In all that time, they had never once had a serious threat to their empire; everyone in their orbit knew that they were not people who you took on lightly. Peter saw that his reputation, coupled with that of his brother, was more than enough to deter the majority of the people they dealt with from stepping out of line. Plus they were very fair in their dealings, and that went a long way. They also made a point of keeping the peace; when other families had grievances against each other, they mediated between them and they always tried their best to come to a conclusion that was acceptable to both the parties involved. It was important to remember that everyone they dealt with had some kind of involvement with the Baileys.

Peter observed as his eldest son welcomed people with the right amount of respect, making sure that they knew who was the boss. He watched his Ria as she oversaw the waiters as they passed around the champagne; this had had to look ‘expensively casual’ – whatever the fuck that meant! That was what Ria was aiming for by all accounts; this was her domain and he had to let her do whatever she wanted.

Bernadette O’Toole who, as lovely as she was, had never had a real fucking wedge in her life, was clearly determined to have the best of everything. Well, after tonight, that was his eldest son’s job, not his, and he had a sneaky suspicion that his lad would soon feel the pressure of her insistence on only having the very best. If she had been brought up to all this then Peter would have said fair play to her, but knowing that she had been raised one small step away from hand-to-mouth irritated him. He couldn’t help it.

Bernadette O’Toole acted as if she was better than everyone around her. Her looks were enough to make some believe that might actually be so. But as soon as she opened her mouth and spoke, any thoughts along those lines were soon forgotten. Bernadette O’Toole sounded rougher than a Basildon pikey.

Still, Petey was enamoured of her, although the real attraction for his eldest son was the fact that she was a virgin; for a man like his Petey that was a major selling point. He had the kind of personality that made him determined to have everything first, from cars to women. Peter only hoped his son didn’t lose interest in this wife of his as quickly as he usually did with his new toys. He still hoped that it all worked out for them, despite his dislike of the girl. Like his wife, he was willing to put up with her if she was what his son wanted.

Bernadette smiled at her fiancé’s father, hoping he was as bowled over by her looks as everyone else was.