The Irish Child: Tear-jerking, totally compelling Irish timeslip fiction (Emerald Isles) by Daisy O'Shea

Author:Daisy O'Shea [O'Shea, Daisy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bookouture
Published: 2024-07-16T00:00:00+00:00

21

ERIN

I sleep like a log, in fact, and wake late, feeling as though a little of the weight of grief has been lifted from my shoulders. I touch my lips with my fingertips and wait for the feeling of guilt to flood in, but it doesn’t. Finn kissed me, and Kenny’s presence is growing fainter.

I didn’t come to Roone Bay seeking a new relationship. If anyone had asked, it was the last thing I was seeking. But perhaps not looking for love is the best way to discover it. I’m not going to convince myself that that’s what it is with Finn – it’s far too soon. But the barriers have descended enough to allow for the possibility. It is time I let go of Kenny, and I think he would approve. He wouldn’t want me to die of love, like women do in the old ballads. He would want me to live life to the full.

Maybe I’ve negotiated one of those mystical hurdles my therapist mentioned. One hurdle at a time. You’ll be surprised, one day, when you wake up and find that you still have something to give, something to live for. That was all the help she ever gave me, actually. Mostly the therapy sessions were me venting about the unfairness of life, and leaving without any hint of how I was supposed to move on.

Grace looks happy when I bump into her downstairs.

‘Did you enjoy meeting my family yesterday?’

‘Absolutely,’ I say and mean it.

‘I have to apologise for the third degree. It’s what people thrive on down here. There’s little enough to do except gossip.’

‘You’re not Irish yourself, though?’

‘Born and bred in England, but all four of my grandparents were Irish, so I’ve got an Irish passport. Apparently, that makes me Irish, but I’m going to marry an Irishman when my divorce is finalised, which kind of seals the deal!’

‘I guess I’m American through and through, despite some of my forebears coming from here.’

‘It’s not always in the genes. We have people drifting in from other nations, England, Holland, Germany and further east, who come here for a visit and stay because they feel that they belong.’

I can understand that. I felt like an absolute alien when I arrived, but in just a short time, this place has its claws into me, and I don’t think it has anything to do with my somewhat diluted Irish ancestry.

She changes the subject. ‘Well, actually, I came to tell you some good news. ‘Yesterday we interviewed a young woman from Cork. We all liked her instantly, and Noel asked her to start in the hotel after Christmas. She has to work her notice, and we’re already heading towards November.’

‘As manager?’

‘No, unfortunately. She’s keen but doesn’t have that kind of experience. She’ll be an administrative assistant and general dogsbody, so can at least take the pressure off my mother and myself, but who knows where that will go? And I have a chef coming in to interview next week. Again, he’s young and worked in a restaurant, so he’s inexperienced in managing a kitchen this big.

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