The Numbers Game

by Danielle Steel

  Gabrielle had made a tiny horse for Olivia. It fit in the palm of her hand. Her mother had given her a very pretty white fur jacket that fit her perfectly, and a fun pair of shoes. Olivia had given her grandmother a heavy warm sweater to wear while she worked, and another one for Federico, and a gold bangle bracelet for her mother. Federico had given all the ladies warm silk and cashmere Hermès scarves in a different color for each of them.

  “We’ve been thoroughly spoiled,” Gabrielle exclaimed. Federico had taken off his velvet dinner jacket and tried on the sweater from Olivia and he loved it, and Olivia wore her white fur jacket and looked adorable in it. Gwen had given Federico a warm cashmere beanie and fur-lined gloves for when he went out taking photographs at night or in the early morning, which he did frequently.

  Gabrielle and Federico left around eleven-thirty. Olivia stayed until after midnight and then she went home to her empty apartment. She couldn’t stop thinking about Paul, and wondered what he was doing with Eileen and the children. She missed him and was worried. It spoiled Christmas for her in spite of the pleasant evening she had spent with her family.

  * * *

  —

  In Greenwich, they drank eggnog before dinner and not champagne. Eileen had cooked a turkey, and Paul carved it, as he always did. She made the black truffle and foie gras stuffings they had all loved on Thanksgiving, and Paul said they were incredible. They sat at the table for a long time and then cleared together, left it all in the kitchen to deal with later, and then opened presents. Eileen had told him what the children wanted, and he had gotten her a white cashmere sweater, which was beautiful. She had gotten him a royal blue one from Hermès. He loved the black one from Pennie. The boys had given IOUs for various services they promised to perform for all of them, like car washing and shoveling the driveway. They were all enjoying their gifts, when Eileen cleared her throat nervously, and said she had an announcement. She hesitated for a second, getting up her courage, while they waited.

  “Are we getting a dog?” Mark asked.

  “No, at least not right now. I’m going to do something that I’ve thought about for a long time. I’m going to Paris,” she said. They all smiled. But there was more to it. “For three months, to study at Le Cordon Bleu professional cooking school. I’ve been accepted. And when I get back, I’m going to open my own catering business here in Greenwich.” Paul and the children looked stunned. “I need your help, and this is important to me. Halfway through the class, you all have ski week, and I’m bringing you to Paris to spend your vacation with me.” Then she looked at Paul, who was stupefied by what she was saying. She was starting a business and going to school, and had made all the decisions by herself. She had dreams again, and Eileen was determined that this time no one would take them from her. She wouldn’t let them. “And I need you to stay with the kids when I’m gone,” she said to Paul. “I leave on New Year’s Day, and start class the next day. I’ll be back on March thirty-first after I graduate. So for three months, I need you to stay in Greenwich. Tina said she’ll stay overnight when you really need her to.” She was the house cleaner they’d had for years, the children loved her, and she was good with them, and trustworthy and reliable. “And they’ll be gone for ten days in the middle of it, so you’ll get a break. But I really want to do this, and this is the only way I can.” She left no room for argument, and he knew he owed it to her. He had cheated on her for five months, moved out, was continuing the affair, and after carrying the heavy load of the household and kids for eighteen years, she had managed alone for the past two months. He felt that the least he could do was move back to Greenwich for three months, and do what she did every day without complaining. He had no idea how he was going to explain it to Olivia, but he knew he had to. He didn’t want to let Eileen down again.

  There was a rapid babble of conversation as soon as she stopped talking. No one could believe she had applied to cooking school in Paris, been accepted, made her plans, and hadn’t said a word. Their Christmas gift to her was to support her doing it. Pennie said she would help as much as she could. And Paul had agreed to move back in a week, on New Year’s Day. It was a home run. She had hit one right out of the park. She realized that in some ways it was a selfish decision and didn’t include them, but they were old enough to weather it for three months, and their father would be with them. He was key to the plan, but he hadn’t said a word of objection. She thanked all of them and hugged them when they all went to bed. Paul still looked stunned and she thanked him profusely.

  Jane called her that night on her cell when she was in bed. She was the only person Eileen had told.

  “What did they say?”

  “I think they’re in shock,” Eileen giggled, “but everyone said they’d pitch in, and Paul is going to do it. He’ll move in.”

  “You realize, don’t you, that you just screwed up his playtime royally. His girlfriend is not going to thank you for parking him in Greenwich with the kids for three months. But, oh well, isn’t that too bad? And turnabout is fair play. They deserve it.” Jane had no sympathy for him whatsoever, and she was delighted for her friend. She had a dream now, and a plan, and she was going to Paris to become a chef, and a caterer when she returned!

  Olivia called Paul when she got home from her mother’s and told him she missed him. He didn’t tell her about Eileen’s plans. He was going to tackle that in person. He lay on the couch where he was sleeping, after the call, and wondered how she’d take it. If he could have had her spend weekends with him in Greenwich, it would have been better for him, but he knew Eileen would never allow that, nor would his kids. Their family home was sacred to all of them, to him as well, and there was no way he could bring a woman there. He just hoped that Tina, the housekeeper, would give him a night off from time to time so he could sleep with Olivia in the city. If not, there were going to be fireworks. There might be anyway. It was a lot for her to swallow. For the next three months, he belonged to his children, on full-time duty, standing in for his absentee wife. But how could he blame her? After what he’d done, she had a right to a new life, and to train for it. He admired her no end, and wanted to do all he could to support her plan.

  * * *

  —

  The next morning, they talked about Eileen’s plans again over breakfast. With her usual military precision and flawless organization, she had thought of everything and covered all the bases. She assigned them specific chores that they would be responsible for. Pennie was responsible for laundry, Seth for unpacking groceries, Mark for helping their father shop for food on weekends. And they all had to tidy the living room and clean up the kitchen.

  “And what am I responsible for?” Paul teased her. She was the family drill sergeant, which was familiar to him.

  “Try not to lose any of the children before I get back. And…unfortunately for you, homework. They’ll need your help with it, or the twins will.” He had his work cut out for him for the next three months. He was going to be a full-time solo dad, just the way she was a full-time single mom, and had been even when they were together.

  Paul left before lunch, after thanking them for a beautiful Christmas, and he took the train back to New York to meet Olivia. He had a lot to tell her. She said she’d be at her apartment. He was apprehensive about what he had to say. He couldn’t tell Eileen he wouldn’t cover for her, in order to protect his relationship with his girlfriend. He couldn’t do that to her now. He and Olivia would just have to suck it up for three months, which wasn’t the end of the world. But he knew she might think so.

  * * *

  —

  Olivia was lying on her bed, watching a series on TV, when he got to her apartment. She threw her arms around his neck and was happy to see him, and wished him a merry Christmas.

  “I’m so glad you’re home! I missed you. It didn’t feel like Christmas without you. And my mother and grandmother were very disappointed you didn�
��t come.”

  “We’ll work it out next year,” he promised, and kissed her. She sounded like a little girl. He lay down on the bed next to her and put an arm around her. “There’s something I have to tell you.” He felt her stiffen next to him.

  “You’re not going back to her?”

  “No, I’m not,” he said calmly. “But I have to go back to Greenwich for three months to take care of my kids.”

  “With her? Is someone sick?” She looked panicked.

  “Without her. That’s the point. She’s taking a class in Paris for three months so she can open a business. I owe this to her, Olivia. I have given her a crap deal with what we’ve done. And there’s no one else to take care of the kids.”

  “Can’t you hire a nanny?”

  “No, I can’t. They’re not infants. She’s leaving in a week. The housekeeper will stay with them from time to time, so I can spend the night with you. And they’re going to Paris to see her for ski week in the middle of it, so we can be together then while they’re with her. But other than that, I’m going to have to commute from Greenwich every day and live with my kids.”

  “Are you serious? For three months? What am I supposed to do?” She sat bolt upright in bed next to him and stared at him.

  “We’ll just have to live with it, and do the best we can. I have to do it. There’s no one else who can. And you can’t stay there with me. I wish you could.” He was sincere and earnest. He didn’t like the idea of being away from her either, although he was looking forward to living with his children again. He missed them, even though he loved her. They were his children, a relationship Olivia didn’t understand since she had none. “Some people have to do this all the time. It’s only for three months. We can manage it. And I’ll stay in the city with you whenever the housekeeper stays with them, or if they stay with their friends on weekends. That’s the best I can do.” She could tell it was nonnegotiable.

  “Can you at least spend the evenings with me before you go out there?”

  “As much as I can, as long as I don’t miss the last train. And I have to have dinner with them occasionally and help with homework. Eileen is a full-time hands-on mom. She’s on deck for them all the time.”

  “And she expects you to do that in her absence? How can she sign up for a class in Paris without even asking you beforehand?”

  “I guess she wanted it desperately. I’ve screwed up her life pretty badly. I can’t stop her from doing this now. It wouldn’t be right.” Olivia got off the bed and paced around the room. She hadn’t expected this. He was about to turn into a full-time suburban father who had to be home with his kids to do homework every night. “We can try introducing you to the children again, so you could come out there. But you can’t spend the night. It’s Eileen’s house now, and she’d go through the roof. And I wouldn’t feel right about it.”

  “Then she should stay home and take care of them herself. Why does this have to be your problem, our problem?”

  “Because they’re my kids too.”

  “I can’t believe she’s doing this to us.”

  “Think about what we’ve done to her. I can’t refuse to help her out so we can spend every night together. She has a right to a life too.”

  “Yeah, and so do I. And not with a boyfriend babysitting for his children in Greenwich for three months.”

  “That’s the deal, Olivia,” he said quietly. “It’s who I am.” And who he should have been long before, he realized. She wondered suddenly as she listened to him if it was some kind of blessing, and would give her time to decide just how committed she was to the relationship, and how deep into it she wanted to be. It was going to give her a second look at him, and the fact that he had three kids, two of whom still needed him. And sometimes Pennie did too.

  “You haven’t even filed for divorce yet.”

  “I told you that I will.” But he wouldn’t admit to her that a part of him was glad this had happened. He was going to live with his children again for the next three months. But it was obvious how unhappy Olivia was about it. She didn’t want their nights together to stop, and she could see a lot of long lonely nights ahead of her for the next three months. Why was Eileen getting to have all the fun and going to Paris? While Paul had to play babysitter.

  “Can’t they stay alone?” she insisted.

  “No, they can’t. They’d run wild, and what if there’s a fire or one of them gets sick?” She hadn’t thought of that. She lay back down on the bed next to him, and they made love a few minutes later. But she wasn’t any happier afterwards. It all sounded like bad news to her. Between his spending Christmas Eve with Eileen and his children in Greenwich, and moving back in for the next three months, she was beginning to see what the future would look like. His children were the priority and she wasn’t. Or was Eileen still a priority for him too? She wondered.

  “I’m sorry, Olivia,” he said again after they made love.

  “I don’t think you are,” she said nastily. “I think you’re looking forward to it.” He didn’t dare admit to her it was true, but he didn’t want to lose her either. He hoped he wouldn’t. But Eileen was pursuing her dreams now, and he wasn’t going to steal them from her again. He had his own dream with Olivia. Eileen had a right to hers too.

  Chapter 10

  Paul and Olivia spent a quiet New Year’s Eve in her apartment, making love and drinking champagne. Paul knew it was his last night of real freedom until Eileen returned at the end of March, and he wanted to enjoy it with Olivia.

  He drove to Greenwich the following afternoon, on New Year’s Day, and got there an hour after Eileen had left for the airport for her flight to Paris.

  She had left him a nice note, thanking him again, with all the contact numbers where he could reach her. She promised to be in touch with the children every day, and he knew she would. She was a responsible person, and he wanted to be that for her now too. Olivia had been annoyed with him when he left her apartment. She had hated it when he was married and living at home in Greenwich, and now he was back there, and still married. From Olivia’s perspective, their situation had just gotten worse, after two and a half happy months. Now playtime was over. He’d be rushing back to Greenwich every night.

  The kids were in a bad mood when he got there too. The twins were in their room, and he noticed that Mark was sulking.

  “What’s up?” Paul asked, and sat down on his bed. Seth was ignoring his brother and reading a book about the life of Tolstoy. He had just read War and Peace and loved it.

  “If you hadn’t moved out, Mom wouldn’t be going to Paris and trying to learn how to be a cook.” Mark glared at his father.

  “That’s probably true. But your mom is a talented cook, and she might really enjoy it. She’s earned the right to do something special.”

  “It’s that girl’s fault too. The redheaded one. Olive or whatever her name is.”

  “Olivia. And it’s not her fault, it’s mine. This is between your mom and me, no one else.”

  “Are you still dating her?”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Is she going to come here while you’re staying here?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t think so.”

  “Mom wouldn’t like it.”

  “That’s probably true. She might drive out to see me sometime, and we’d go out to lunch.” He didn’t think she should hang out around the house with him either. He wanted to respect Eileen. “What do you want for dinner? I thought I’d order pizza.”

  “We already had pizza this week. Can’t you cook?” Mark looked irritated.

  “No, I can’t. Not like your mom.” Mark grudgingly agreed to pizza, and when he checked with Pennie, she said she was going out to meet friends. She was eighteen now and seemed very grown up to him.

  “Do you need a ride?”

  “No, they’re pick
ing me up.”

  He was getting a taste of Eileen’s life, home-cooked meals and constant chauffeuring.

  He ordered the pizza and he and the twins ate it in the kitchen. Tina had agreed to cook for the kids in the evening during the week, and he would deal with their meals on the weekend. Eileen had arranged it. He was beginning to wonder how he was going to see Olivia and when. Eileen had also left him their tutoring schedule, which happened mostly in the evenings. Seth and Mark had tutors, to help them with homework. He had already warned his office that he would have to come in an hour late every day for the next three months, so he could get them all off to school. And the first thing he was going to ask Tina the next day was which nights she could stay overnight that week. He was willing to pay her handsomely for it. Peace in his relationship with Olivia was worth it. He called Tina from the office to discuss it. She said the only night she had free that week was Friday. She had promised to help a sick neighbor, and her niece had just had a baby and she was lending her a hand too. This was not going to be easy. He was wondering who he could ask to fill in.

  He texted Olivia and they agreed to meet for an hour or two when he finished work. He had driven in so he wouldn’t be dependent on train schedules. And as soon as he got to her apartment at six o’clock, she started complaining about how difficult it was.

  “Why is it difficult for you?” he asked her, exasperated. He was doing the best he could, and it had barely started. This was only the first day.

  “Because I don’t even know when you can spend the night. And the rest of the time we’re going to be stealing an hour here or there and that’s it.”

  “I can spend the night on Friday,” he said, trying not to get irritated with her.

  “That’s it? One night?”

  “It’s all she could give me this week. She promised to give me two nights next week.” Then suddenly he remembered a notice pinned to the kitchen bulletin board. There was a college prep night at school on Friday that was mandatory for Pennie, and he had to go too. “Shit. I just remembered I can’t do Friday. I have to go to school.”