Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 105756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
“Can we not talk about her? I just … I can’t right now.” The break in his voice had my heart clenching.
“No, of course,” I said, stepping back even though all I wanted to do was pull him into my arms and hold him until the pain went away. Jonathan resumed gathering our bags before he hit the locks on the car, and we headed inside. When we reached our apartments, I went up on my tiptoes and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “Call me if you want me to come over later, yeah?”
He nodded, his gaze soft once again as we parted ways.
I went inside and found my mother strewn on the couch watching TV and pecking at the pre-made charcuterie board I’d purchased for her visit.
“Ah, you’re back,” she said, smiling. “How was the wedding? Was the hotel fancy? I bet it was.”
I sat down next to her, picking up a slice of cheese and taking a bite while I filled her in on everything. I left out the part at the end where I told Jonathan about my accident because I was still berating myself for how badly I’d messed up. Why did I have to say what I said? I could’ve put it differently, phrased things in a way that didn’t make him think of how he’d never forgiven his mother, but I’d been too lost in my own story, too focused on getting it out.
Hoping Jonathan would text me to come over, I checked my phone and discovered it was still on “Do Not Disturb” mode. I’d put it on last night so Jonathan and I could enjoy our time together and had completely forgotten to turn it off that morning. As a result, I’d missed a barrage of calls, texts and voicemails, all of them from Rina.
As I read through the messages and listened to the voicemails, my heart sank as the picture became clear. Head Office had tried to get in touch with me yesterday to inform me that Pinebrook was being sold, and when they couldn’t get through, they called Rina instead. She’d been in her office talking to them with the door open when one of the carers, Magdalena, overheard. She then went into panic mode and shared the news with Hannah. Before long, it had spread to the rest of the staff as well as the residents. Now everyone was in a tizzy over what was going to become of Pinebrook.
Heaving the heaviest sigh imaginable, I turned to Mam. “There’s a situation at work that I have to go deal with, but I’ll bring back something nice for dinner. What are you in the mood for?”
“Hmm, how about Thai?”
“All right. I’ll call you when I’m on my way back.”
The next day and a half were a nightmare. When I arrived at Pinebrook, not only were the staff and residents’ emotions running high, but a bunch of relatives had also turned up wanting to know what was going to happen to their elderly family members. I spent hours meeting with everyone, trying to allay fears while tamping down my own. The worst had happened. Pinebrook was being sold, and depending on who bought it, all our lives might be thrown into disarray.
By Sunday evening, I’d finally managed to subdue the situation (for now), and it was only then I realised I hadn’t heard a peep from Jonathan. Fearing he’d reverted to his coping mechanism of getting blind drunk, I went to knock on his apartment door. There was no answer until footsteps approached, but instead of Jonathan, Therese appeared.
“Ada, hello,” she said, holding a laptop, a stack of folders as well as a small suitcase I recognised because it was the same one Jonathan had used on our trip to Cork.
“Therese, hi, is Jonathan about?”
“No, he’s staying at his mother’s house for a few days. I’ve just been tasked with gathering some of his things.”
“Ah, I see,” I said, heart plummeting. Why was he staying at Leonora’s? Was it because he was upset and trying to avoid me? “Well, I’ll let you get going, then.”
“Was there a message you’d like me to relay?” she asked.
“No, that’s okay. I’ll call him.”
“All right, then. Goodbye, dear.”
She moved to step out of the apartment, locking the door before heading down the hallway with Jonathan’s things.
I went next door to my own apartment, frowning the entire time, a bad feeling taking hold. Mam was nowhere to be found, but there was a note on the kitchen counter informing me she’d gone out to see Frances. There were still three days left on her visit, but I found myself wishing she was going home already. I didn’t feel much like hosting her until New Year’s, what with everything going on at work and the silence between Jonathan and me.