Page 46 of A Merry Irish Christmas
‘All right, all right. I’ll be there. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.’
Mary suspected his capitulation had less to do with Aifric’s powers of persuasion than the fear of being outdone in the macho stakes by Owen and Evan. Ryan was fiercely competitive.
‘It’s a shame Abbie’s not here, though,’ he said to Mary. ‘It would have been good to see her.’
‘Yeah, I’d have liked to see her too.’
‘She seems to be enjoying New York anyway,’ Ryan said, a slight question in his voice.
Was he still hoping Abbie would change her mind about moving to LA to be with him? Did he still want that? ‘They’re having a great time,’ Mary said. ‘But you know her heart really lies here, in Dingle,’ she added gently. She thought it’d be kinder not to let him get his hopes up.
‘Yeah, I know. How’s business, Aifric?’ he asked, turning his attention to her.
‘Great! Our Star Wars tours are still really popular. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.’
‘So how’s life treating you in LA, Ryan?’ Katie asked, leaning forward to talk to him across the table. ‘If you’ve got room in your suitcase going back…’ She wiggled her eyebrows.
The girl was incorrigible! As Ryan’s attention was pulled away by Katie, Mary tuned in to the conversation Owen and Evan were having.
‘Cold water swimming at this time of year can be a shock to the system,’ Owen was saying, ‘especially when you’re not used to it. You don’t want to drink too much tonight.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘I wouldn’t have any more, if I were you.’
‘Oh, okay.’ Evan put his glass down on the table.
‘I didn’t mean you can’t finish your pint,’ Owen said. ‘Just maybe don’t have another one.’
Mary smiled. Owen appreciated people listening to his advice, and she could tell he was pleased that Evan was taking him seriously.
Mary felt a warm glow as the conversation flowed around her. She was proud of the way her friends welcomed Evan and treated him like anyone else, showing a genuine interest, but only asking him the sort of questions about himself that they’d ask any new person they’d just met. Evan had quickly relaxed in their company and once he opened up, she loved how friendly and gregarious he was, chatting easily with everyone. She was grateful too that people were as cool as she’d told him they’d be and no one in the pub had bothered Evan or even acknowledged they were aware of him, apart from an occasional quick glance in his direction.
Mary didn’t want to drink too much and end up with a hangover in the morning, but she was enjoying herself too much to call it a night, so after a couple of glasses of wine, she switched to sparkling water. Mindful of Owen’s advice, Evan was already on non-alcoholic beer. The evening passed in a blur of chat andlaughter, and it was almost closing time when she and Evan said their goodbyes and left, with Owen promising to follow shortly and bring over swimwear for Evan.
True to his word, they’d only been back at the house for ten minutes when Owen called over with a selection of swim trunks for Evan to choose from. ‘I’ll just leave them here, and you can take whatever you want,’ he said, tossing several plastic-wrapped packages onto the coffee table. ‘Though you can still have a wetsuit if you want. No judgement. There’s no shame in it.’
‘Well, you may not judge me, but I think I’d be ashamed of myself.’
‘I mean it. This isn’t about being macho. Whatever you’re comfortable with.’
‘I’m sure I can handle it. Honestly.’
‘Okay, grand. I’ll just go over a few safety instructions with you, then. I’m sure Mary could tell you everything you need to know, but since it’s my responsibility, I wouldn’t be happy if I hadn’t done it personally.’
‘Cup of tea, Owen?’ Mary asked, waving him to the sofa.
‘That’d be great. Thanks, Mary.’
She went into the kitchen and made tea. When she came back with three mugs on a tray, Owen was still briefing Evan about what to expect on the day.
‘Do you have a hat?’ he asked.
‘Like… a swim cap?’
Owen shook his head. ‘Like a wool hat. Something to keep you warm.’
‘Oh! Yes, I have a beanie. But… I don’t think it’d be great in the water.’
‘It’s for afterwards. You want to get warm as quickly as possible when you come out of the water. Most heat loss is through the head, so you want to get dressed from the top down. Get your hat on first.’
‘Okay.’
