The Matchmaker (29 page)

Maggie Ryan and her sister Kitty had undertaken the annual pilgrimage to the Holy Shrine in Mayo to thank the Lord for his blessings ever since Aunt Kitty’s awful diagnosis with breast cancer. Her mother’s handbag was already stuffed full of letters and petitions from neighbours and friends, every one of them looking for favours and requests.

‘Grace, there must be something you’d like a bit of divine intervention on,’ she coaxed. ‘Anna and Sarah have already given me their letters.’

Grace grabbed a piece of notepaper from the pad in the kitchen and scribbled something, hunting in the drawer for an envelope, and then sealed it shut.

‘There,’ she said, passing it over.

Her mum looked relieved. She loved to have things to pray for: exams, health, decisions, careers. She’d always been the religious type, a real Irish Catholic mammy who loved going to mass and talking to the saints. She was spiritual in her own way but ever since Leo’s death she’d derived great comfort from prayer and helping out in the parish. Grace would bet her mother was doing this pilgrimage in the hope of the Good Lord finding her daughters husbands. She smiled to herself. Maggie Ryan was looking for a miracle if she thought any decent men were suddenly going to appear on the scene, prayers or not!

‘Auntie Grace, I’m sleeping over in your house tonight!’ squealed Evie, her red and black ladybird backpack at the ready. Grace smiled, remembering the excitement of going to stay with Aunt Kitty or Granny when she was younger, half nervous about missing your mother but anticipating something different: a new bed, strange food, a break from the humdrum routine of childhood.

‘Remember, if there are any problems, phone me!’ urged her mum as she walked them out to the car. ‘And no fizzy drinks before bed or she’ll be awake half the night.’

‘Mum, she’s going to be fine. Evie and I are going to have a great time together.’

‘I’ll say a prayer for the two of you,’ smiled her mother, waving as they set off.

Evie ran around the apartment three times like a small puppy checking everything out while Grace made a start on fixing them dinner: chicken strips tossed in a golden coating of flour and herbs then roasted and served with potato wedges. Her niece had been to visit a few times before, but without Sarah, it was now all new territory. Curious, she pulled open the kitchen presses and the larder cupboard and the fridge before checking out the small spare bedroom where she was to sleep. Grace had bought three pink pillows in Dunnes and a ballerina-patterned lampshade for the bedside light. She’d been tempted to go to town and change the whole room and make it more child-friendly but had settled on a girly touch.

Evie carefully unzipped her backpack and Grace helped her to put away her clothes neatly in the drawer, taking out a photo of Evie and Sarah at the zoo and putting it beside her bed. Evie ran in and checked Grace’s bedroom before going back and racing out on to the balcony where she was fascinated by the boats and water beneath her.

‘We’re so high up,’ she giggled, tossing a geranium leaf in the air and watching it float downwards.

Grace supposed it was a bit different from the basement flat that she was used to.

‘Evie, why don’t you get into your pyjamas after dinner and we can watch the DVDs I got?’

‘Auntie Grace, aren’t you getting into your pyjamas too?’

‘Of course I will.’ She smiled as she served the plates of food, glad that Evie was a kid with a good appetite and not one of those faddy eaters.

It was just gone eight o’clock on a Friday evening and she was getting into her pyjamas.

‘Everyone wears their PJs at sleepovers,’ giggled Evie, following her into the bedroom and watching her undress while jumping up and down on her big double bed. Grace joined in the fun a few minutes later!

She had bought dolly mixtures, midget gems, marshmallows and a bag of toffee popcorn along with apple juice and chocolate milk. She had managed to get a copy of
Mary Poppins
and a cute-looking DVD about a dog called Merlin who could do magic. Evie was big into dogs by all accounts.

They snuggled up on the cream couch using a throw from her bed to wrap themselves in as Evie, entranced, followed the story, her small face serious, her dark hair falling over her smooth cheeks. Her eyes almost popped out of her head as Mary Poppins worked her magic and her fingers reached for Grace’s hand. Grace watched the film but spent half the time watching Evie. Sarah was so lucky to have such a lovely kid!

Evie got up and danced to one or two of the songs totally unselfconsciously, making Grace join in, and laughed like a trooper when Merlin the dog turned his owner into a rabbit and began to chase him.

When she saw Evie’s eyes begin to get heavy and ready for sleep, Grace announced that it was time for bed and Evie without any protests had washed her face and hands and brushed her teeth and clambered in between the crisp white sheets.

‘I’ll read you a story,’ Grace offered, sitting beside her. She took up the illustrated copy of
Cinderella and the Glass Slipper
, one of her niece’s favourites.

Evie’s dark eyelashes gradually closed and Grace sat in utter silence for half an hour, entranced, simply watching her breathe.

Later Grace curled up in a chair outside on the balcony. The city was in darkness; the Friday after-work crowds were making their way to bars and restaurants; the river was slipping by below her. Life, like the dark water of the Liffey beneath, was passing her by. Where was the time going to? She had the best family in the world, had enjoyed an almost perfect childhood and was fortunate to work in the area she had always wanted. Yet she still wasn’t satisfied. She wanted more. Her life was as empty and shallow as a life could be. She was thirty and single and facing a lifetime of being on her own, of being an aunt and maybe never a mother. She didn’t know if she could bear it! They’d all thought Sarah was crazy when she’d jumped in and followed her heart when she was nineteen and never thought of the consequences. With her perfect child, at least she had something to show for it! And Anna might say she didn’t give a toss about love and men but it was clear to everyone that she had fallen for this guy in Connemara. A tear ran down her face. She had read somewhere in a survey that fifty per cent of American women were living on their own and would go through life like that. At the rate things were going she was likely to find herself in the same position and she’d better get used to it. All the nice men she knew were already either married or engaged and the ones that were left wanted to date twenty-year-olds with short skirts and hair extensions. She watched the moon above smile down on the city and heard the sound of music coming from one of the moored boats. She resisted the urge to get a glass of wine and went to the kitchen and poured herself a comforting tumbler of chocolate milk instead before deciding to call it a night and go to bed herself.

She was half asleep when she became aware of the small figure standing in the bedroom doorway in pink and white cotton pyjamas. Evie stumbled into the room and clambered up beside her.

‘Where’s Mummy?’ she whispered sadly. ‘I can’t find her.’

‘She’s away in London tonight, pet,’ Grace reminded her. ‘Remember you’re staying with me and I’m minding you.’

‘But I want my mummy, I miss her.’ Evie began to sob.

‘I know I’m not your mummy,’ Grace said calmly, ‘but I do love you and you’re safe here with me. We’ll phone your mum first thing in the morning and tell her about our sleepover, will we?’

Evie nodded silently, her body cuddling up beside her. Grace took her in her arms and stroked her hair, singing to her softly until eventually she relaxed and they both fell asleep.

Forsaking her normal healthy muesli and yogurt, Grace had made pancakes with maple syrup for breakfast. The kitchen looked like a bomb had hit it after Evie helped her to mix the batter. There was a sticky layer all over her granite worktops and she gave the place a quick wipe as Evie told her that they tasted almost as good as the pancakes Granny made.

They phoned Sarah, who told them the great news about
Mitten the Kitten
going to be a proper book, and Evie gave her a blow-by-blow account of their sleepover.

Grace had quite an itinerary mapped out for the day ahead and thanked heaven for the bright blue sky and sunny day.

‘First we’re going into town shopping,’ she told Evie, ‘and then we’ll go and look at the baby ducks and swans in the park and have a picnic there.’

‘I love picnics,’ declared Evie solemnly.

She had worked out a route that went round a few toy shops and knick-knack places that would appeal to any child. Evie, oohing and aahing, played with the wooden painted puppets and the pieces of furniture from a big dolls’ house that was on display in a shop near the Westbury. Grace bought her a baby bed and chest-of-drawer set along with a princess puppet. In the Avoca shop she found a perfect pair of ruby slippers and a magic fairy book which came with a cut-out fairy doll; downstairs she bought some food for the picnic along with two bottles of freshly squeezed orange juice.

St Stephen’s Green, the city centre park, was busy with families strolling in the sunshine and heading for the playground. Evie squealed with delight when she spotted the swans and their cygnets and a load of baby ducklings following their mother. They ate sitting on a bench near the big water fountain and as the afternoon was getting warmer decided to have a quick few goes on the slide and swings before heading back to the apartment.

Evie discovered her red birthday kite during a game of hide and seek. It was still in its birthday wrapping, unused.

‘Auntie Grace, why don’t you fly your kite?’ asked Evie, her blue eyes serious. ‘Don’t you like your present?’

‘I do like it,’ Grace explained, ‘but I’ve been very busy lately, so I haven’t had the time to fly it yet.’

‘Then can we fly it today?’ pleaded Evie. ‘Please, please please?’

‘I’m not sure today is a good day,’ she said, trying to distract her, but Evie, like most six-year-olds, wouldn’t give up. Half an hour later they were down on Sandymount Strand, ready to give the new kite a try.

It was still sunny but the sea breeze was strong along the seashore where walkers and joggers paraded along the strand.

Evie helped her unroll the long tail of the kite and unwrap the string holder.

‘Evie, I want you to run along with the kite for a few minutes,’ Grace explained, ‘and I’ll run behind you, and when I tell you to you must just let it go, OK?’

Evie nodded as if she understood but after twenty minutes of trying to get the kite to lift and catch the winds neither of them had succeeded. It was harder than it looked and most people just ignored them and passed them by. Even Evie was beginning to lose interest and was bending down, talking to an elderly lady with two golden Labradors.

‘Come on, Evie, a few more goes and we’ll get it to fly!’ Grace promised as Evie took off running again.

‘Let go, let go,’ she screamed as the wind began to catch the string but her little niece wasn’t fast enough and the red kite plummeted straight to earth again.

‘Hey! Do you want a hand?’ called a jogger who had stopped to watch them. She looked up gratefully only to see Mark McGuinness coming towards them. He was wearing a pair of tracksuit bottoms and a T-shirt but still managed to look stylish. Horribly conscious how windblown and dishevelled she was in her pale blue jeans, she would seem churlish if she refused his offer. Besides Evie, having recognized him, was already waving madly.

‘Hi Grace. Look I’m sorry that I didn’t get in touch, it’s just that I’ve been away and caught up with things: I honestly did intend to call you.’

Grace said nothing. She didn’t believe him, but smiled up at him as if it didn’t matter at all because Evie stood between them, holding the kite.

‘Hey, how about Evie and I hold the string and you take the kite and run with it,’ he suggested.

‘Great,’ she called, starting to run across the sand.

Holding the kite up high Grace ran as fast as she could letting her fingers ease off the string near the frame as the wind began to catch it and lift it up above her head.

Suddenly it caught. The wind lifted it; it gave a swirl, tugging away from her and zooming skywards, caught in a wind pocket. Mark gauged the tautness of the string and helped Evie to ease it up and up; then he quickly unwound it and let the kite fly high in the air, its long multicoloured tail dancing below it. The red kite soared across the blue sky above the sand and the sea. It looked truly fabulous and Evie was so excited as, Mark standing right beside her, she proudly manoeuvred the kite above her. Everyone walking along the strand was looking up at it, all clearly as entranced as Evie. It
was
beautiful, Grace thought, so simple yet so exhilarating. The scene reminded her of when they were young and her dad used to take Anna and Sarah and herself up to Deerpark, near the woods in Mount Merrion. It was the best park in Dublin for kite-flying, with its great views over the bay and the strong air currents from the sea mingling with those from the city. Maybe she’d take Evie there another day to try it out.

‘Keep the string tight and let it out very slowly, make sure the wind is catching it before you unroll it,’ said Mark, bending down and showing Evie.

The red kite seemed miles above them dancing up towards the heavens; it seemed extraordinary that it could be controlled by such a small girl down below. Yet Evie was holding firmly on to the string.

‘She’s doing fine.’ Mark was full of praise. ‘She’s a natural.’

Evie’s eyes were shining, her face rapt in concentration as she stared upwards.

‘Thanks. Thanks for helping,’ Grace said, acknowledging that Mark had gone out of his way to do so. He could have simply jogged by and ignored their predicament. ‘We’d never have managed to get it flying only that you came along!’

‘It’s usually a two- to three-man job getting started,’ he replied, ‘until you get lift-off and begin to feel the air currents. When did she get it?’

‘Actually, it’s mine,’ she confessed. ‘Evie gave it to me for my birthday and she just found it and insisted we try it out.’