Intentions - SF9 (9 page)

"Mom! We're leaving!" Jamie was standing at the bottom of the stairs, her bag already over her shoulder.

"Let me come kiss you both goodbye," the smaller woman called out, as she scampered down the stairs. "I don't know how you two can get ready so quickly in the morning!"

"It's not hard when you're just slipping on a warm-up suit," Ryan smiled, indicating her Cal Volleyball outfit.

"You look marvelous in everything you put on, Ryan O'Flaherty, so don't even try to get away with that," Catherine scoffed, patting her daughter-in-law's cheek. "What time should I be there, girls?"

"Well, Annie suggested two o'clock, so any time around then is fine," Ryan said. "Remember, Catherine, no presents."

"I understood your edict, Ryan," Catherine laughed. "That doesn't mean that I didn't try to circumvent it-but I understood it."

On the long drive home Jamie turned sideways in her seat and said, "We've been so busy I haven't had time to compare our portfolios for a while. How are you doing, Buffy?"

"Just fine," Ryan smirked.

"That's all I get?" the blonde asked incredulously. "You know exactly how I'm doing!"

"That's because I'm the accountant," Ryan reminded her, a smug smile covering her features. "You didn't request full disclosure when we made the bet."

"Well, I'm requesting it now," Jamie said, a little miffed that she had to beg for information.

"It's gonna cost ya," Ryan said, shaking her head sadly.

"Cost me? What do you mean, it's gonna cost me!"

"When you change the rules, you have to pay, Sweetheart," she explained with a patient tone. "Lord, you missed out on a lot, not having siblings."

"Fine," the smaller woman groused, turning her body to face forward. "What will it cost me?"

"We don't really have a specific bet," Ryan reminded her. "It was just who did a better job picking stocks. For full disclosure I think I want…I think I want you to buy me five shares of my favorite stock."

"You make it sound like you're a sure-fire winner," Jamie grumbled, narrowing her eyes a bit.

"Well, it pays to be confident," Ryan informed her. "Besides, I am the sure-fire winner. Simple fact, ma'am."

"Okay, Alan Greenspan, tell me exactly how you're doing." Jamie's lips were pursed tightly and Ryan knew she was really getting to her…to her extreme pleasure.

"I'm up $110,000," Ryan said, both eyebrows popping a few times to emphasize her superiority.

Only Ryan's excellent hearing allowed her to pick up the mumbled "shit" that her partner spat out through her clenched teeth.
And she says
I'm
the competitive one
, the dark woman chuckled to herself.

Caitlin's first birthday party was in full swing when Catherine arrived at 2:05. "My goodness," she said, after kissing Jamie and Ryan, "Jamie warned me to come on time-Did everyone else just get here?"

"Nope. Most of my family likes to come an hour or so early, just in case," Ryan laughed. "Just remember that you can't ever be too early for an O'Flaherty event."

The baby spied her good friend at the door and flew over to her, her body leaning forward, arms out at her sides, a slightly goofy look on her face. She had been walking unaided for just a few days, and she still hit the ground as often as she remained upright, but she was getting better day by day.

"Oh my goodness!" Catherine said, picking her up and cradling her in a gentle hug. "You weren't walking last night!"

"She had the concept down yesterday, but she was in the pool all night and didn't really get the opportunity," Ryan laughed.

"Yeah, and one of us was carrying her the entire time we were at Stanford," Jamie added.

"Well, it's a fantastic accomplishment, Caitlin. You should be very proud of yourself." Catherine tickled the exposed tummy, causing the baby to shriek with laughter and wait for her to do it again.

Catherine made the rounds, smiling broadly as every member of the family greeted her like a long-long cousin, even though nearly every one of them had been at her home just the day before. By the time she finished her hellos she was parched and went into the kitchen for a glass of something cold to drink.

Maeve was in the kitchen and she greeted Catherine warmly, inviting her to sit for a spell while she finished the last preparations for the barbeque.

"So, what is the news on the wedding front?" Catherine asked.

"Well, not much there, I'm afraid. I think we've worked out an arrangement with Niall so that we could move into his little house sometime near the end of January."

"Oh my, that's quite a long time," Catherine said. "What's the problem?"

"He doesn't have all of his appliances in the kitchen yet, and he can't finish the bathroom until a certain tub enclosure comes in. Then it all has to pass inspection. He thinks it might be ready by early January, but I'm not counting on it."

Catherine gave her a sympathetic look, seeing the disappointment in her new friend's eyes. "That gives us time to start planning something nice," she said brightly.

"Oh, I don't know, Catherine," Maeve said, a worried frown on her face. "We'll have so many expenses. We'll have to buy a whole house full of furniture-Niall has absolutely nothing in the place, and we don't want our children to have to bear that expense if we take our things with us. I'm afraid we won't have much to spend on the wedding."

"What was your first wedding like?" Catherine asked. "Were you married here?"

"Oh, yes," she said. "It was a simple little affair. Just the two of us, and my husband's brother and sister-in-law standing up for us. We didn't have the money for a real church service, so we had the ceremony in a little chapel in the rectory. It was fine," she said, sparing a sad smile.

"Your family wasn't able to attend?" Catherine was quite shocked at the sparsely attended service.

"Oh, my, no! My sister Fionnuala was saving every little bit of money she could to be able to emigrate, my younger sister was still in secondary school, and our brother was younger still. My parents were not very happy with me getting married so soon anyway, and even if they had approved, they never could have spent that kind of money on a trip. No, it wasn't the kind of wedding that a girl dreams of, but one can't have everything in life."

"What do you think you and Martin will do?" Catherine queried.

"Well, we'll need the church this time-just for all of the relatives," she laughed. "I suppose we'll have tea and cake in the auditorium afterwards. It's not really important," she insisted. "All that matters is that I'll have my Martin."

Catherine rose from her seat and placed her hands on Maeve's shoulders, smiling a little when she realized that they were the same height. "It does matter, Maeve. Every woman should remember her wedding day fondly. Tea and cake is fine, but it's not enough for a special day. Let me help."

She said this with such determination that Maeve heard herself asking, "How?"

"Let me host a reception for you and Martin. I have a cook who longs to cater a big party, and enough china and silver to serve a small army. I would be forever grateful if you let me give you this gift."

"Oh, Catherine, that's too generous of you! We couldn't impose like that!"

"Why do you and Martin keep saying that?" she responded with a note of frustration. "Either I'm a member of this family, or I'm not! I see how the whole family pitches in to fix Niall's home, I see how you accept his home as your own, why refuse such a simple offering from me?"

Maeve pursed her lips and made a decision. "Why indeed?" she repeated, noddingher head. "I accept-with one proviso. You have to allow us to pay for the food."

Catherine narrowed her eyes and made a counter offer. "Only if I can pay for the liquor."
And the flowers
, she said to herself.

Maeve grimaced, knowing that she had been outflanked. Sighing heavily, she smiled and gave Catherine a warm hug. "It's a deal," she whispered. "Nothing too fancy, now. We're simple people."

"I promise to hide the caviar spoons and the paté forks," Catherine laughed, already planning the menu in her head.

"Now I just need to find a dress, make the arrangements with Father Pender, and tell my parents…in that order."

"Will this not be happy news?" Catherine asked solicitously.

Maeve sighed and said, "They were never happy with Martin, to be honest. Even though we were poorer than church mice, Mam had great plans for Fionnuala. She was very talented musically, you know. Great promise. But she wanted to come to the States, and once she met Martin-well, you know how it is," she laughed.

"Your sister didn't regret her choice, did she?" Catherine asked as tactfully as possible.

"Oh, my, no! She was completely happy, Catherine. She loved Martin and the children with every bit of her heart. She was very much like
Siobhan
that way. Her heart was as big as the North Sea. No, she was a very happy woman. It's Mam who never warmed up to Martin. Part of it was distance. She only met him twice--once, not long after they married, and the second time at my sister's funeral. Not the best time to make a good impression," she admitted. "Mam has always had the unreasonable notion that Fi would still be with us if she hadn't come to the States. She seems to think that we're surrounded by all sorts of carcinogens that they don't have in Ireland." She shook her head and rolled her eyes a little, amused as well as dismayed by her mother's beliefs.

"Will she be upset that you've chosen Martin, too?"

"Yes, she will. Distance wasn't the only problem," Maeve admitted. "The children spent a lot of time in Ireland, and Martin and my mother each have strongly held views on child-rearing. At one point they had a terrible row, and I'm quite certain that Mam has never forgiven him for it." Shaking her head again Maeve said, "I'll be 57 years old this year, Catherine, but I still hate to think of making my mother angry with me."

"Will you tell her by letter?" Catherine asked.

"I have to. It would cost five hundred dollars for a ticket right now. We could buy a new sofa for that kind of money."

You can?
Catherine mentally gaped, but politely held her tongue. "It's September, right?"

"Right," Maeve said cautiously.

"I have enough miles for three first-class airline tickets to anywhere in Europe, but they expire at the end of the year. I'm certain that I won't use them, so will you use one of them to tell your mother and father in person?"

"Oh, Catherine," she cried, for the second time in the day. "Those are yours! You should use them! You could take the girls on a nice trip."

Catherine gave her a look and said, "I have a hard time getting both of them in one place for dinner. Jamie could get away around Christmas, but Ryan starts basketball as soon as volleyball is over. There is no way that she will get any time off."

"What about your husband? Couldn't he…?" Maeve began, but stopped abruptly when she saw the look in Catherine's eyes. "Is something wrong?"

"We've separated, Maeve. He left for Washington on Friday. I won't be joining him."

"Oh, Catherine, I'm so sorry to hear that. We saw him on the television just the other night…he's such a nice looking man. He looks quite a bit like Jamie, doesn't he?"

"Yes, he does," she agreed, smiling sadly. "Nonetheless, we won't be traveling together in the near future. If you don't want these I'll give them to Stanford to use, but I would prefer that you take them."

"All right," she said, giving her another generous hug. "It would mean a lot to my mother, and I would love to see my father again. I truly miss him."

"Thank you, Maeve, for treating me like a member of the family. You've made my day!"

The party raged on for the better part of the afternoon, so many people jammed into the small house that it seemed like the walls would bow. Jamie tried to catch her mother's eye several times, but for nearly 45 minutes the woman was engaged in a rather serious-looking discussion with Tommy and Annie in a relatively private corner. Finally, at around six o'clock, Catherine came breezing over, saying, "I wish I could stay a little longer, but I'm exhausted! Being around you energetic people for a whole weekend has worn me out!"

"Well, you still look marvelous, Catherine," Ryan said, taking a long look at her fashionable mother-in-law.

"We had a great time, Mom. As soon as we have a spare weekend, we'll do it again."

"I know that will be a while, Dear, but I'm happy with whatever time you can spare. I promise not to be one of the cloying mothers that tries to make you feel guilty for having your own life."

"Once again, I thank God for giving me the most wonderful woman in the world and her equally wonderful mother," Ryan said, giving both women one of her patented beaming grins.

"See you both soon," Catherine said as she kissed them both and bade a quick farewell to the others.

As she left, Jamie spared another glance back at Tommy and Annie, who were both sitting right where they had been when her mother was speaking to them. "Ryan, they don't look well," she said, with a note of worry in her voice.

"No, they certainly don't," Ryan agreed. She strode over to the couple and sat down, placing a hand on Annie's knee. "Are you two okay?"