That Gallagher Girl by Kate Thompson

wine after knocking down the pavilion that had been built for Felicity all those years ago, when Adair had been rich, and Shane had been poor. How the tables had turned!
    She supposed Shane buying Coral Mansion was a bit like that intrepid mountaineer Mallory trying to conquer Everest ‘because it was there’, or Richard Burton buying the Krupp Diamond because it was up for grabs, or Imelda Marcos spending a fortune on shoes she’d never wear. She also supposed that he’d finally given in to Finn’s badgering about converting the joint into a scuba-dive centre. The badgering had been going on for so long now that it had become a family joke.
    Río knew as well that it would give Shane no little pleasure to own the biggest, brashest, most ‘fuck-off’ residence in Lissamore, particularly since it had once belonged to the man who had been his rival in love. How would poor Adair Bolger, slogging over his oyster beds and slumming it in a mobile home (even one as deluxe as the Bentley), feel when he found out that Shane Byrne was now the owner of the erstwhile Villa Felicity?
    Ping! Outlook Express announced the arrival of an email in her inbox. Oh! As if life wasn’t complicated enough, the email was from Isabella Bolger, ‘Sent from My iPhone’, and the subject matter was the Bentley.
    Hi, Río, she read, when she clicked on the envelope icon. I understand that Dad has asked you to meet the Bentley people when they deliver to the site. Thank you so much for helping out. Just to let you know that I shall be arriving in Lissamore this evening. I wanted to check out for myself what Dad’s accommodation for the foreseeable future is going to be like. I had hoped to be staying in Coolnamara Castle Hotel until the plumbing, etc is taken care of in the Bentley, but I’ve just found out that they’re fully booked due to some fly-fishing event. Would you happen to know if there’s anything going in B&Bs in the village?
    All best, Izzy
    Oh, God. It would be unmannerly of Río to expect Princess Izzy to bed down in a B&B. Should she phone Finn and ask him if he could put her up in Coral Mansion? Um, no. That was so not a good idea. Río didn’t pry too much into her son’s affairs, but she knew enough about his love life to hazard a guess that he might not welcome Izzy back into his life with open arms. Also, it would be disconcerting – to say the least – for Izzy to find out that Finn was now ensconced in her former home, just down the shore from where the Bentley was to be parked. Life was complicated? Life was bonkers !
    There was only one thing for it. Hi, Izzy, she typed. How good to hear from you! You’re more than welcome to stay with me, if you don’t mind sleeping on a sofabed. What time will you be here?
    The response was immediate. That’s really kind of you. I should be arriving around 7.00. Can I buy you dinner in O’Toole’s?
    Oh, well. She’d have to delay Finn’s roast dinner till another time. Río was just about to type ‘Thank you – that would be lovely!’ when her phone went. It was Finn, again.
    â€˜Hi, Ma,’ he said. ‘Fancy dinner in O’Toole’s tonight?’
    â€˜No!’ she said. ‘I’m cooking for . . . Fleur.’
    â€˜Fleur can come, too.’
    â€˜No! She’s bringing the baby.’
    â€˜Oh. Shame. There’s someone I’d love you to meet.’
    â€˜What? Who?’
    â€˜Just a girl.’
    â€˜A girl, Finn? What girl?’
    â€˜A girl I think you’d like. She’s a really talented painter. She’s going to help me out with the refurbishment of this gaff.’
    â€˜With Coral Mansion?’
    â€˜Yeah.’
    â€˜She’s a house painter?’
    â€˜No. She’s like an artist painter. But she needs somewhere to stay, so she’s giving me a hand here, in return for bed and board.’
    â€˜Oh. Is she