My Very '90s Romance, page 29
“That reminds me,” I said, gazing out over it all. “I meant to tell you before: God died this morning.”
“I don’t think he did, really,” said Finn, leaning out with me. “He’s probably just playing dice with the universe.”
Epilogue
The end of July was beautiful. To celebrate it, and us, we staged an Addison-napping from his plush private hospital and took him to Hyde Park for a picnic. He grumbled all the way, but we insisted: He hadn’t had his long-promised birthday party.
Add was improving, slowly. He had a tendency to forget things and couldn’t walk very far, but we were being cautiously optimistic. And his personality didn’t seem to have changed, if his antipathy to being out in the open air was any guide. We needed five rugs so that none of his exposed flesh touched the grass.
“I’m going to be sick,” I said, looking up at Finn from my vantage point of his lap.
“Well, you shouldn’t have eaten four Kit Kats, should you?” he said mildly, and continued examining a disgusting caterpillar he’d just picked up.
Kate poured some more champagne for us. She and Josh had a proper hamper filled with goodies, we had a plastic bag full of tangerines, and Claudia was having a McDonald’s.
“I want to propose a toast to us . . . ,” Kate began. Suddenly, I spotted two people walking toward us.
“Fuck! Fuck! Fuck fuck!” I yelled, sitting upright.
“Well, Holly’s pretty much summed up what I was going to say,” said Kate, raising her glass.
“No, look! It’s Carol and Farah! We all have to hide!” I yelled. “Up!”
“Great!” said Josh.
“Let’s hide behind Claudia,” I said quietly to Finn, who batted me on the nose.
“Under the blankets,” said Josh.
“Umm, I don’t think . . . ,” said Addison.
Carol and Farah were definitely heading this way.
“Quick! Roll Addison!” I ordered, and with much sniggering, we did so, then dived under. Of course, trying to lie very quietly and flatly anywhere is a recipe for disaster, so we giggled helplessly while trying to tell one another to be quiet.
“I mean,” Carol was saying, as they drew near, “this park is a disgrace. Look, somebody’s left a wheelchair over there.”
“And a picnic!” said Farah, hopping along. “Ooh, look, bananas!”
“It’s disgusting.”
“You’re disgusting!” I said, before Finn clapped a hand over my mouth.
“Did you hear something?” said Carol. “Oh, let’s go. Farah, do you think you could fit up our chimney with a long-handled broom?”
As they walked off, I crept out, grabbing Finn by the hand.
“Don’t come out yet,” I hissed to the others. “They’re not quite gone.”
Finn put his arms around me, and we moved a little away.
“It is nice,” I said, putting my arms around him back, “to get you alone.”
He grinned at me. “In the open air of the busiest park of the busiest city in a rapidly overpopulating world . . .”
“. . . where, for me,” I said, stopping him with a kiss, “there is no one else but you.”
Then I kissed him again.
“Holly! Are they gone yet?” yelled Josh.
“Yes—I’ve got grass up my nose and Claudia smells!” shouted Kate. “Sorry, Claudia.”
There were loud kissing noises.
“Huh? I wasn’t listening,” said Claudia.
We looked around to the four forms wriggling under the blanket. Suddenly, Claudia yelped.
“Gosh, sorry,” said Josh. “Thought you were Skates.”
“You did not,” said Kate crossly.
“Ow!” said Josh.
Acknowledgments
Thanks to Ali “The Golden” Gunn, Rachel Hore, Carol Jackson, and all at Curtis Brown and HarperCollins. Plus Katie Stone for her unfailing support; Ben Moor for the science as well as being Ben Moor; Salty Sandra McKay, originator of the McKay BMT; Andrew McConnell Stott; Susan Hoyer; Bond, Ian Bond, aka Jason Foxwell-Moss, for the chess and one or two other things; James Crawford for his kitchen; John “Cripes” Johnston; Karen and the Shapster; Karen Murphy, MRCS (!!! swot-tastic!), official medical adviser to My Very ’90s Romance (although all inaccuracies and exaggerations are of course mine); Katrina McCormack; Lisa Jewell; Robin and Dominic, my brilliant brothers; and Deborah Schneider, Caryn Karmatz Rudy, and everyone at Gelfman Schneider and Warner Books.
About the Author
JENNY COLGAN is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous novels, including The Bookshop on the Corner, Christmas at the Cupcake Café, Little Beach Street Bakery, and Meet Me at the Cupcake Cafe, all international bestsellers. Jenny is married with three children and lives in London and Scotland.
Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at hc.com.
Acclaim for My Very ’90s Romance
“An amusing tale . . . a strong cast of characters.”
—Midwest Book Review
“A must for any fan of British humor.”
—MyShelf.com
“Fantastically funny . . . entertaining, clever, and extremely engaging . . . a wonderfully irreverent look at life and love in the twenty-first century.”
—WomanLinks.com
“Hilarious . . . fresh and comical . . . the ideal novel for those craving a lighthearted, intelligent look into the complexities of romance in the age of the Internet.”
—TheBookHaven.net
“[My Very ’90s Romance] had me laughing throughout. . . . The characters and dialogue are so real. . . . A book you’ll want to buy, read, then share with friends.”
—Girlposse.com
Also by Jenny Colgan
Christmas on the Island
The Endless Beach
Amanda’s Wedding
Looking for Andrew McCarthy
Working Wonders
Do You Remember the First Time?
Where Have All the Boys Gone?
West End Girls
Operation Sunshine
Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend
The Good, the Bad and the Dumped
Meet Me at the Cupcake Cafe
Christmas at the Cupcake Café
Welcome to Rosie Hopkins’ Sweetshop of Dreams
Christmas at Rosie Hopkins’ Sweetshop
The Christmas Surprise
The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris
Little Beach Street Bakery
Summer at Little Beach Street Bakery
The Little Shop of Happy Ever After
Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery
The Cafe by the Sea
A Very Distant Shore
By Jenny T. Colgan
Resistance Is Futile
Spandex and the City
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
MY VERY ’90S ROMANCE. Copyright © 2001 by Jenny Colgan. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
Cover design by Lex Maudlin
Cover photograph © Smile19/Shutterstock
Title page and chapter opener art © irina02 / Shutterstock, Inc.
Originally published as Talking to Addison in the United Kingdom in 2001 by Warner Books, Inc.
FIRST WILLIAM MORROW PAPERBACK EDITION PUBLISHED 2019.
Digital Edition MARCH 2019 ISBN: 978-0-06-244905-4
Version 01302019
Print ISBN: 978-0-06-244904-7
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Jenny Colgan, My Very '90s Romance
