She’d only got a few feet away when she stopped, turned… ‘Oh and by the way…’ She nodded back over to the table where Ailish, Gwen and Rhonda were deep in conversation with his mate, Brodie, who’d known them almost as long as Carlo had. ‘I always thought you had a thing for her too. You should go tell her. You’ve got nothing to lose, and what’s the worst that can happen?’
28
MINNIE
Minnie was barely aware of the revelry and the happy buzz of the guests at the tables around her, too engrossed in her conversation with Gino. She’d been waiting for the right time to tell him why she was here, but she hadn’t quite got to that yet because they’d had so much to talk about.
As soon as he’d spotted her being seated at her usual table, he’d come straight to her side, and as she’d stood up, he’d wrapped her in the warmest embrace. ‘Ah Minnie, my friend.’ That was all he’d managed before his voice cracked, and Minnie understood. Gino was just like her Henry in so many ways. Neither of them showed vulnerability – probably a generational thing, she’d always thought – so when they got emotional, they would hold back, pause, wait until they’d composed themselves before going on.
‘Sit, sit, please,’ he’d beckoned, before gesturing to the seat opposite her.
She took in his appearance, not to judge, but to get an indication of how he was doing. On the surface of it, as always, he gave the appearance of a very dapper gent, with his beautifully cut suit and his silk cravat. But closer scrutiny hintedat a different story. He’d lost weight and his cheeks were a little sunken, his eyes were heavy with tiredness, the shadows under them as grey as rainclouds. He wasn’t tall but he’d always given the impression of size, his huge personality filling every room. Today, he seemed smaller. Almost shrunken. And she could see that there were a couple of creases in his suit that must have been missed when it was pressed. Alicia would never have let him out of the house like that. Whether they were rich or poor, she’d always insisted that Gino and the boys were impeccably dressed.
‘Have you come with a friend?’ he’d asked warmly.
‘No, Gino,’ she’d responded, and she was sure she’d seen a flicker of relief on his face. ‘I’ve just come to see you.’ It would be difficult to talk properly if she’d brought a stranger with her. Only two people truly understood the history of their friendship, and they were both here now.
‘Then it would be my pleasure to eat with you,’ he’d said, to her surprise. Gino rarely sat down on Hogmanay. Just another thing that was different this year. ‘Let me get you a drink. A sherry, I think?’ he’d offered.
‘That would be lovely, thank you.’
He’d glanced around, but all of the waiting staff were busy, and he’d never been known for his patience. The next thing she knew, he was on his feet and on his way to the bar to pour the drinks himself. She’d been watching him, thinking that she’d seen him do that very same thing a million times before, when she noticed that Ailish, Gwen and Rhonda had arrived, and were about to pass her on the way to their table. What a lovely surprise that was and, of course, Ailish had spotted her immediately. Although, Minnie had almost had to look twice because her daughter-in-law was simply ravishing. What a fool that son of hers had been. Not that appearances were everything, mind you, but they already knew how beautiful Ailish was on theinside too. The fact that she still took such lovely care of Minnie, even after everything that had happened, said so much about her character.
When the girls had gone off to their table, she and Gino had ordered their meals, then nursed their sherries. There was so much to say to him, that Minnie wasn’t sure where to start, so she’d decided to go back to the beginning of the year and work forward from there.
‘Thank you for coming to Henry’s funeral. That would have meant so much to him, Gino.’ For every moment of that day, Minnie had wondered what Henry would have been thinking of those who came to pay their respects. The sight of Gino would have pleased him. The sight of Eric, sitting with his girlfriend on one side of the aisle, and Ailish and Emmy on the other side, would have bitterly disappointed him. Like her, Henry had loved Ailish like a daughter, and Emmy had been the apple of his eye.
‘I wouldn’t have missed it. I’m only sorry that…’ She’d seen that he was suddenly emotional again and struggling for the words. ‘I’m sorry that I didn’t come to see you again since then.’
Minnie had reached over and put her hand on one of his. ‘You’ve had your own grief to deal with, without adding on mine.’ Minnie and Henry had both been heartsore for him after he lost Alicia, because she was his very world.
‘You know, shortly after Alicia died, Henry came to my home,’ Gino had said. ‘And that was not how it was with us…’
Minnie knew what he was saying. The two families came together every Hogmanay, and perhaps a few other times in the year, but they weren’t in the habit of visiting each other’s homes. As far as she could remember, Gino had only been in their house that one time, decades ago, on the Hogmanay that they were all sick and hadn’t gone out. The Morettis had a restaurant to run, and the Ryans were busy working and bringing up children. And besides, it was a rare treat to go out to eat in those days. It wasonly in the last twenty years or so that Henry would suggest they go out for the occasional meal on a Friday night, and of course they always came here.
‘I was broken with sadness, and I had refused to spend time with anyone else since she passed. Not even my sons.’ Gino had gone on. ‘I’d decided that there was no point to life, if I couldn’t wake up every morning to see Alicia there. But Henry… That day, he reminded me that she was not my only love. There was my family. My restaurant. Henry talked to me long into the night, and we worked out a plan that I could live with. A small life. Nothing like the one that I’d lived with my wife, but at least I would be here to watch over my sons, to see my restaurant every day. The next week, I handed over everything to Dario, but I started coming here again when I was ready. Henry came to me when I needed him and I should have come to you.’
Minnie had shaken her head, then paused as their meals were served to them, before going on. ‘Please don’t feel guilty. We all handle grief in different ways.’ She knew that was true. ‘I keep Henry with me by talking to him all day long. I find a comfort in that. I’m sure his ears must be bleeding.’
That had made Gino laugh and they’d spent the next hour or so eating and chatting over old times.
Only now that their plates had been cleared, and a second round of sherries delivered, did she feel ready to share the reason she was here. She reached for the box that she’d put on the other chair beside her, tried to formulate the words, took a breath, when…
‘Gran!’ The interruption was sudden, abrupt, and brought with it a swift curl of her toes. Of course, when she’d bumped into Ailish she should have considered the possibility that word of her appearance here might get back to her granddaughter. The same granddaughter that she’d outright lied to and who was now standing here, eyebrows raised in question.
‘Would you believe me if I told you that I had a last-minute change of mind?’ Minnie asked tentatively.
‘No.’
Emmy must have noticed that Gino was watching the discussion with amusement, because she broke off from being outraged to reach down and give him a kiss and a hug. ‘Hello, Gino, it’s lovely to see you. I’ll be right back with you once I’ve got some answers from the runaway granny over here.’
His face creased with laughter and Minnie thought for the first time that he looked just a little bit like his old self.
‘I’m sorry, love,’ Minnie began. ‘But I had something I wanted to talk to Gino about so I decided to just come here myself.’
‘But why didn’t you say?’
‘Because I know the last time you were here was the night that ended your parents’ marriage, and I didn’t want to upset you or your mum by bringing it up.’ She glanced over to her right. ‘Although, your mother seems to be dealing with it very well at the moment.’ Emmy turned her head, so they could both see that Ailish was wiping away tears of laughter. ‘And while we’re on the subject of untruths, me and your grandad came here last year too, after we told you we were staying home.’ Minnie brought her gaze back to Gino. ‘I’m as well getting all the fibs off my chest when I’m already in trouble anyway.’
