Finding Ellie (Complete)

Chapter 19

Fiona left him to it. He would figure it out soon enough so she let him trash the office and closed the door behind him. Following the fight, Ellie had left, eyes shimmering with unshed tears. Although Ellie knew, hearing it out loud had stung that much more. God those two were hopeless. Why were they making things so difficult? It was simple wasn’t it? Two people who loved each other should be together. As far as Fiona was concerned, that was that.

A particularly, loud crash had her believing something expensive had just been destroyed. She moved to the door to put an end to the tantrum and sighed loudly when Brenna stopped her.

“I should probably be the one to go in there.” Brenna stood in front of the door blocking Fiona from going any further.

“And why would that be?” Fiona crossed her arms over her chest.

“You’re just the barmaid, you wouldn’t understand the relationship Aidan and I have.” Brenna gave a dismissive wave of her hand as if to brush off something particularly nasty from her clothes.

“You no longer work here.” She hadn’t meant to say it but the woman had driven her to it in a matter of seconds. But God, Fiona reveled in seeing Brenna’s face fall.

“You don’t have that power.” Brenna stepped forward as if to challenge Fiona.

“No, she doesn’t”

Both women turned at the sound of Aidan’s voice, neither had heard the door open. Split lip, purple cheek and knuckles raw. He was a sorry sight indeed.

Assuming that she had won that battle, Brenna placed a hand on Aidan’s shoulder

“Would you mind giving us some privacy Fiona?” As sweetly as she could. “We have a lot to discuss.”

“Fiona stays.” Aidan shrugged off her hand. “She doesn’t have the power to fire you but I do.”

Brenna’s faced first paled then reddened with anger. She had not seen it coming. This was not how it was supposed to go. The vein popping on her forehead was a nice touch, Fiona thought. The clanging of pots and pans in the kitchen ceased when Brenna screeched loudly through clenched teeth.

“How dare you?”

“After too many complaints, inappropriate behavior and advances towards me, and the countless men who frequent the pub, I’m letting you go,” Aidan clarified, holding up a file folder.

“You can’t do that,” Brenna objected. She looked around, realized the cook and busboy had now joined them. She gazed at each of them in turn; none of them able to look at her in the eye as this was happening except for Fiona who seemed to be enjoying all of it entirely too much. No one was coming to her defense then.

“I can and I just have.” Aidan handed her an envelope “Your last pay as well as two weeks, I wish you the best.”

“You’ll regret this.” Brenna lifted her chin. She would leave with her head held high.

“My only regret is not doing it sooner,” Aidan muttered, after the door had slammed shut on Brenna’s heels. He was tired, sore and wanted only his bed. Thankfully, Fiona saw this and told him to go. She would take care of closing.

Walking home would do him good. The cool drizzle felt like heaven on his bloodied and beaten body. He hadn’t meant for it to go that far but when Riley’s grip on Ellie had obviously hurt her something inside him snapped. Donal Kelly had gotten word to him that Riley was fine and actually quite embarrassed with what had occurred, saying something about a misunderstanding. Aidan decided there would come a day when Riley would be welcomed at the pub again but not quite yet. Passing the B & B without so much as a glance, he reached his cottage in time to see Brenna close the curtains of her picture window across the street. He was well-informed that several other pubs wanted her even though they knew she could be a handful. She would find something else in no time.

Willo greeted him as soon as he opened the door. She hovered when he collapsed on the couch. “I’ll take you out in a bit.” He lifted his hand to place it on her head then drifted off into a fitful slumber.

                                                                                                ***

“You can’t just give up,” Mrs. Callaghan pleaded with Ellie. “He’s being stubborn, you know how he is.”

“You heard him, he’s done.” Ellie sat at the kitchen table, her tea untouched. She knew Mrs. Callaghan was trying to make her feel better but she couldn’t see how this could be resolved.

“Write him a letter.”

“What?” Ellie’s eyes locked with the older woman’s.

“Is it possible he really doesn’t know how you feel?” Mrs. Callaghan grabbed something from the counter, sat at the table and pushed the flyer across to Ellie. “Write to him, tell him. Leave nothing to chance.”

Ellie picked up the handout. “Matchmaking Festival?” she asked, confusion lacing her voice.

“Every year, Lisdoonvarna has a Matchmaking Festival. People from all over the world come down in the hopes of finding that one true love. The town is considered the matchmaking capital of the world,” Mrs. Callaghan explained. “Funny, I know, but a lot of people flock there every year for it.”

“I’m still confused,” Ellie stated, her brows knitted. “What does this have to do with anything?”

“Write the letter, tell him how you feel and to meet you at the festival if he feels the same.” Quite proud of herself, Mrs. Callaghan smiled. “There’s live music and vendors in the streets, the pubs are open late.”

“What if he doesn’t?” Ellie whispered, afraid of the answer.

“Well, if he doesn’t then he’s a stupid man.” Mrs. Callaghan lifted her tea cup to her lips. “If he doesn’t, then at least you’ll know.”

                                                                                                ***

At least I’ll know, Ellie thought as she sat on her bed an hour later with pen and paper in hand. If anything, it was a ‘Do something Ellie would never do’ moment. And, as if on cue, she heard the familiar sound of video chat. It was like the woman could sense when Ellie needed her expert advice.

Lifting the screen of the laptop, her eyes filled when she saw Poppy’s beautiful face.

“Sweet baby Jesus you dyed your hair jet black.”

“Yeah, but I don’t really like it. I’ll probably have it changed again in a few… what’s wrong?” Poppy took one look at her best friends tear streaked face. “What did he do?”

Ellie told her everything that happened since the last time they had spoken. From Brenna’s attempts at driving them apart to the storm, the fight, all of it, and Poppy listened to all of it before uttering a single word, a true testament of their friendship if you asked her.

“So you’re going to do what Mrs. C. suggested right?” Poppy liked the old woman, appreciated that she was there for Ellie when she couldn’t be.

“I’ve gone this far.” Ellie chewed on her bottom lip. “I wouldn’t be doing myself any favors by stopping now. I don’t know if I can find the words though”

“I know you can, just write what’s in your heart.”

“Poppy, when did you become such a wise romantic?” Ellie cast an eye on the clock. If she was going to do this, and send it to him in time, she needed to start now.

“One of those sappy, Hallmark card type letters.” Poppy gave a toothy grin.

Ellie snorted. “And she’s back.”

Her floor littered with scrunched up balls of paper, Ellie spent a better part of the day writing and re-writing. None of them were good enough for what she wanted to convey to him. Why was this so hard? She wrote for a living for crying out loud. Words should flow easily from her but not, it seemed, when it came to matters of the heart or at least when it came to matters of her own heart. Ultimately, she read the one she had been holding onto for the past twenty minutes. This was the one she would send to him. This was the one that would determine whether she stayed in Ireland or would go back to Boston with her tail between her legs. Back to her old life and in her old apartment for her to make new again.

Aidan,

I won’t deny it any longer and, in the event you aren’t aware of how deep my feelings are for you, here it is. I’m in love with you. I think I have been since the first time you said my name. I don’t know what the future holds but I’d like to see where it goes with you. Meet me in

Lisdoonvarna Thursday, at sundown, if you feel the same. I’ll be waiting with baited breath outside the Matchmaker Bar.

I’ll stay if you ask me to.

Ellie

It was direct and to the point. There was no fluff and no beating around the bush. She added the last sentence on a whim, now debating whether or not she should keep it there. No, she was stalling, and so she folded the piece of paper and stuffed it in an envelope, sealing it before she had a chance to really think about what she was doing. Downstairs, she gave the envelope to Mrs. Callaghan before losing her nerve.

“You’ll be fine.” Mrs. Callaghan pocketed the letter with the intention of sending Finn to deliver it a little later. However, sensing Ellie might change her mind she called her grandson over so he could run it over without delay.

“I hope so.” Ellie let out a shaky breath she had been holding to. She had to be crazy for doing this. Do something Ellie would never do was all she could think about. She should really take the letter back and forget all about it. But Mrs. Callaghan was already handing the envelope to Finn, and it would be in poor taste to tackle a nine year old boy to the ground just so she could get it back.

In her room once more, she paced the small area between her bed and the window seat. In about twenty-four hours she would be standing in Lisdoonvarna waiting for Aidan. She was so worried that he wouldn’t show up she didn’t stop to think, what if he did? What if he did show up? What would happen then? Whichever way it would go she had put her heart out there not knowing if he would accept it or crush it. With only a few words he could do either.

                                                                                                ***

“Well?” Mrs. Callaghan asked Finn when he returned from the pub a lot quicker than she had anticipated. Had she not instructed him to wait while Aidan read the letter?

“It’s been delivered Gran.” Finn grabbed a cookie from the jar. “The nice lady took it and said she would give it to Aidan personally.”

“Good, good.” Mrs. Callaghan nodded. Fiona would ensure Aidan got it and by God the lad had better show up. After everything those two had both gone through, it was high time they had a happy ending.

                                                                                                ***

She had gone to the pub to get her job back, beg if she had to. What Brenna had not expected to see was her replacement already there practicing. She knew who he was, had seen him at a few céilís, playing guitar and singing. She vaguely remembered trying to have him join her for some one on one fun to no avail. Girls hung onto his every word and visibly swooned when he entered a room. It was also possible that she was bitter the handsome singer with the smoky voice had turned her down... twice.

While she was standing there, the boy, not looking where he was going, ran into her.

“Sorry, ma’am”

She turned to give him the dirtiest look she could muster. The one she reserved for children. God, she hated children with their sticky fingers, always asking why and constantly needing to be watched. She would never have children on purpose. She had given her child a gift really when she put it up for adoption.

At the time she had hated her parents for forcing her to give up her daughter, now she considered calling to thank them. Wouldn’t they be surprised to hear her voice after what? Ten years? She had seen them a few months ago in Galway city. Her mother had remained mostly unchanged with her short bob, colored black to keep her looking young, the wrinkles around her eyes and mouth the only indication that she had aged at all. Her father had greyed considerably and, she noticed, walked with a cane. She had wondered at the time what had happened but thought better of it and turned on her heel, never looking back.

As for Caitriona O’Keefe, she had seen her daughter, had recognized her right away. She had wanted to reach out to her but her husband would have forbidden it, just as he had forbidden her to try to contact Brenna after the baby had been born. According to Niall O’Keefe, Brenna’s loose morals and delinquent ways were not how he had raised his daughter. As far as he was concerned he had no daughter.

Brenna was about to tell the boy that he didn’t belong in a pub when she noticed the small envelope he was holding. Specifically, she noticed the name on the envelope: Aidan.

“You’d be Mrs. Callaghan’s grandson?”

The boy nodded, not really paying attention. He was too busy looking around the pub, never really having stepped into one. He didn’t understand why adults wouldn’t let him; he was nine years old after all, practically an adult himself. So, when the pretty lady told him Aidan was currently busy but she would gladly pass on the letter to him, he gave it to her. He had much better things to do than to stand around waiting for a grown-up to read a letter.

They dared to replace her with Shaun Duffy. He may bring in a fresh crowd but she would have the last laugh. Brenna glanced at the envelope and exacted her revenge. She ripped the letter in half and with a wicked grin, shoved it in the wastebasket on her way out.