Where Rainbows End (18 page)

I’m not sure if she is still writing to you, but if she fills you in on any interesting aspects of her terribly busy and secretive life, please let me know.

I’m her mother and that is
definitely
law.

Everything at work is going well, I’m still at the hotel and I’m the longest employee they have there now. Funny isn’t it? But . . . and there’s always a

“but” with me. I know I’ve always been obsessed by the inner workings of hotels but I kind of feel “Is this it? Is this all there is to it?” Doing what I’m doing is fine and all, but I would like to move on a bit. More importantly I’d like to try to move up a bit. I won’t rest until I’m managing the Hilton hotels.

Greg says I’m mad. He says I would be crazy to give up a job with good love, rosie

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pay, a good boss, good hours. He thinks I have it easy here. I suppose he’s right though. I really can’t afford to take the risk because you never know; I could end up back working for Randy Andy. Now that would have to be the most depressing thing that could ever happen to me.

How is Josh? I would love to see him again. We must make arrangements to meet up soon. I don’t want him not knowing who I am. We always promised our kids would be best friends, remember? I don’t want to be one of those strange people to him that visits and once in a blue moon squeezes money into his hands. Although I very much liked those kinds of people myself, I would personally rather mean more to Josh.

OK so I think that’s all my very exciting news for you for now. Write to me, ring me, e-mail me, or fly over and visit me. Or you could do all of those things. Just do anything to let me know that you’re still walking the earth.

Miss you.

Love,

Rosie

Dear Rosie,

Just to let you know I’m still alive—just about. Sally seems to be sucking all the life out of me these days. We’re finalizing the divorce . . . it’s a nightmare.

So that’s what’s going on with me. Must go now; have to stick my hands in someone’s chest.

Give my love to Katie,

Alex

from:

Rosie

to:

Stephanie

subject:

Gossip!

Thanks for your letter, Steph. I am absolutely fine, thank you. Everyone is well and healthy, we have no complaints. I feel I’ve made the right decision about Greg and from just listening to Alex about the divorce procedure, I’m 160

Cecelia Ahern

glad Greg and I didn’t take that route. At least Sally and Josh haven’t moved far from Alex so he can make arrangements to see Josh quite regularly.

My worst nightmare would be to lose Katie. I don’t know what I would do. She may watch MTV all day, blare music from her room, ruin my days off by making me go into school to fight with Ms. Big Nose Smelly Breath Casey, leave glitter all over the couches and carpets, worry me to death when she’s one minute late for her nine o’clock curfew, but she’s the most important thing to me in my life. She comes first all of the time. I’m so glad Alex missed the debs and I’m so glad that Brian the Whine was such a boring person. The men in my life may have let me down but the little girl in my life makes up for it every single day.

Dear Ms. Rosie Dunne,

I was hoping you would be free on Monday the 16th at 9 a.m. to meet with me at the school. Toby Flynn’s parents will also be in attendance. It is regarding the recent results of the summer maths exam. It appears that Katie and Toby have the same answers for all the questions. What jumped out at me was the fact that the majority of these answers are wrong. I have discussed this with Katie and Toby and they insist it was coincidental.

Cheating, as you well know, is considered to be a very serious offense at St. Patrick’s primary school. I seem to have a case of déjà vu, Rosie . . .

Please ring to confirm your presence.

Ms. Casey

from:

Rosie

to:

Alex

subject:

Grown-ups

What are the two of us like? I was going to say who knew we’d be going through so much “grown-up stuff” but I don’t consider you going through a divorce and me trying to pick up the pieces of my marriage grown-up. I think we both had it pretty much sussed when we were playing cops and robbers in the back garden. It’s all been downhill from there!

The weather has been beautiful over here for the past few weeks. I love June in Dublin. The gray buildings seem less gray, the unhappy faces seem brighter. It is so hot here at work though. The entire front of the hotel building is built from glass and it feels like we’re working in a greenhouse on days like today. It’s such a contrast to our winter months when the sound of the fat raindrops hitting off the glass echoes around the quiet foyer. It’s a pretty sound but sometimes the hailstones are so loud and forceful, threatening to smash through the glass. Right now I’m staring up at a rich blue sky dotted with white candy-floss grazing sheep. It is beautiful.

Convertible sports cars have their tops down and music is blaring, busi-nessmen have been casually strolling down the street past the hotel, with their jackets slung over their shoulders and their shirtsleeves rolled up, reluc-162

Cecelia Ahern

tant to get back to the office. The college students have all seemingly decided to call off their plans to attend lectures to flake out in large circles in the park. The ducks are gathering by the edge of the pond, glad they won’t have to search for their own food today. Mounds of soggy uneaten bread float on the surface of the water waiting to be pecked at.

A flirting couple chase each other around the large water fountain catching its cool spray on their bare arms and legs in order to cool their body temperatures. Couples in love stretch out together on the grass and gaze longingly into each other’s eyes. Children avail of the playground while their parents relax in the sun keeping one eye shut and one eye lazily focused on their excited offspring who squeal with delight.

Shop owners stand at the entrance doors to their empty shops watching the world go by. Office workers gaze dreamily out of the window from the desks high up in their clammy stuffy offices enviously watching the city throb with excitement.

The sound of laughter is in the air, people are full of smiles, there’s a bounce in their step. The veranda of the hotel is busy with people taking drinks out in the sun. Long Island iced teas, gin and tonics, tangy orange with crushed ice, lime green concoctions, fruity cocktails, and bowls of ice cream. Layers of clothes are being discarded and hung on the backs of chairs.

Cleaning ladies hum softly to themselves and smile while polishing the brass, feeling the sun’s rays streaming down on their faces. Days like this don’t come often and you can tell everyone wishes they did.

And I sit here and think of you. I send you my love.

from:

Alex

to:

Rosie

subject:

Happy!

You sounded happy! I’ve just returned from a weekend with Josh. He’s a feisty little thing now Rosie, he’s running around trying to grab anything and everything from left, right, and center. I was almost afraid to blink in case love, rosie

163

the room came crashing down around me. But he’s in great form and I feel so happy and rejuvenated after the weekend. Seeing him always lights me up, a switch is flicked somewhere in my body. I could watch him forever. Watch how he learns, how he teaches himself, how he eventually finds a way to do things without help from anyone. Josh takes chances; he’s braver than I am.

He always takes that extra step when he nos he shouldn’t. He does it anyway and he learns. I think we adults have a lot to learn from that. Perhaps to not be so afraid and oversensible about reaching for goals.

So I am taking Josh’s advice. A surgeon whose work I greatly admire is giving a talk during the week. It’s a few days of seminars about a new heart procedure he has developed. I’m going to try and meet him, along with the other thousand or so wannabe heart surgeons who will be there. Rumor has it he’s from Ireland and has moved over here to develop his studies further.

Cross your fingers and pray for a miracle.

from:

Rosie

to:

Alex

subject:

Mysterious meeting

I have a mysterious meeting with Bill, my boss, next week. I have no idea what it’s about, but I’m quite nervous about it. He flew over yesterday in a not so good mood and has had a series of secret meetings all day. Lots of suspicious-looking people have been arriving to talk to him on the hour every hour dressed in dark suits. They could, of course, be giving him hourly updates of the news but somehow I doubt that very much. I have an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach.

What makes it even worse is the fact that his brother Bob is flying over tomorrow morning. They only ever get together to do the hiring and firing. I think that’s all Bob does, really. His brother does all the work on their hotels around the world and he just spends his share of the money on houses, cars, holidays, and women, so I hear. Why is it that people always put women in the same category as cars and holidays as though we’re prizes on a game show?

Jesus I hope they don’t fire me. I don’t know what I would do. I think I 164

Cecelia Ahern

would sleep with him to keep this job. That’s how much I love it. Or how scared I am about having to search for another one. Or how desperate I am to sleep with a man other than Greg for a change. I love him but bless him; he’s a sucker for routine.

Better go and look like I’m really busy so that they will have absolutely no grounds to fire me. Cross your fingers for me, and I’ll cross mine for you.

from:

Alex

to:

Rosie

subject:

Re: Mysterious meeting

Don’t worry, it will all be fine! They have no reason to fire you! (Have they?) You have done nothing wrong since the day you started working there.

In fact you’ve hardly even called in sick! Everything will be fine. Just about to leave the apartment now to go to seminar. Good luck to the both of us!

from:

Rosie

to:

Alex

subject:

Re: Mysterious meeting

You’re right. They can’t fire me. I’m just being stupid. I am a great employee. They have no reason to. At least no reasons that they know of. I mean, they could never find out about the time I brought Ruby up to show her the penthouse suite. And even if they do know that, there’s no way that they could know that we ordered room service and stayed the night.

Could they?

Maybe it was the missing bathrobes that they noticed. But they were so cozy and I had to take one home . . .

Or maybe it was the empty minibar. But I distinctly remember asking Peter to restock the fridge and he owed me one after I gave his parents a Valentine’s Day discount in the middle of May. So it can’t be that . . . oh god this is killing me. I really don’t want to work for Randy Andy again and I don’t think I have energy to go sending CV’s out again. And the stress of another job interview.

love, rosie

165

They only want to meet with me. But Bill didn’t smile at me when he said it and his eyes weren’t as twinkly as usual. Oh no what does that mean?!

from:

Rosie

to:

Alex

subject:

Fired!

Oh my god, the new skinny girl has a meeting too next week. She’s the worst worker ever. She’s called in sick more times than she’s been in. Probably because she never eats. Lunch breaks are wasted on her. She just stares across the table at your plate with a horrible face on her as though food is the devil and she sips on a bottle of water. Then halfway through her bottle she gets full, tightens the lid, and leaves it behind.

I better start job-hunting I think.

from:

Alex

to:

Rosie

subject:

Chill out!

For Christ sake Rosie Dunne, I love you with all my heart but you need to chill out!

You have an instant message from: RUBY

Ruby:

Oooh so he loves you with all his heart does he?

Rosie:

Oh stop reading my e-mails Ruby.

Ruby:

Well, get a less obvious password, “Buttercup.” You two are being all flirty with each other lately.

Rosie:

No we haven’t! How on earth have we been flirty??!

Ruby:

You know yourself.

Rosie:

Oh please I thought you were going to make a good point for once in your life.

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Cecelia Ahern

Ruby:

I have one and you know it.

Rosie:

We’re just getting along like we used to do; that’s all. Alex has perked himself up, I think he’s happy again.

Ruby:

Because he’s in lurve . . .

Rosie:

He is not in love. Well not with me anyway.

Ruby:

Oh sorry I was just misguided by the fact that he said in his e-mail that he “loved you with all his heart.”

Rosie:

As a friend loves a friend Ruby.

Ruby:

You’re my friend and I do not love you with all my heart. Hell I hardly love Teddy with all my heart.

Rosie:

OK then Alex and I are madly in love and we’re going to run away and have a passionate love affair.

Ruby:

You see? It doesn’t hurt to admit it does it?

Rosie:

Whatever. How’s your Gary?

Ruby:

Overweight.

Rosie:

Jesus do you see anything else other than weight when you look at him?

Ruby:

Yes, I see memories of hours of agonizing labor. He still grunts at me and makes signals. Although I heard him on the telephone to his girlfriend Gemma. He uses words, you know?

Rosie:

That’s amazing Ruby.

Ruby:

Well a mother is allowed to be proud.

Rosie:

Hold on Ruby.

Rosie:

Oh my god, celery stick just got back from meeting with Bill and Bob and she’s crying her eyes out. They just fired her. I’m next. Shit.

I better go. Shit. Shit. Shit.