Page 122 of The Last Saturday In July
The headlines and photos were nothing compared with what had followed, as people took to social media.
From what Jess could see, most divided into two camps:Team BrandiorTeam Chelsea, although a sizeable minority, mainly men, were definitelyTeam Leo.Celebrity WeddingandLinford Cursehad still been trending, by the time Jess had crawled into bed in her parents’ house later that night.
Now she pulled her gaze away from the garden and looked up at her mother. ‘Kate’s here now? In the hall?’
‘I’ll tell her you’re not up to seeing anyone, will I?’
‘No, Mam, it’s fine.’
Her mother seemed to have aged overnight.
Jess got up and crossed the room, drawing her into a hug. ‘I’m so sorry for everything,’ she whispered. ‘What I’ve put you and Dad through.’
‘Ah, love.’ Carmel’s voice cracked. ‘We just want you to be happy.’ She pulled back, her eyes watery as she searched Jess’s face. ‘We thought you were, you and Simon.’
‘We were happy enough.’ Jess squared her shoulders. ‘But he deserves better. I’m not the right person for him.’ Before her mother could reply, she hurried on. ‘I’ll see Kate. Please don’t worry, Mam. This is the first really right thing I’ve done in ages.’
‘If you’re sure, love.’ Carmel went to the door. ‘Kate, come in, I was about to make tea.’
Jess and Kate waited until they heard her go downstairs to the basement, Kate hovering just inside the door, twisting her mother’s ring around her finger.
‘I came to see how you are.’
Jess wandered back over to the sofa and sat down again, pulling her legs up under her.
‘Surprisingly okay.’ She looked at Kate. ‘You were right.’ Despite everything, she couldn’t help grinning at Kate’s stricken expression. ‘I know you’d never say I told you so. But I’m glad you were there yesterday. You and Zoe never left my side.’
Looking slightly relieved, Kate came in and sat down beside her on the sofa.
‘Going ahead with the meal took a lot of courage.’
Jess picked at a loose thread on the sofa. ‘Simon thought it was better to face everyone together and get it over with. Good thing we scrapped the table plan, though.’ She grimaced. ‘We certainly weren’t stuck for space. I don’t think everyone came back to the hotel.’
Kate reached over and lightly touched Jess’s arm. ‘Hey, the people that mattered were there. To be honest, once everyone got a bit of drink into them, it was grand. Even Úna and Edward were all right about it.’
Jess gave a tired laugh. The thread on the sofa came away, and she met Kate’s eyes. ‘You love Simon.’
Colour flashed to Kate’s cheeks. ‘Jess, this isn’t the right time.’
‘Why not?’ She noticed Kate’s discomfort and spoke quickly. ‘I don’t blame you for anything, what happened yesterday was about me and Simon. But I need to know he’ll be happy.’
Kate seemed to be studying her hands. ‘I think I’ve always loved him, but I didn’t realise it.’ She looked up, her face red. ‘Honestly, Jess, that’s the truth.’
Jess gave a small smile. ‘I believe you.’
Kate twisted her ring. ‘After your hen weekend, I started to get the feeling that you didn’t. I mean, obviously I didn’t know what had happened. But I couldn’t pretend, not when I could see there was something really wrong.’
Jess took a moment to absorb Kate’s words. She’d tried to pretend her one-night stand had meant nothing, but even if she’d never met Adam again, the damage had been done. She should have seen it for what it was: a massive red flag. ‘What about David? Why did you go out with him?’
Kate shrugged. ‘Because he’s a nice guy and I thought if we tried, there might be a spark.’
‘But there wasn’t.’
‘No.’ Kate spoke slowly. ‘I think we both knew after a couple of dates.’
‘Do you think he knew how you felt about Simon?’
‘I think he guessed.’ Kate gave a shaky laugh. ‘I think he knew before I did.’
