Mother of the Bride Read Online Free PDF Page B

great compliments to Helen about the quiches.
    â€˜You should give Carmel the recipe,’ he said.
    Once the food was out of the way, Amy was able to relax and enjoy herself. The noise level was rising and everyone was having a great time chatting and laughing and drinking. They had warned their neighbours about the party so hopefully there’d be no complaints.
    Dan’s dad was enjoying himself talking to Dan’s old school and college friends.
    â€˜That son of mine is a lucky fellow to land himself such a beautiful fiancée’ he chuckled, and Amy thanked heaven that he was such a sweetheart. Dan’s mum was sitting on the couch, talking to her mum, and she could tell by the tilt of Carmel’s head that they were still discussing the wedding plans. Oh no, she thought. She’d better go over and rescue her mum.
    â€˜Amy, you look beautiful in that dress.’ Carmel smiled, hugging her. ‘It’s good to see you dressed up.’
    Amy flashed a warning glance at her mum, hoping that she would not rise to the bait of responding to one of Carmel’s digs. Dan didn’t even notice what she was doing, but poor Eddie spent a huge amount of time covering up Carmel’s antics.
    â€˜Thanks, Carmel. I’m usually a jeans person, but a little bit of Karen Millen does no harm, especially on a night like this.’ Amy laughed, giving a twirl.
    â€˜You look beautiful, darling,’ said her mum loyally. ‘And your party is going really well.’
    â€˜Yeah, everyone’s enjoying themselves,’ Amy agreed.
    â€˜I’ve invited Carmel and Eddie and the boys to come to dinner at our place next weekend,’ Helen said, pleased with herself. ‘Your dad and I would like the two families to be friends and get to know each other better.’
    â€˜We’re looking forward to it,’ nodded Carmel.
    â€˜That’s great!’ Amy couldn’t believe her mum was inviting the Quinns over to their house. Carmel would probably turn her nose up at their four-bed semi-detached on an estate in Blackrock.
    â€˜I was just telling Helen that if you want to book a good venue like Slane or Ashford Castle or Dromoland or Mount Juliet for the wedding you would need to be putting a deposit down the minute you go to see it.’
    Had Carmel Quinn gone off her trolley? The last time Amy had been at Slane was for a rock concert, with about twenty thousand mud-soaked fans going crazy to U2. She had no intention of having their wedding somewhere like that.
    â€˜Dan and I aren’t sure about a venue,’ she said firmly. ‘Nothing is decided yet, nothing!’
    â€˜Oh,’ said Carmel, disappointed. ‘I just thought that, with a big wedding, a venue like a castle or a large country house makes sense.’
    â€˜I’m sure Amy and Dan will give lots of consideration to a number of places before they make up their minds,’ added Helen O’Connor diplomatically. ‘Young people nowadays have their own ideas about what they want. They’re not like us old fogeys!’
    Amy felt like cheering her mum, who, to her surprise, was well up to handling Carmel.
    The wine was flowing and Dan, Liam, Dan’s surfing buddy Bren and a huge gang were out on the balcony, smoking.
    Ciara, who looked like she had stepped off the set of
Twilight
– with her white skin, and her dark eyes emphasized by a huge amountof eyeliner – was being chatted up by one of Daniel’s friends in the hall, while Jess was in a huddle with the girls on a couch near the door to the balcony. Amy grabbed a fresh glass of wine and went to join Jess.
    â€˜Great party!’ said Amy’s friend Kerrie, whose husband Billy had stayed home minding their two kids.
    â€˜Dan’s so romantic!’ added another, Orla.
    â€˜You are so lucky!’ said Jess.
    Sarah made space for Amy as she curled up on the couch beside Tara and Mel, everyone full of chat about