Some Girls Do

Chapter Twenty-five




When Luca woke early the next morning, Claire was still sleeping soundly in his arms, her head nestled into the crook of his neck. He’d missed waking up with her like this since her mother had got out of hospital and she no longer stayed over at his place: the warmth of her body snuggled against his, the softness of her skin; kissing her slowly awake in the morning and making love to her gently, languorously, when they were both barely conscious. He hadn’t wanted to stay here last night – he’d wanted to get away as quickly as possible – but he was glad now that they had. It was different with her there.

He loved the way she had defended him to Jacqueline and replayed the things she had said about him over and over in his mind. He knew he shouldn’t feel good about it because the row had upset her, but he couldn’t help it. It meant a lot to him that she had overcome her shyness to stand up for him like that. And later, when they were alone, she had shed all her inhibitions along with her clothes and seduced him until every lonely, horny ghost of his teenage self had been well and truly laid to rest. She had been magnificent.

He was tempted to kiss her awake now, but they hadn’t had much sleep. He should let her rest. And, much as he’d like to lie there with her until she woke up, he was gasping for something to drink. So he extricated himself gently and slid out of bed, careful not to disturb her, then pulled on his clothes discarded the previous night and went downstairs.

He made coffee, took it out on the deck and sat at the table, watching as the sun rose over the bay.

‘Good morning! You’re up early.’ His father shuffled onto the deck in his dressing gown and slippers, coffee in hand.

‘Morning. So are you,’ he said, as Jonathan sat down opposite him.

‘I don’t sleep much, these days. One of the perks of getting older.’

‘Is it a perk?’

‘Well, it is today. I get to spend some time with my favourite son before everyone else is up. It’s good to see you, Luca. How are you?’

‘Fine.’

‘It’s nice to have you here.’ Jonathan looked out at the horizon. ‘We’d rather see you, you know,’ he said tentatively, turning to Luca. ‘Even if it means rows.’

‘You don’t have enough aggro in your lives?’

‘We’d rather you came round for a fight than not at all.’

‘Fun for all the family, eh?’ Luca laughed and Jonathan joined in.

‘Maybe that’s the best we can do,’ he said wryly.

‘Sorry,’ Luca said seriously. ‘I don’t want to be mean. I just think it’s probably better for everyone if I stay away.’

‘She does regret that bloody book, you know.’

‘Really?’ Luca ran his thumb around the edge of his mug. ‘She’s never said sorry.’

‘Have you?’

Luca raised his eyebrows in acknowledgement – it was a fair point. ‘She just winds me up every time. I try to be nice and not lose it but—’ He broke off, sighing in frustration.

‘I know you do. But she tries too. You have to give her a chance.’

‘Well, she started it,’ Luca said, aware of how childish he sounded. ‘What did she mean by saying Claire wasn’t what she expected?’

‘It wasn’t an insult. You have to admit, most of the girls you’ve been with have been a bit more … well …’

‘What?’ Luca knew exactly what Jonathan meant, but he couldn’t imagine him actually saying it. What word would he use? Sluttish? Tarty? Jonathan was far too dignified and courteous to call a girl anything like that.

‘Well, more … outgoing,’ he finished awkwardly.

Luca grinned. ‘Claire’s very reserved.’

‘She seems lovely.’

‘She is.’

They sat in silence for a while, drinking their coffees as the sun rose in the sky, sending a streak of yellow across the bay.

‘I’m not an alco, you know,’ Luca said eventually. ‘Just by the way.’

‘I know you’re not.’

‘Then why can’t she see it? Why does she have to accuse me of that in front of everyone and treat me like a lush who’s fallen off the wagon? It’s not fair!’


Jonathan sighed. ‘Your mother has … issues about drinking. Her father was an alcoholic.’

‘I know, but it’s not as if we’re related. She doesn’t have to worry about it running in the family.’

‘That’s not the point. Things were very bad for her growing up. And you had the drug problem. She doesn’t think there’s any grey area. It scares her, that’s all. You have to make allowances.’

Luca drained his mug. ‘I’d better go and see if Claire’s awake,’ he said, getting up. As he stood, he caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of his eye. ‘Oh, my God, did you see that?’

‘Is it a dolphin?’ Jonathan jumped up, looking out to sea.

‘There – look!’ Luca pointed as it arced out of the water again.

‘Wow, that’s amazing! It’s so close.’

‘We’ve seen them a few times in the past couple of weeks.’

‘I must go and get Claire.’


Claire woke up alone and wondered where Luca had got to. She hoped she hadn’t slept very late. She would have liked to sneak away before everyone else was up and avoid seeing his mother again.

‘You’re awake!’ Luca exclaimed, as he burst into the room. ‘Come outside, quick – there’s a dolphin.’

He threw himself onto the bed beside her, and all the urgency seemed to go out of him. He sighed happily as he studied her face. ‘Good morning.’ He kissed her and his mouth tasted of coffee. His tongue slipped into her mouth as he rolled on top of her, and their kisses became hot and greedy.

‘I thought you wanted me to go see a dolphin,’ Claire breathed, as his lips moved to her neck.

‘Dolphin schmolphin,’ Luca mumbled into her throat. He kicked off his shoes, then tossed back the duvet and pulled her onto his lap so she was straddling him.

Claire giggled. ‘Maybe I want to see a dolphin.’

‘You can see it another time. I’m sure he’s not going anywhere.’ His hands cupped her breasts as he thrust upwards, the seam of his jeans rubbing against her tantalisingly. ‘Dad says they’ve been hanging around here for weeks. Ten a penny.’ His eyes were hot as she ground against him greedily, seeking more friction. ‘Anyway, you’ve seen a dolphin before, right?’

‘Well … only on TV.’

‘There you go. Seen one dolphin, seen them all.’


Claire had missed her chance of escaping without bumping into Jacqueline, because by the time they finally made it downstairs, everyone was up. Ali was sitting with her father on the deck and Jacqueline was in the kitchen presiding over the grill, while the mouth-watering smell of bacon filled the air. Claire felt seedy in her party clothes, and more than a little ridiculous teetering around in her fancy shoes and dress first thing in the morning. She really hadn’t thought this through at all. She wanted to get home as quickly as possible and change.

‘Good morning! Will you two have bacon butties?’ Jacqueline asked, as they came into the kitchen.

‘Yes, please!’ Luca said. ‘It smells fantastic.’

‘I really should be going,’ Claire said, ‘but thanks anyway.’

‘You’ll stay for some breakfast, surely?’ Jacqueline said. ‘It’ll be ready in a few minutes.’

‘Yeah, you don’t have to rush off straight away,’ Luca said. ‘You can stay for some breakfast at least.’

She had called her mother the previous evening and told her she was staying over. Her brothers always visited on Sunday mornings, so she didn’t even have the excuse that her mother would be on her own. Anyway, she hadn’t managed to avoid Jacqueline, so she might as well stay. Besides, her stomach was doing somersaults in anticipation of that bacon. ‘Okay, thanks.’

‘Go and join them on the deck and I’ll bring it out when it’s ready.’

Luca headed out, but Claire hung back, letting her hand slip from his. Now that she was faced with Jacqueline, she felt she had to say something to clear the air.

‘Um, is there anything I can do to help?’ she asked.

Jacqueline looked at her in surprise. ‘Thanks. You could make tea. The kettle’s just boiled.’ She nodded to a teapot sitting in front of the kettle.

Claire’s heart pounded as she drew out the tea-making, trying to summon the courage to say her piece. ‘I’m sorry I was rude to you last night,’ she said finally, while she poured boiling water into the pot, glad that she had something else to focus on and didn’t have to look at Jacqueline as she spoke.

‘But you’re not sorry for what you said.’ Jacqueline looked at Claire sharply, seeming almost amused.

‘Well, I …’ Claire felt herself going puce.

‘It’s okay,’ Jacqueline said with a bitter smile, turning back to her bacon. ‘As you so rightly pointed out, I put our lives in the public domain, so everyone is entitled to an opinion.’

The sound of laughter drifted in from the deck.

‘I really do want the best for him,’ Jacqueline said, looking out through the glass. Luca was leaning on the rail, laughing as he chatted with his father and sister. ‘Despite what you may think.’

‘I’m sure you do.’

‘There’s a jug of Buck’s fizz in the fridge,’ Jacqueline said briskly, as she loaded a plate with butties. ‘Could you bring that out as well?’

Claire tottered over to the fridge and took out the jug.

‘Oh, God, those shoes,’ Jacqueline said, her eyes on Claire’s feet. ‘Be careful. Don’t worry about the teapot. I’ll come back for it.’

‘I’ll just take them off,’ Claire said, bending down to remove them. ‘I didn’t know I’d be staying over.’

‘What size are you? Maybe we could find something more comfortable for you to wear.’

‘Five.’

‘Oh, I’m a five. I’ll have a root around after breakfast.’

‘Thanks. That’s very kind of you.’

Barefoot, she followed Jacqueline onto the deck and they laid everything on the table.

‘Oh, poor Claire!’ Ali said, when she saw her. ‘You only have your party clothes. I could have lent you something to wear.’

‘It’s fine,’ Claire said, as she sat down beside Luca and they helped themselves to bacon butties.

‘Buck’s fizz?’ Jonathan raised his eyebrows as Jacqueline poured the cocktail into champagne glasses and began passing them around.

‘Well, it is my birthday,’ Ali said, taking a glass from her mother. ‘That means champagne at every meal, even breakfast.’

‘It was your birthday yesterday,’ Luca said to her.

‘But the festivities go on all week,’ Ali said. ‘One day isn’t enough to celebrate the wonder of me!’

‘Luca?’ Jacqueline held out a glass to him, with a tight smile. She looked like a hostage who was trying to appear relaxed while someone held a gun to her back.

Luca held his hands up in a gesture of surrender. ‘I’ll just have juice.’

‘Go on, take it,’ Jacqueline said, and Jonathan smiled at her with something like pride.

‘No, really – thanks.’

‘Okay.’ Jacqueline visibly relaxed as she put the glass down.

It had been a small conciliatory gesture on her part, and Claire was glad that Luca met her halfway and was making an effort not to antagonise her. ‘I’ll just have juice too, please,’ she said. ‘I have to drive home straight after this.’


‘I’ll get it,’ Jacqueline said and went indoors.

Jonathan smiled at Luca, giving him a pat on the back. ‘Are you two staying for lunch?’ he asked.

‘Oh, I have to get home,’ Claire said.

‘Do you have to go?’ Ali asked her.

‘You’re very welcome to stay, Claire,’ Jacqueline said, as she returned to the table.

‘Thanks, but I really need to get into some normal clothes,’ she said, gesturing to her dress. ‘And I thought I might bring my mother out to Dún Laoghaire, go for a walk along the pier.’

‘Would she be up to that?’ Luca frowned.

‘I don’t plan to make her hobble down it on her crutches. She has a wheelchair. My mother had a hip replacement recently,’ she explained to the others.

‘Well, I’ll come with you. I can push.’

‘Oh, no, you have to stay, Luca,’ Ali pleaded. ‘I hardly got to spend any time with you last night.’

‘You should stay,’ Claire said to him quietly.

‘So, will you?’ Ali said to him. ‘We can go down to the beach. It’ll be like old times.’

‘Okay, then,’ he relented, smiling indulgently at his sister.

‘Good,’ Jonathan said. ‘We’ll have a proper family Sunday lunch.’

Jonathan and Ali beamed delightedly at this idea, while Luca and Jacqueline exchanged nervous glances.

‘Oh, look!’ Ali squealed, pointing out to sea, where two fins arched out of the water and disappeared again. ‘Dolphins!’

‘See what I mean?’ Luca said to Claire. ‘Ten a penny. And there are two of them now.’

They all stood up to watch, leaning against the rail, shouting with laughter as both dolphins leaped right out of the water, turning perfect somersaults before diving back beneath the sparkling surface.


‘It really was lovely to meet you, Claire,’ Jacqueline said later, as the whole family saw her to her car.

‘You must come again soon,’ Jonathan added.

‘And be prepared for a sleepover next time,’ Ali said, hugging her goodbye.

Claire was carrying her shoes, wearing an old pair of plimsolls Jacqueline had given her. She felt a fraud, knowing it was unlikely she would ever be back there with Luca.

‘I’ll see you on Tuesday,’ Luca said, giving her a lingering kiss on the lips as the others went back towards the house. ‘And thank you for last night,’ he whispered in her ear.

‘What about this morning?’ she asked teasingly.

‘That wasn’t too shabby either.’ He grinned. ‘But last night was … incredible.’

‘Well, I couldn’t have done it without you.’

Claire couldn’t get the goofy grin off her face as she sat into the car and pulled out of the drive – or, in fact, for the entire journey back to Ranelagh.


Later that afternoon, Claire drove her mother to Dún Laoghaire, and they went along the pier, Claire pushing Espie in her wheelchair. Half of Dublin seemed to be there, strolling, jogging and generally making the most of the rare heatwave. When they walked back, they queued for ice-cream at Teddy’s and sat looking out to sea eating 99s, while Claire told her mother all about the party, Luca’s family home and the dolphins.

‘And what was the mother like?’ Espie asked her, always avid for more details.

‘She was … nice enough. A bit uptight – and there was a lot of tension between her and Luca. But she wasn’t as cold as I’d expected. I was a bit rude to her,’ she admitted.

‘That’s my girl!’ Espie said.

‘Well, I felt bad about it, but she was being mean to Luca so …’

‘She had it coming, then.’

‘How was everyone this morning?’ Michelle, Neil and their kids had been leaving when Claire got home.

‘They were grand. Holly had an awful tantrum, but I’m sure you can read all about it in Michelle’s next column, so I won’t spoil it for you.’

‘Ooh, can’t wait!’ Claire laughed. ‘You shouldn’t have told me. I’ll never sleep with the anticipation.’ She scooped up the last of the ice-cream with her tongue and bit into her cone.

‘Where did you sleep last night?’ her mother asked slyly, giving her a sideways glance.

‘I slept in a very nice bedroom with a sea view,’ Claire told her primly.

‘You’re so cruel. I could have you up for elderly abuse, you know.’

‘And I could push you off the end of the pier. Don’t let my mild-mannered fa?ade fool you.’

Espie laughed. ‘I can get out of this chair. I’m only in it because I’m lazy and I like having you push me around.’

‘I know – you’re a complete charlatan. I don’t know why I put up with you.’ She finished her cone, wiping her hands on a tissue. ‘Anyway, I think you’ll find that not sharing the details of my private life doesn’t count as abuse.’

‘So there is something to share, then?’ Espie’s eyes twinkled.

‘We really are just friends, Mum – me and Luca.’

Espie gave her a sceptical look.

‘Okay, friends with benefits – but still just friends.’

‘That’s such a pity. Because I have my eye on this amazing hat …’

‘I’m not getting married just because there’s a hat you want to buy. But your birthday’s coming up …’

‘Oh, by the way, if Luca’s coming to my party, make sure to tell him he’s not to buy me a present.’

‘Okay.’

‘Tell him he’ll be turned away if he does. I’ll show him the door. Zero tolerance.’

‘Okay, okay! I’ll tell him.’


Claire was just about to get into bed that night when Mark rang on her mobile. It was only nine thirty, but she was exhausted after all the fresh air and lack of sleep the previous night.

‘Hi. Good weekend?’ he asked.

‘Yeah, really nice. The weather’s been amazing.’

‘Same here.’

She told him about last night’s party, carefully editing Luca out of the proceedings and telling him it was ‘my friend Ali’s birthday’ – which, strictly speaking, was true. Mark had gone to Brighton with ‘the gang’ for the weekend.

‘So how’s your mum?’ he asked.

‘She’s good – doing really well.’

‘Only I was wondering if you could come over next weekend, by any chance. I have to go to New York the week after that, and I’m dying to see you.’

‘Oh.’ Claire was taken aback, her mind flying in several directions at once. Was she ready for this? Would it mean the end of her and Luca? Was she off work next weekend? Would she sleep with Mark? Could she get a cheap flight at such short notice? How would Luca feel about it? Could her mother cope on her own for a couple of nights? ‘Yeah, that should be doable,’ she said finally.

‘Great!’

‘I’ll just look into flights and stuff and get back to you. Okay?’

‘Brilliant! I’m really looking forward to seeing you again.’

‘Yeah. Me too.’

When they hung up, her mind was racing. She knew she could take the weekend off – Yvonne would be happy to cover for her. And her mother would be fine on her own: she had plenty of friends and neighbours around who would keep an eye on her and help her with anything she needed in terms of shopping. Maybe Jim would even stay for the weekend. So that wouldn’t be a problem.


But what about Luca? It was ridiculous to think he’d even care, since he’d been coaching her for this very moment. So why was she feeling guilty?