Meanwhile, at our table, Auntie Dolores was on her feet, trying to pull her husband out to dance. He batted her away. ‘Stop. No.’
‘Daithí, please dance with me.’
‘I don’t want to.’
Red with humiliation, she sat down and lunged for her glass. Next thing, Luke was out of his chair and extending his hand. ‘Come on, Dolores, why don’t you and me show them how it’s done?’
‘You mean …？’ Dolores’s face lit up. ‘Right, let’s go!’
As soon as Luke led her out into the middle of the dance floor, there were a few ribald whistles. Suddenly, a small knot of aunties, cursed with refusenik husbands, were alert and interested. When Dolores rotated to face them and Luke couldn’t see what she was at, she flapped her tongue towards her chin in a suggestive manner.
Mum had spotted them! Still waltzing with Dad, she covered a huge amount of ground at great speed and muscled in, fobbing Dolores off on Dad and sailing away with Luke.
‘I’m next,’ I heard Auntie Peggy say, smoothing down her dress and advancing with conviction.
Out of nowhere, several aunties and cousins – even those with dancing husbands – were forming an impromptu line. ‘Thirty seconds,’ a voice said. ‘Everyone gets thirty seconds!’ There seemed to be an accord and when the time was up, they ousted their predecessor, sliding into Luke’s arms, to take their place.
Auntie Dolores returned to our table, drained her glass in one grateful swig and looked around, desperately searching for a waitress.
I stood up. ‘I’ll get you a drink.’ Then I’d check on Claire and leave, I decided. Nothing was going to happen with Luke, I was delusional to have hoped that it might. ‘What would you like?’
‘Large brandy,’ she said. ‘A settler. Although I don’t know if I’ll ever be right again.’
Cutting across the dance floor, en route to the bar, Luke lunged into my path. ‘Two seconds, Imelda,’ he said, over his shoulder. Then to me, ‘When do I get to dance with you?’
Miserably, I flicked a glance at the impatient queue. ‘Ha!’ I forced a laugh. ‘They’d eat me alive.’
‘Rachel,’ he said, softly. ‘Dance with me.’
My mouth went dry.
He was suddenly extremely still, his dark eyes on mine. ‘That text the other day? It was for you. I lost my nerve.’
My lips formed a silent ‘Oh’。
‘The only woman I want to dance with,’ he said, ‘is you.’
For a long moment, I searched his face. He was so very serious about this.
‘Not here,’ I said, and surrendered him to Imelda.
Ten minutes later he cornered me.
I was back at the table, desperately trying to concentrate on a conversation with Angelo when Luke materialized on the chair beside mine. One second he wasn’t there, the next he was. When I saw him, I jumped.
Intent on me, he asked. ‘Where, then?’
‘Luke, I shouldn’t have said –’
‘Where?’
Silently, I shook my head.
He stared at me.
I took a ragged breath. ‘My house. Come home with me. Just for tonight.’
He nodded, his face giving nothing away. ‘Thank you.’
Drive safely, I reminded myself, again. Drive safely.
Out in the countryside the roads were narrow and dark. The headlight of Luke’s bike, directly behind my car, lit my way.
We were the only two vehicles on the road.
It felt like the only two vehicles in the world.
I thought about Quin, of course I did. He would be very hurt and we might not survive, but there was an inevitability to this. It wasn’t exactly about desire, at least not for me, it was about saying a final goodbye.
And Kallie? No, I couldn’t do this to myself. Kallie wasn’t my responsibility.
The houses around mine were in darkness, everyone in bed, asleep. I watched Luke get off his bike. Even in the dark, he was unmistakeable. As he approached, I felt as if I were dreaming.
Then, suddenly, I landed back in my body. This was real.
By the circle of light thrown by the porch lamp, he hesitated. ‘Rachel, what is this?’
‘I don’t know. Yet. Do you?’
‘No. But it’s not nothing.’
My relief was brief. ‘Luke, what about Kallie?’
He took a breath. ‘What about Quin?’
Warily we watched each other and came to an unspoken agreement: this wasn’t something to be proud of but we knew what we were doing.