Read Online Twelve Rooms with a View by Theresa Rebeck - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Theresa Rebeck
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harder than that. Just stay right there in the lobby; I’ll be there in two minutes.”
She hung up on me just as Frank trotted back in. He looked a little shell-shocked in a delirious kind of way. I thought he was going to be mad at me because I had just caused a huge scene, bringing utter chaos to his little lobby, with people threatening to have him fired and all sorts of unpleasant bullshit. Frank, however, seemed to have barely noticed. He was actually humming a little tune as he went back to his podiumand started picking up the packages that were all over the floor. I thought for a moment that he was one of those strange sad people who need a little action to feel alive, but then I took another look, and it was like he was glowing around the edges, you could almost see beams of light coming out of his cuffs and collar. I thought, oh, he’s in love, Frank is in love with the unspeakably beautiful Julianna Gideon. And he got to be near her, he got to hold the cab door open for her for half a second.
“She’s pretty, huh,” I said, testing out my theory.
“Oh my god,” he agreed. “I can’t even, when I look at her …” He glanced out the door, taking pleasure in seeing the place he had last been allowed to look at her.
“Does she know you like her?” I asked.
“What?” That was a bad question; it shook him out of his fantasy, and he remembered he had a real right to be mad at me.
“Did you get things straightened out with Doug?” he asked, suddenly stern. “He was quite certain that you are not supposed to be living up there in 8A. I didn’t know what to say. This has put me in a very awkward position. I put a call in to building management, and I don’t know what they’re going to say. There’s already been so much controversy around that apartment, I’m sure they’re going to want to talk to both of you about it.” He was trying his best to sound really mean, but the guy didn’t have it in him. He was reading me the riot act, but he sounded like he was apologizing.
“I’ll try to keep this out of your hair from now on,” I said.
“I would appreciate that.” He didn’t sound angry, he sounded like he really would appreciate it. Just then Lucy walked in, wearing a sharp gray suit and heels, carrying a big briefcase, and looking like the queen of the universe.
“Lucy! Hey, this is my sister Lucy,” I told Frank. “She’ll have this solved in five minutes, I guarantee. You don’t have to talk to building management.”
“I’m sure they know all about this already,” Lucy announced, a little clippy. “Tina tells me there’s some confusion about the locks?”
“Confusion, I should say so,” Frank said. “Doug Drinan, he’s Bill’s son?”
“I know who he is,” Lucy said, nodding, trying not to make that little can we hurry this up please sign with her hand.
“Well, he’s up there, having the locks changed,” Frank told her. “He says he doesn’t know anything about you having a claim on the place. I didn’t know what to tell him. Your sister tells me she’s staying there, I got no reason to doubt her, but Doug was Bill’s son—”
“And we are his wife’s daughters.” Lucy smiled, completely professional. “No worries. We’ll clear this up in no time.” She took a couple of smooth steps over to the elevators and pressed the call button; as far as Lucy was concerned, this was as good as done. Frank smiled at me, relieved. When she isn’t being annoying as hell, Lucy does have that effect on people. You know who’s in charge.
Doug Drinan and his pal the locksmith were, sadly, not quite as easy to snow. We more or less fell over them on that eighth-floor landing—that is, I stumbled out of the elevator with all my packages, while Lucy popped out like a genie and presented Doug with a huge stack of documents.
“Mr. Drinan? Hi, how are you? I’m Lucy Finn, Olivia’s daughter, it’s a pleasure to meet you after all this time,” she announced,
She hung up on me just as Frank trotted back in. He looked a little shell-shocked in a delirious kind of way. I thought he was going to be mad at me because I had just caused a huge scene, bringing utter chaos to his little lobby, with people threatening to have him fired and all sorts of unpleasant bullshit. Frank, however, seemed to have barely noticed. He was actually humming a little tune as he went back to his podiumand started picking up the packages that were all over the floor. I thought for a moment that he was one of those strange sad people who need a little action to feel alive, but then I took another look, and it was like he was glowing around the edges, you could almost see beams of light coming out of his cuffs and collar. I thought, oh, he’s in love, Frank is in love with the unspeakably beautiful Julianna Gideon. And he got to be near her, he got to hold the cab door open for her for half a second.
“She’s pretty, huh,” I said, testing out my theory.
“Oh my god,” he agreed. “I can’t even, when I look at her …” He glanced out the door, taking pleasure in seeing the place he had last been allowed to look at her.
“Does she know you like her?” I asked.
“What?” That was a bad question; it shook him out of his fantasy, and he remembered he had a real right to be mad at me.
“Did you get things straightened out with Doug?” he asked, suddenly stern. “He was quite certain that you are not supposed to be living up there in 8A. I didn’t know what to say. This has put me in a very awkward position. I put a call in to building management, and I don’t know what they’re going to say. There’s already been so much controversy around that apartment, I’m sure they’re going to want to talk to both of you about it.” He was trying his best to sound really mean, but the guy didn’t have it in him. He was reading me the riot act, but he sounded like he was apologizing.
“I’ll try to keep this out of your hair from now on,” I said.
“I would appreciate that.” He didn’t sound angry, he sounded like he really would appreciate it. Just then Lucy walked in, wearing a sharp gray suit and heels, carrying a big briefcase, and looking like the queen of the universe.
“Lucy! Hey, this is my sister Lucy,” I told Frank. “She’ll have this solved in five minutes, I guarantee. You don’t have to talk to building management.”
“I’m sure they know all about this already,” Lucy announced, a little clippy. “Tina tells me there’s some confusion about the locks?”
“Confusion, I should say so,” Frank said. “Doug Drinan, he’s Bill’s son?”
“I know who he is,” Lucy said, nodding, trying not to make that little can we hurry this up please sign with her hand.
“Well, he’s up there, having the locks changed,” Frank told her. “He says he doesn’t know anything about you having a claim on the place. I didn’t know what to tell him. Your sister tells me she’s staying there, I got no reason to doubt her, but Doug was Bill’s son—”
“And we are his wife’s daughters.” Lucy smiled, completely professional. “No worries. We’ll clear this up in no time.” She took a couple of smooth steps over to the elevators and pressed the call button; as far as Lucy was concerned, this was as good as done. Frank smiled at me, relieved. When she isn’t being annoying as hell, Lucy does have that effect on people. You know who’s in charge.
Doug Drinan and his pal the locksmith were, sadly, not quite as easy to snow. We more or less fell over them on that eighth-floor landing—that is, I stumbled out of the elevator with all my packages, while Lucy popped out like a genie and presented Doug with a huge stack of documents.
“Mr. Drinan? Hi, how are you? I’m Lucy Finn, Olivia’s daughter, it’s a pleasure to meet you after all this time,” she announced,
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