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Chapter Twenty-Nine

ivan placed the finishing touches to the dinner table, snipped a

stem of fuchsia that was growing wild, and placed it in the small vase in the center. He lit a candle and watched as the flame darted around in the

breeze, like a dog running around the garden yet chained to his kennel.

Cobh Ciúin was silent, just as the name suggested, christened hundreds of years ago by the locals and untouched since then. The only sound was the water gently lapping, swishing back and forth, and tickling the sand. Ivan closed his eyes and swayed to the music. A small fishing boat tied to the pier bobbed up and down on the sea, occasionally bumping the side of the pier and adding a soft drumbeat.

The sky was blue and beginning to darken with a few stray wisps of

teenage clouds lagging behind the older clouds of hours ago. The stars

twinkled brightly and Ivan winked back at them; they too knew what was

coming. Ivan had asked the head chef at the work canteen to help him out tonight; he was the same chef responsible for catering the tea parties in the back gardens of best friends, but this time he went all out. He had created the most luscious spread Ivan could have imagined. Starter was foie gras and toast cut into neat little squares, followed by wild Irish salmon and as-paragus cooked in garlic, followed by a white chocolate mousse with dribbles of raspberry sauce for dessert. The aromas were lifted by the warm gulf wind and carried past his nose, tickling his tastebuds.

C e c e l i a A h e r n

He played around with the cutlery nervously, fixing all that didn’t need to be fixed. He tightened his new blue silk tie, loosened it again, opened the button of his navy blue suit jacket, and decided to close it again. He had been so busy all day arranging the setup that he had barely taken time to think about the feelings that were stirring inside him. Glancing at his watch and at the darkening sky, he hoped Elizabeth would come.

Elizabeth drove down the narrow winding road slowly, barely able to see past the end of her nose in the thick blackness of the countryside. Wild flowers and growth reached out to brush the side of her car as she passed.

Her full headlights startled moths, mosquitoes, and bats as she drove in the direction of the sea. Suddenly, the blackness lifted as she reached a clearing and the whole world was spread out before her.

Ahead of her were thousands of miles of black sea, glistening under the moonlight. Inside the cove was a small fishing boat tied up beside the steps; the sand was a velvety brown, the edges being licked and teased by the approaching tide. But it wasn’t the sea that took her breath away; it was the sight of Ivan standing in the sand dressed in a smart new suit beside a small, beautifully set table for two, candle flickering in the center, casting shadows across his smiling face.

The sight was enough to bring a tear from a stone. It was an image her

mother had stamped in her mind, an image she had whispered excitedly



into her ear about moonlit dinners on the beach, so much so that her

mother’s dreams had become her own. And there Ivan was, standing in the picture Elizabeth and her mother had painted so vividly and that had remained etched in Elizabeth’s mind. She understood the phrase, not know-

ing whether to laugh or cry, and so she unashamedly did both.

Ivan stood proudly, blue eyes glistening in the moonlight. He ignored

her tears, or rather, accepted them.

“My dear”—he bowed theatrically—“your moonlit dinner awaits you.”

Wiping her eyes and smiling a smile so big Elizabeth felt she could light the entire world, she took his extended hand and stepped out of the car.

Ivan inhaled sharply. “Wow, Elizabeth, you look stunning.”

I f Yo u C o u l d S e e M e N o w

Elizabeth smiled proudly. “Wearing red is my favorite thing to do

now,” she said, imitating him, taking his arm and allowing him to lead her to the dinner table. After much hemming and hawing Elizabeth had pur-chased a red dress that accentuated her slender figure, giving her curves she never even knew she had. She had put it on and taken it off at least five times before she left the house, feeling too exposed in such a bright color. To prevent herself from feeling like a traffic light she had brought a black pash-mina to drape over her shoulders.

The white Irish table linen flapped in the light, warm breeze and Elizabeth’s hair tickled her cheek. The sand was cool and soft beneath her feet like fluffy carpet, but was protected in the cove from the sharp wind. Ivan pulled out the chair for her and she sat. He reached for her serviette, which had been wrapped in a stem of fuchsia, and he laid it on her lap.

“Ivan, this is beautiful, thank you,” she whispered, not feeling able to lift her voice over the peaceful lapping water.

“Thank you for coming.” He smiled, pouring her a glass of red wine.

“Now for starters, we have foie gras.” He reached under the table and retrieved two plates covered with silver lids. “I hope you like foie gras,” he said, frown lines appearing on his forehead.

“I love it.” Elizabeth smiled.

“Phew.” The muscles in his face relaxed. “It doesn’t really look like

grass,” he said, examining his plate closely.

“It’s duck liver, Ivan,” Elizabeth said, laughing, spreading some on her toast. “What made you choose this cove?” she asked, wrapping the shawl

tighter around her shoulders as the breeze began to chill.

“Because it’s quiet and because it’s a perfect location away from street-lights,” he explained, munching on his food.

Elizabeth frowned slightly, but thought it better not to ask any ques-

tions, knowing Ivan had his own peculiar way.

After dinner Ivan turned to look at Elizabeth, who had her hands

wrapped around her wineglass and was staring wistfully out to the sea.

“Elizabeth.” His voice was soft. “Will you lie with me on the sand?”

Elizabeth’s heartbeat quickened. “Yes.” Her voice was husky. She

couldn’t think of a better way to end the evening with him. She was longing 216

C e c e l i a A h e r n

to touch him, for him to hold her. Elizabeth made her way to the water’s edge and sat down on the cool sand. She felt Ivan padding behind her.

“You’re going to have to lie on your back for this to work,” he said

loudly, looking down at her.

Elizabeth’s mouth dropped open. “Excuse me?” She wrapped the

shawl protectively around her shoulders.

“If you don’t lie back, this just won’t work,” he repeated, putting his hands on his hips. “Look, like this.” He sat down beside her and laid his back down on the sand. “You have to be flat on your back, Elizabeth, it’s best this way.”

“Is it now?” Elizabeth stiffened and clambered to her feet. “Was all

this”—she gestured around the cove—“just to get me flat on my back, as you so beautifully phrased it?” she asked, hurt.

Ivan stared up at her from the sand, eyes wide, with a flabbergasted

look on his face. “Well . . .” He stalled, trying to think of an answer. “Actually, yes,” he squeaked. “It’s just that, it’s better when it peaks, for you to be flat on your back,” he stuttered.

“Ha!” Elizabeth spat and, putting her shoes back on, she struggled

through the sand to get back to her car.

“Elizabeth, look!” Ivan shouted with excitement. “It’s peaked! Look!”

“Uugh,” Elizabeth grunted, climbing the small sand dune to her car.

“You really are disgusting!”

“It’s not disgusting!” Ivan said, panic in his voice.

“That’s what they all say,” Elizabeth grumbled, fumbling in her bag for her car keys. Unable to see into her bag in the dark, she leaned it toward the moonlight and as she glanced up, her mouth dropped open. Above her in

the black cloudless sky was a hive of activity. Stars glowed brighter than she had ever seen before, some darting across the sky.

Ivan lay on his back, staring up also.

“Oh,” Elizabeth said quietly, feeling foolish, glad that the darkness was hiding her skin, which was absorbing the color of her dress. She stumbled back down the sand dune, removed her shoes, allowed her feet to curl into the sand, and took a few steps closer to Ivan. “It’s beautiful,” she whispered.

I f Yo u C o u l d S e e M e N o w

“Well, it would be a lot more beautiful if you lay flat on your back like I told you to,” Ivan huffed, crossing his arms across his chest and staring up to the sky.

Elizabeth placed her hand across her mouth and tried not to laugh out

loud. The sound was muffled.

“I don’t know what you’re laughing at, no one accused you of being dis-

gusting,” he said smartly.

“I thought you were talking about something else.” Elizabeth giggled,

sitting down on the sand beside him.

“Why else would I be asking you to lie flat on your back?” Ivan asked in a dull tone and then he turned to her, his voice raised a few octaves with mocking eyes. “Oh,” he sang.

“Shut up,” Elizabeth said harshly, throwing her purse at him, but let-

ting her smile show. “Oh, look.” Elizabeth was distracted by a shooting star. “What’s going on up there tonight, I wonder.”

“It’s the Delta Aquarids,” Ivan said, as though that explained every-

thing. Elizabeth’s silence made him continue. “They’re meteors that come from the constellation Aquarius, the normal dates are the fifteenth of July to the twentieth of August, but they peak on the twenty-ninth of July. That’s why I had to take you out tonight, to complete silence, away from street-lights.” He turned to look at her. “So yes, all of this was just to get you on your back.”

They studied each other’s faces in comfortable silence until more ac-

tion above diverted their attention.

“Why don’t you make a wish?” Ivan asked her.

“No.” Elizabeth laughed softly. “I’m still waiting for my Jinny Joes wish to come true.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t worry about that,” Ivan said seriously. “They just take a while to process, you won’t be waiting long.”

Elizabeth laughed and stared hopefully up into the sky.

A few minutes later, sensing her sister would be on her mind, Ivan

asked, “Any word from Saoirse?”

Elizabeth gave a single shake of her head.

“She’ll be home,” Ivan said positively.

C e c e l i a A h e r n

“Yes, but in what condition?” Elizabeth said uncertainly. “How is it

other families manage to hold it together? And even when they’ve prob-

lems, how do they manage to keep it from the rest of the people in their neighborhoods?” she asked in confusion, thinking about all the whispers she had been hearing over the past few days about her father’s behavior and her sister’s disappearance. “What’s their secret?”

“See that cluster of stars right there?” Ivan asked, pointing upward.

Elizabeth followed his hand, embarrassed to have bored him with talk

of her family so much that he’d changed the subject. She nodded.

“Most meteors from a common meteor shower are parallel to one an-

other. They appear to emerge from the same point in the sky called ‘the ra-diant’ and they travel in all directions from this point.”

“Oh, I see,” Elizabeth said.

“No, you don’t see.” Ivan turned on his side to face her. “Stars are like people, Elizabeth. Just because they appear to emerge from the same point doesn’t mean that they do. This is an illusion of perspective created by distance.” And as if Elizabeth hadn’t quite understood the meaning, he added,

“Not all families manage to hold it together, Elizabeth, everyone moves in different directions. That we all emerge from the same point is a miscon-ception; to travel in different directions is the very nature of every being and every existing thing.”

Elizabeth turned her head and faced the sky again, trying to see if what he said was true. “Well, they could have fooled me,” she said quietly,

watching more appear from the blackness every second.

Elizabeth shivered and wrapped her shawl around her tighter; the sand

was getting cooler with each passing hour.

“Are you cold?” Ivan asked with concern.

“A little,” she admitted.

“Right, well the night isn’t over yet,” he said, jumping to his feet.

“Time to warm up. Mind if I borrow the keys to your car?”

“Not unless you intend on driving away,” she joked, handing them over.

He retrieved something from under the table once again and brought it

to the car. Moments later, music was softly drifting through the open door of the car.

I f Yo u C o u l d S e e M e N o w

Ivan began to dance.

Elizabeth giggled nervously. “Ivan, what are you doing?”

“Dancing!” he said, offended.

“What kind of dancing?” She laughed, taking his extended hand, and

allowed him to pull her to her feet.

“It’s the soft-shoe shuffle,” Ivan announced, dancing expertly in circles around her on the sand. “Also called the sand dance, you’ll be interested to know, which means that your mother wasn’t so mad wanting to do the shuffle in the sand after all!”

Elizabeth’s hands flew to her mouth; tears filled her eyes with happi-

ness as she realized he was fulfilling yet another of her and her mother’s intended activities.

“Why are you fulfilling all of my mother’s dreams?” she asked, study-

ing his face and searching for answers.

“So you don’t run away like she did in search of them,” he replied, taking her hand. “Come on, join in!” he said, leaping around.

“I don’t know how!” Elizabeth laughed.

“Just copy me.” He turned his back and danced away from her, swing-

ing his hips exaggeratedly.

Lifting her dress to above her knees, Elizabeth threw caution to the

wind and joined in dancing the soft-shoe shuffle on the sand in the moonlight, laughing until her stomach was sore and she was out of breath.

“Oh, you make me smile so much, Ivan.” Elizabeth laughed, collapsing

on the sand later that evening.

“Just doin’ my job.” He grinned back. As soon as the words had left his mouth, his smile faded and Elizabeth detected a hint of sadness in those blue eyes.


Date: 2015-04-20; view: 441


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