The Birthday Girls Read online

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Behind Every Cloud Chapter 1

  This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names,

  characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the

  author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons,

  living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

  Published 2013

  by Poolbeg Press Ltd.

  123 Grange Hill, Baldoyle,

  Dublin 13, Ireland

  Email: [email protected]

  © Pauline Lawless 2013

  The moral right of the author has been asserted.

  Copyright for typesetting, layout, design, ebook

  © Poolbeg Press Ltd.

  A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

  ISBN 9781781991329

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photography, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. The book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition, including this condition, being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

  www.poolbeg.com

  Note on the author

  Pauline Lawless is the bestselling author of four previous novels: Because We're Worth It, If the Shoes Fit, A Year Like No Other and Behind Every Cloud.

  From Dublin, she now lives in Belgium and spends winters in Florida, which she loves. It is the setting for her fifth novel The Birthday Girls.

  For more information visit her website at www.paulinelawless.com.

  Also by Pauline Lawless

  Because We’re Worth It

  If the Shoes Fit

  Behind Every Cloud

  Acknowledgements

  This bit is harder than writing a book. There are so many people who have shown me support and encouragement in writing not just this book but my previous four also that I never know where to begin to thank them. Well, actually, I do!

  To all at Poolbeg, Kieran, Ailbhe, David and especially Paula Campbell for believing in me and giving me this wonderful opportunity.

  To the best editor any writer could have, Gaye Shortland, who improves every story with her sharp eye for detail. Thank you!

  To my daughter, Ciara, who keeps me on the straight and narrow as I write, telling me where I’ve gone wrong and setting me on the right path again. Your help is invaluable. Love you.

  To my friends in Florida, who make me feel like a real author and to whom this book is dedicated, thank you all.

  To JM, as always, with love.

  And lastly to the most special people of all, my readers. You have made this all possible and your kind messages and support mean a great deal to me. I hope you enjoy this book as much and I would love to hear from you on my website at www.paulinelawless.com.

  To all my dear friends in Florida –

  you know who you are – who give me so much support

  and encouragement with my writing and who are also great company and fun.

  Chapter 1

  “I absolutely refuse to be forty,” Angel declared, her voice strong and determined, “so I won’t be taking part in any fortieth celebrations next year. Please don’t be angry with me, Lexi, but I have always said that I planned on staying thirty-nine forever.” She reverted to her normal little-girl-voice as she continued. “I’m truly sorry, honey, but this coming November will be my very last birthday.”

  Angel was a diva – a full-blown, over-the-top, Hollywood-style diva. She had been for as long as Lexi had known her, which was all of thirty-five years. She was almost thirty-nine now and as dramatic as ever as she made her announcement. The emotion in Angel’s voice was palpable on the other end of the line. Lexi sighed. Angel had often said her thirty-ninth birthday would be her last, but no one had really taken her seriously. Now it was apparent that she had indeed meant it, thereby wrecking Lexi’s plans for a fabulous slap-up fortieth, the following year, in Guatemala.

  “Well, if you’re really serious –”

  “Oh, I am,” Angel insisted. “I’m sorry, sweetie, but I just can’t go there. I hope you understand. It would be the death knell for my career. God, if word got out that I was forty, I’d never be offered another part.” She sounded appalled.

  Lexi thought she was overreacting. Lots of Hollywood actresses were still working well into their forties.

  “Well, in that case the four of us had better try and get together for our thirty-ninth as it will be our last birthday together,” she responded glumly. “Doesn’t leave much time though – it’s only six weeks away.”

  “I know, but I was thinking that we could all come to Florida, to your place,” Angel suggested breathlessly. “That would be just fabulous. Could you arrange it, Lexi?”

  Angel had been born with that knack of being able to wind everyone around her little finger and Lexi, as always, was unable to deny her anything.

  “Okay,” she reluctantly said. “As Thanksgiving falls the Thursday after our birthdays, maybe we’ll make a week of it. What do you think? Do you think Mel will be able to come?”

  “I’ll make sure she does,” said Angel. “Could Brenda get over for it, I wonder? Seeing as it is our last?”

  “I don’t know. Leave it with me. I’ll see what I can do.”

  “You’re a pet – I love you!” Angel cried, blowing kisses down the line.

  Lexi rang off with a heavy heart, disappointed that her plans for Guatemala were dashed, unless Angel changed her mind by next year, which was possible, but unlikely. Ah well, she thought sighing, things could be worse.

  * * *

  She rang Brenda right away but it went to voicemail. Lexi hated those bloody things. She found it hard enough to talk on the phone without talking to a disembodied voice. She hung up without saying anything and decided to wait until 1 p.m. to call, which would be 6 p.m. in Ireland and a good time to get Brenda in. She had intended going to her studio to paint but Angel’s phone call had scuppered that. She was too agitated now to produce anything worthwhile so decided to go for a walk on the beach instead.

  * * *

  Brenda was very surprised to hear her old friend on the other end of the line.

  “Lexi, is that really you? Is everything okay?”

  “Fine, sweetheart, just fine. How are you?”

  “I’m grand. There’s nothing wrong, is there? I�
��m just surprised to hear you. I know how much you hate the telephone.”

  Lexi laughed. “There’s nothing wrong but it is an emergency of a sort, I suppose. Angel has decided that this will be her last birthday so it looks like we won’t be having a fortieth, at least not all four of us together. She’s asked me to have everyone here to Florida for our thirty-ninth. Is there any way that you could get over for the third week in November?”

  Brenda hesitated. “Well, the kids are all away so that wouldn’t be a problem but . . .”

  “I would like to offer you your flights, as a fortieth birthday present – seeing as how we won’t be having one – if you’d accept. It just wouldn’t be the same if you weren’t here.”

  “Oh, Lexi, that’s very generous of you! I would so love to go. I’m feeling very down at the moment, suffering from empty-nest-syndrome I suppose. Carly, my baby, went away to college in Limerick last week. I can hardly believe it! I’d love to get together again with all of you but I’m not sure Bob will agree to my going.”

  “Oh I’m sure you’ll be able to persuade him.” Lexi smiled to herself. “It’s Thanksgiving so we can have a whole week here celebrating and maybe you and I could have a few days in New York the following week. We could stay with Mel. What do you think?”

  Brenda could hardly believe her ears. She’d always longed to visit New York and to visit Florida would be heaven. This was an amazing opportunity. She’d have to manage it.

  “Leave it with me. I’ll see what I can do,” she said excitedly.

  “Let me know as soon as you can. It would be wonderful if you could come, Brenda. I’d so love to have you here.”

  Brenda’s heart beat wildly as she replaced the receiver. How generous of Lexi, who knew that there was no way on earth Brenda could afford to pay for the trip herself, to offer her the flights as a gift. Money had always been tight and now with the economic crisis and three of the children still at university, it was a struggle to make ends meet, let alone take off on a holiday to Florida. She desperately wanted to go. It would be great to get together with Lexi, Angel and Mel for a whole week. If only she could persuade her husband, Bob, to agree to it. Unfortunately, she wasn’t at all sure that he would.

  * * *

  She made Bob’s favourite dinner and even bought a bottle of wine – a rare occurrence these days – hoping to soften him up. After they’d finished eating she broached the subject of a possible visit to the States to meet up with the girls.

  “Florida? Are you serious?” He looked at her aghast. “You know we can’t afford that.”

  “It won’t cost us anything. Lexi is giving me my flight as a birthday present and I have some money saved from my Avon sales.” Brenda had started selling Avon cosmetics when the children were little so that she could make a few bob to buy those little extras they needed. To her surprise she’d enjoyed being an Avon Lady and had built up a loyal clientele over the years, many of them becoming her friends. She’d continued with it even when the kids were gone and, although her earnings were not huge, she’d managed to put a little by each week. She’d been saving it for a rainy day – now she was hoping to spend it on a sunny one in Florida. “I really want to go,” she persisted, determined not to give up without a fight.

  “For how long?” he asked sullenly.

  Brenda decided to go for broke. “Two to three weeks. There’s no point going all that way for just a few days, is there?” She held her breath, waiting for his response.

  “I suppose not,” he muttered, finding no reason to oppose it. As long as it wouldn’t cost him anything!

  She breathed a huge sigh of relief and didn’t dare mention a possible jaunt to New York. She knew he’d never agree to that. She felt bad deceiving him, but she wasn’t really. It wasn’t definite yet anyway, just a possibility.

  * * *

  On a high, she tried later to initiate lovemaking but as usual Bob wasn’t interested and turned away from her, feigning sleep. She lay awake, wondering where it had all gone wrong. They’d been married for twenty-two years and, with five children to raise, they’d never had much time to think about themselves or worry about their marriage. But now, with the kids gone, Brenda had begun to question her life. She had given unselfishly to others all of her life: as a daughter, sister, wife and mother. She loved them all, naturally, but she felt badly in need of some TLC herself now. She’d been so busy taking care of them all that she felt as if she had lost herself. She longed to find herself again and she hoped this holiday might help her do that.

  Being on their own since the last of the kids had flown the nest had also brought home to her just how much she and Bob had grown apart. Maybe a break from each other would be a good thing. She turned her thoughts to the forthcoming trip, unable to sleep with excitement.

  * * *

  The four women went back a long way, back to their very first day at school, in fact. It was a day that would be etched in Brenda’s memory forever. The teacher had put the new pupils together according to their birth dates and, as the four of them had birthdays within days of each other, they were all put sitting at the same small table. They were excited but a little nervous and shy, as most kids are on their first day of school, except for Angel of course, who was in her element with this new audience of admirers.

  Brenda had felt dowdy and plain beside the other three and was quite in awe of them. She was particularly drawn to Lexi who was quiet and gentle and had a sweet, kind face. Her hair was a halo of unruly red-gold curls which hung down her back and she had soft brown eyes which lit up when she smiled, which was often. Brenda was fascinated with her and her accent which she later discovered was because her mother was American and Lexi had been born in the States and had lived there for the first three years of her life.

  Angel was exceptionally pretty with long silky blonde hair and blue eyes and a cute nose that turned up at the end. She was outgoing and extrovert and a right little chatterbox. Brenda could still recall every detail of the beautiful blue dress Angel wore on that first day and the blue ribbon that tied back her hair. She was the prettiest girl Brenda had ever seen and she longed to be her. Even back then, Angel had acquired the knack of batting her eyelashes and using her big blue eyes to get whatever she wanted. And she did! No one could resist her – not the other pupils and not the nuns. She was adored and petted and the envy of the whole class.

  Mel was another kettle of fish entirely. Her hair was jet black and tied back in pigtails. Her eyes were so dark that they appeared almost black, or maybe they just gave that impression because of the scowl she continually wore. She could have been pretty, if only she’d smile. For a long time Brenda was almost afraid to talk to her. Lexi was the only one who seemed to see past that and had taken Mel under her wing, otherwise it is doubtful that she would have made many friends.

  Brenda remembered how ugly she’d felt in her cousin’s hand-me-down dress which was way too big for her. She was also as timid as a mouse and felt overwhelmed by the others. Lexi understood this and reached over and took her hand, squeezing it gently. Brenda smiled gratefully at her as her fears receded. She loved Lexi from that moment on.

  Strange but, thinking about it now, Brenda realised that their characters really hadn’t changed all that much since that first meeting.

  Angel was still a chatterbox and was a famous actress in Hollywood. She was as vivacious and beautiful as ever – with a little help now from the best plastic surgeons in LA.

  Mel was still unhappy even though she was now a very successful businesswoman in New York. She was still driven and never satisfied despite the fact that she was now a partner in the most prestigious law firm in New York and highly respected in the legal world. Brenda suspected that Mel regarded her as a failure and thought that she hadn’t achieved anything. Raising five children would not be considered an achievement to Mel’s way of thinking.

  As for Lexi – well, she was still gentle and loving and the glue that held them all together. She was stil
l happy in her own skin and had a wonderful outlook on life. She only saw the good in other people and was loved by everyone who met her. When any of them were in trouble it was Lexi they ran to and somehow it never seemed quite as bad when seen through her eyes. She reached out to people and spread sunshine wherever she went. Her three old school friends would have been lost without her over the years.

  * * *

  Brenda was dying to call Lexi first thing the following morning but had to wait impatiently until one o’clock due to the five hours time difference. With shaking hands she dialled the Florida number.

  “Hi, Lexi, it’s Brenda.”

  “Calling with good news, I hope?” Lexi sounded apprehensive.

  “Yes, yes, I can come.” Brenda’s voice was high with excitement. I’m so thrilled.”

  Lexi whooped with glee. “Brenda, it’s fantastic that you can make it. I’ll book your flights right away. I was thinking of bringing you via New York so that you can fly home direct from there. You’d like to visit New York, wouldn’t you?”

  Would I what? Brenda thought. “Oh, Lexi, that would be heaven,” she squealed. “I’ve always longed to visit New York. Are you sure Mel won’t mind my staying with her?”

  “Course not. I’ll fix it with her,” Lexi replied confidently. “You won’t have a problem staying those extra few days, will you?”

  “No, I told Bob it would be two to three weeks.”

  “That’s decided then. Hopefully Angel will persuade Mel to come and we’ll all be here together for Thanksgiving which will be wonderful. I’ll contact my travel agent now and have the tickets sent on to you. It will be great to get together again – like old times.”