Working Wonders (41 page)

Lynne stepped out onto the ice. ‘Don’t fall over,’ she said to Arthur, who immediately did so. She hauled him up with remarkable strength as he found his ice legs.

They wandered carefully through the crowds, Arthur marvelling at the different things there were to buy: not only that, but the ferris wheel was up and running. He couldn’t imagine who would dare to go on that, but it was full.

More than that, dancers on ice were circling on a makeshift stage marked out with braziers, as musicians played, and jesters roamed, and one of the jesters tried (badly) to juggle with fire brands.

It was exactly as he had pictured it, and everything he could have wished for.

Down the bank, Arthur saw a group of bright lights heralding the tram station. The colours, noises and smells on all sides overwhelmed him.

‘I don’t … I don’t believe it.’

He waved wildly to the jester, who looked straight through him.

‘Keep moving,’ said Lynne. ‘Don’t try to talk to anyone. For … um, no reason.’

‘This is great … it’s
great
,’ he said.

‘Well, pat yourself on the back.’

A hectic game of ice tag came between them. Arthur looked at the joyous children and shook his head. ‘But still … was it worth losing Sven, though?’

‘Remember those kids underneath the embankment that day?’ said Lynne

‘Yes.’

‘That’s those kids playing tag.’

She smiled at him. ‘It was worth it. This city could have taken more than losing Sven, I promise.’

Arthur stood stock still, trying to take in all the scene at once.

‘Come on, come on, we can’t stay.’

‘
Why
? I want to stay.’

‘Well, you can’t.’

Gradually, the lights of the ice carnival had tapered out and the noise was fading behind them. They were approaching the far bank of the river. Looking up, for an instant, Arthur thought he saw something move through the trees.

‘What’s that?’

‘That’s where we’re going.’

The fair was well behind them now, and everything was quiet, just the crackle of the ice beneath their feet. Arthur peered, with only the moonlight to guide him, at the white shape moving between the trees.

Eventually it resolved itself.

‘Oh my God,’ said Arthur. ‘It’s the horse! The horse that was in my dream!’

It was. The beautiful mare stood at least seventeen hands high, and was snorting cold air through her nostrils. Lynne stalked towards it.

Arthur turned around and took one, last regretful look behind him at the town; glowing, with light and colour, and even in this sudden, suspicious chill, with warmth and fun and glee. As he watched, fireworks exploded over the river and lit up the sky. Lynne was untethering the horse.

Suddenly, he felt something under his hand. Starting and looking down, he saw that it was Sandwiches, or, more specifically, Sandwiches’s tongue, giving him a friendly lick.

He smiled in pleasure and knelt down in the cold to scratch the little dog.

‘Come on!’ said Lynne sternly. ‘It’s time you learned to ride. There’s a Commonwealth games going begging in Barnsley.’

‘God,’ said Arthur to Sandwiches, as both man and dog looked at Lynne, then straightened and followed her into the trees. ‘You have no idea how glad I am you’re here.’

Thanks to Ali ‘the stun’ Gunn, Rachel Hore, Lynne Drew, Nick Marston, Nick Sayers, Deborah Schneider, Jennifer Parr, Fiona McIntosh, Amanda Ridout, John Bond, Jane Harris, Martin Palmer, Venetia Butterfield, Esther Taylor and all at Curtis Brown and HarperCollins.

Also: Museum of London, Adrian Fisher at www.mazemaker.com, Sam Kennedy for not getting your name in – I just couldn’t write a character as fantastic as you deserve, I’m sorry. Andrew Mueller – yes, he’s half-bred, ho ho; Ronita Dutta (WLX!!!), Martin Quinn and James Crawford for their support and encouragement at particularly crucial moments.

Another book written listening to a fantastic Chris Hoban album: www.chrishoban.com

And: Katrina McCormack, Karen Murphy, Salty Sandra, Shappi & Susan, Dan Rhodes, Ben Hatch, Mum and Dad, and the Writer’s Blockettes.

I’d also like to take this opportunity to apologize for any suspect geography in this book. Sorry, Mrs Barr (who is in fact a very good geography teacher).

SAVE THE BEDLAM!

WORKING WONDERS

Jenny Colgan was born in 1972 in Ayrshire. After Edinburgh University, she worked for six years in the health service, moonlighting as a cartoonist and stand-up comic. She is the author of three previous bestselling novels:
Amanda’s Wedding, Talking to Addison and Looking for Andrew McCarthy
, all of which are in development for film and TV. Jenny Colgan lives in London and is working on her fifth novel,
Sixteen Again
, to be published in 2004, and a TV series. For more information about Jenny Colgan, visit her website at www.jennycolgan.co.uk.

Acclaim for
Working Wonders

‘In this witty and clever story, Colgan combines the mundane with the magical to create a memorable tale. The characters grow more loveable as the adventure progresses, and it’s impossible not to root for them. Funny, magical and moving, this is a rewarding read.’

Time Out

‘We laughed a lot’

Heat

‘A delicious comedy. Will melt even the hardest of hearts.’

Red

‘Colgan’s witty book perfectly captures the frustrations and petty vexations of office life.’

She

‘Hugely entertaining and very funny.’

Cosmopolitan

‘A funny, clever page-turner.’

Closer

‘Fans of
The Office
will love this witty tale.’

Woman’s Own

‘A quirky tale of love, work and the meaning of life.’

Company

‘If you think David Brent causes mayhem in
The Office
wait till you see what town-planner Arthur and his team get up to in Jenny Colgan’s comic romp.’

In Style

Looking for Andrew McCarthy
:

‘Colgan is on top form with this, her latest outrageous romp.’

Cosmopolitan

‘Jenny Colgan is one of the leaders of the pack and this, her third novel, will delight her legion of admirers. Fast-paced, funny, poignant and well-observed it reads as a pastiche of the movies she loved … If a time capsule were buried to capture the world at the turn of the 21st century, this would be a candidate for inclusion: her sense of time and place are that authentic.’

Daily Mail

‘
Looking for Andrew McCarthy
will strike a chord with anyone who did their growing up in the 80s. Wonderful, warm and resonant for anyone who ever wondered what happened to teenage dreams.’

Hello

‘
That’s Life
meets
This Life
, with
Once in a Lifetime
thrown in, all talking heads, witty one-liners and angst-ridden relationships … Did I like this book? Well, d’uh! Do hedgehogs have quills? A pure belter of a novel.’

Glasgow Herald

‘Colgan’s enjoyable new bestseller investigates the notion that having it all can sometimes mean having precisely nothing at all.’

Marie Claire

‘Colgan’s
Looking for Andrew McCarthy
is sharp, well-observed and hilarious.’

New Statesman

‘Colgan’s got an ear for sarky dialogue and a humour that gives her more options … retroirony, perfect for a conscientious objector’s beach holiday.’

ID

Talking to Addison
:

‘Jenny Colgan delivers the goods with her new novel … absolutely brilliant! What really sets Jenny apart from most of her contemporaries is this: she is very, very funny, so much so that this book had me laughing out loud and it takes quite something to make me do that.’

Express

‘There’s razor-sharp wit to this tale of romantic confusion.’

Cosmopolitan

Amanda’s Wedding
:

‘Jenny Colgan’s
Amanda’s Wedding
is a scream.’

Elle

‘
Four Weddings and a Funeral
meets
Friends
.’

Tatler

‘Compulsively comical.’

Cosmopolitan

‘Funny and insightful.’

Mail on Sunday

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, organizations, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or organizations is entirely coincidental.

HarperCollins
Publishers

77–85 Fulham Palace Road

Hammersmith

London W6 8JB

www.harpercollins.co.uk

First published in Great Britain by HarperCollins
Publisbers
2003

Copyright © Jenny Colgan 2003

Jenny Colgan asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

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EBook Edition © APRIL 2013 ISBN 9780007379989

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