!” Amber cried. “That would be fantastic. I take it this is the real thing?” she teased.

  “Definitely.” Tessa blushed again. “Actually, he’s asked me to marry him,” she said, grinning from ear to ear.

  “I hope you said yes,” Amber said threateningly.

  “Of course,” Tessa laughed.

  “Oh my God!” Amber whirled her round in the middle of Malahide. “I bags to be chief bridesmaid!”

  “I’ll think about it,” Tessa said with a deadpan face.

  “Go on, you!” Amber punched her in the arm. “Just try and stop me!”

  Gosh, Amber thought – life was wonderful!

  Niamh agreed with Gavin that Sharon couldn’t possibly handle all the deliveries on her own. Now with half of Amber’s area and also half of Val’s, the business had really grown and it would take two people to run it. Gavin had turned out to have a very good business head, much to Niamh’s surprise. He was also great at doing the deliveries and all the girls were charmed by him. He loved it. As he said to his mates, “Meeting gorgeous women all day and delivering designer shoes to them – which makes them blissfully happy – what more could a guy ask for?” In fact, none of the women he met could hold a candle to his Niamh.

  They decided that hiring a van every week was proving too costly so when Andy said that he was trading in his Hyundai van for a larger one, Niamh jumped in and offered him €2,500 for it, which he accepted. He liked Niamh and thought she was very good for Gavin. And what a plucky little bird she was! The van was taxed up till the end of the year so they only had to pay the insurance – which she could claim off expenses, as well as the cost of the van.

  Gavin was in his element. It was only a van – but it had wheels! The first evening he went for a drive with the kids who were giddy with excitement at being so high up and sitting beside Dad.

  “Maybe you can come out and help me with deliveries someday,” he whispered to Ian, who puffed up with pride at the very idea.

  “Cool – but no girls,” he whispered back conspiratorially. “They couldn’t do deliveries.”

  “Definitely not, son,” Gavin replied with a wink. “It’s men’s work.”

  Ian beamed back at him and gave him a thumbs-up sign.

  Niamh had never been happier. They had taken the cast off her wrist which was a great relief, although she still had to keep it in a sling. It was her left wrist, thank God, so she could still use the computer with her right hand. The bandages were gone from her head and a little plaster covered the scar where her hair was now growing back, spiky-looking. She realised how lucky she’d been and thanked God every day.

  Rosie had put her house in Dun Laoghaire up for sale and was thrilled that a buyer materialised so quickly. She’d found an adorable little cottage in Clare, overlooking the Atlantic, and she put an offer in on it straight away. Within a month she was on her way to her new home. Mike and Gail were renting out their house and would be down in Limerick by Easter. Hugo wasn’t at all happy about this state of affairs but she didn’t care. She didn’t owe him anything. “We can get great practice now, emailing,” she’d told him but she figured that wasn’t quite what he had wanted.

  Tessa had moved back to Galway where she hoped to continue with her shoe business. Carlo reckoned that with the terrific staff her father had bequeathed to her she could run the stud farm and still keep her hand in with If the Shoes Fit, albeit in a small way. He wanted her on his team and needed her experience. She loved being back in the country taking up the reins where her father had left off and was also excited about the prospect of introducing the designer shoe business to Galway.

  On her way back there with Carlo she called in to Kate to collect Napoleon and Kilkenny. She was overjoyed to have them back with her again. She hadn’t realised just how much she’d missed them. Nap took to Carlo like a duck to water and she eventually had to order him to sit or he would have licked him to death.

  They planned to get married in April in Rome and Tessa went into overdrive planning it all. She’d been over there to do the photo-shoot for the advertising campaign and he’d introduced her to all his family that weekend. She’d had a wonderful time and they made her feel very welcome. They all loved her, not that it would have made any difference to Carlo. He loved her enough for them all.

  Amber had intended moving in with Luke but with Tessa gone they finally decided to move into Amber’s apartment and rent out Luke’s house.

  “It makes sense,” Amber told Tessa. “Malahide is closer to the airport for Luke and we won’t need to build another shoe-room,” she joked.

  “First thing I’m going to install in Gloucester,” Tessa informed her. “You’ve certainly set the bar for the rest of us where shoe-rooms are concerned!”

  Niamh really felt life couldn’t get any better when her mother arrived on the doorstep one morning with Carmel, the daughter of Mrs Flanagan, the owner of the house.

  “Hi, come in,” Niamh greeted her, putting on the kettle for tea.

  Eileen was practically jumping out of her skin with excitement and Niamh wondered what it was that had her so high. She soon found out.

  “Carmel has something exciting to tell you!” She couldn’t get the words out quick enough.

  Niamh looked at Carmel expectantly.

  “Well, you know Mam is in a retirement home,” Carmel started. “Well, the fact is, she loves it and wants to stay there . . . which means that the house will have to be sold.”

  Niamh drew in her breath.

  “However, Mam is adamant that she wants the house to go to someone who will love it and be as happy here as she was for fifty years. So, if you’re interested in buying it, we’ll be happy to sell it at a very good price.”

  Niamh thought she might faint. Was this really happening? Was her dream about to come true?

  “Wow!” she said, sitting down. “This is so sudden. Gosh, we would love nothing more than to be able to buy this house. We’re so happy here!”

  Eileen stood by, beaming and nodding her head.

  Carmel then told her the price her mother would be willing to sell for which seemed very fair to Niamh. She couldn
’t wait to tell Gav and also to get to the bank and talk to Mr Shannon.

  Niamh had great hopes that the bank manager would keep his promise to her. He’d sent a bouquet of flowers to her when she was in hospital which all her friends told her was unheard of. The fact that she’d expanded her area and that Gav was now in the business with her should surely count for something. She needn’t have worried. Mr Shannon knew a good thing when he saw it and Niamh’s accomplish-ments had impressed him greatly. He was delighted to be able to help her out and surprisingly that husband of hers had turned out to be not a bad sort after all. He had no compunction about giving her the small mortgage she asked for in the sure knowledge that she would pay it back in jig time.

  So it was that one month later, Niamh and Gavin held the keys to the first home of their own. They held a big party and invited all their friends and family, with the exception of Val. Niamh felt a bit bad about that but it was Val’s own doing. As Gav kept saying, “You could have been killed, babe, and then how would the kids and I have kept going?” She had to agree with him there. The girls were all there and Niamh was delighted to see Carlo and Luke, both obviously in love as they never left Tessa and Amber’s sides all night. Rosie had travelled all the way from Clare and was glowing from the fresh Atlantic air. She already had twice the representatives that she’d had in Dublin. As she told them, “The women of Limerick just can’t get enough of our shoes and bags!”

  “I’m bloody delighted she moved,” said Carlo, making them all laugh.

  “Spoken like a true Irishman,” Amber cried. “God, Tessa, it didn’t take you long to educate him in our language!”

  They all parted company looking forward to their next meeting, which was for Tessa’s hen party and after that the trip to Rome, for which they’d all qualified, followed by Tessa’s wedding there. Amber, Niamh and Rosie were all going to be bridesmaids as well as Kate from Ballyfern.