One Winter Weekend

Chapter 22

Chapter 22

H elen stood in her room, staring out the window at the glorious Roman skyline lit up against the darkness.

Behind her, Paddy sat on a chair, his laptop open in front of him and his ear glued to his mobile phone.

It seemed yet another shipment was running late, and rather than trusting that everything would be taken care of, as the others had been, he seemed to think he could will the packages to their destinations in time for Christmas by sheer thought.

“No, Felicity,” Paddy said, irritation rising in his voice. “N-no— no— look, just get it done, all right? Now, where are we with the Jefferson Electronics account?” He typed a few notes on his computer, continuing back-and-forth with his assistant over the other end of the phone.

Helen had heard enough. “Paddy,” she called soothingly, turning back to him. “We have barely hours until our daughter’s wedding. Don’t you think you can give the phone a rest? Can’t someone else handle it?”

Paddy covered the receiver with his hand. “What?” he asked her, squinting towards her form. “What did you say, love?”

“Nothing,” Helen sighed. “Nothing at all.” She resumed looking out the window. Why couldn’t she get him to put down the phone for more than a few minutes at a time? He hadn’t always been this way. Only when DHL had taken over the business did his penchant for working constantly become an issue.

Here they were in one of the most beautiful cities in the word two days before Christmas, their daughter’s relationship was in crisis, and all he could think about was computer part deliveries.

Helen stared across at the Vatican and St Peter’s Basilica, silently wishing for a miracle.