‘For breaking it up?’ Helen clarified.
‘Yes, of course.’
‘Do you really think that’s best?’ Helen asked. ‘Couldn’t you give him a chance, try to get to know him better?’
‘Have you ever met Brian, Helen?’ Grace asked.
‘No, I don’t think I have. Apparently he turned up at Rachel’s wedding at the eleventh hour, but I didn’t get to meet him. What’s he like, anyway?’
‘A turd in a woolly jumper.’
‘I think you mean nerd.’
‘No,’ Grace replied, ‘I don’t. Honestly, Helen, if it was just that I didn’t like him, I wouldn’t mind. If I really thought he’d make Kate happy, I’d go out of my way to try and get to like him. But it’d be the biggest mistake of her life. He’ll make her miserable.’
Helen thought quickly. ‘Look, how about a family meeting todiscuss it?’ she suggested. ‘The rest of the family feel the same way as you about him, don’t they?’
‘Oh yes!’
‘So let’s all meet, put our heads together and see what we can come up with.’
‘But how can we organise a family meeting without Kate getting wind of it?’ Grace fretted.
‘We could do it on Sunday and I’ll ask her to take Sam and Jake out for the day – I’ll say we’re having people over.’
‘Tell her you’re having one of your singles things,’ Grace said bitterly. ‘That’ll keep her away.’
* * *
The following Sunday, Grace stood at the mantelpiece in Helen’s spacious sitting room before the assembled O’Neills. Helen had rustled up drinks and a few nibbles, and everyone was tucking in and looking at Grace expectantly.
‘You’re probably wondering why we called you all here today,’ she began, her actress’ voice easily commanding everyone’s attention.
‘She’s going to reveal which of us murdered the vicar,’ Lorcan whispered to Tom.
Tom snickered and got a disapproving frown from Rachel.
Aloud, Lorcan said, ‘I’m wondering why we’re having a family meeting without Kate.’ She had been dispatched to the cinema with Sam and Jake, followed by a trip to McDonald’s, and they had all been under strict instructions not to let her know about the meeting.
‘There’s a good reason for that,’ Grace answered, getting into her chairwoman stride. ‘The meeting isaboutKate.’
‘It’s not her birthday yet, is it?’ Conor asked. ‘Are we planning a surprise party or something?’
‘No, darling, nothing like that,’ Helen said to him.
‘I doubt we’re planning anything so pleasant,’ Lorcan said darkly. He was getting a bad vibe about this meeting.
‘Oh, stop carrying on like you’re the only person here who cares about Kate,’ Grace snapped. ‘We all care about her – which is why we’re here.’ She paused – she knew how to capture and hold an audience’s attention as much as Helen did. ‘None of you is supposed to know this yet, but Kate is engaged to Brian.’
‘Oh, well done, Kate!’ Tom exclaimed cheerily. He was met with a stony silence and much eye-rolling from Rachel. ‘Oh, aren’t we pleased about it? Sorry. Some objection to the bloke, is there?’
‘Only the fact that he’s the biggest nob on the planet,’ Rachel snarled. ‘Engaged? I can’t believe Kate would be so stupid.’
‘I couldn’t either. She only told me on Friday.’ Grace was relieved to be able to bitch about it with someone who was on the same wavelength. Rachel was such a comfort.
‘God,’ Rachel fumed, even more incensed than Grace. ‘I thought we could at least rely on that creep to avoid marriage at all costs.’
‘Yes, it’s a bit conventional for him, isn’t it?’ Helen commented.
