‘Aw come on now, Sally-Ann, there’s no need to be like that,’ Cal retorted.
‘So what are y’all proposin’? That you and I pretend nothing’s wrong and pretend like we’re the Waltons? No. Not anymore. I’m done, Cal. I’m not continuing this charade any longer and anyway, won’t Lenora want you to be with her and your son for Thanksgivings and Christmases? I bet your damn hide she will.’
‘We haven’t spoken about it. She just wanted to have the baby and get over the birth an’ all. I don’t think she’s given any thought to Thanksgiving or Christmas.’ She could hear the exasperation in her husband’s voice and that annoyed her even more. How dare he be exasperated with her? She wasn’t the one ringing him up telling him she’d just had a baby who wasn’t his.
‘Frankly Cal, I don’t give a rat’s ass what you and Lenora do for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I’m just not doing happy families this year so talk to your girlfriend and tell her that as well as a new son, she now has two potential stepdaughters. Bye.’ Sally-Ann restrained herself from slamming the receiver into the cradle. Cal had called her on their house phone, having got no answer from her cell.
She caught a glance at herself in the antique triangular Tiffany mirror that hung in the hall and grimaced. She’d want to stop comfort eating; she was getting fatter than the pigs in the butcher hold. She’d put on half a stone since she’d found out about Lenora’s pregnancy. She could see it on her ass and waistline and she didn’t like it. She glanced at her watch; no time for a jog, she needed to get going to pick up the girls from school. Luiza, their au pair, was on a day off and Sally-Ann was working from home. She grabbed her purse and keys, slicked some coral lipstick on her lips and hurried out to the car.
Fall’s caress had tinged the trees with gold and russet, she noted absentmindedly; November was upon them and no matter how much Cal wanted to put things off it was time to tell their daughters, and their families, that the marriage was over and Cal was in a new set-up. He was spending half the week down in Galveston in the beachfront apartment he’d bought for Lenora, and the other half of it with her and the girls. They were so used to him being away on business they didn’t much notice his absences.
Sally-Ann, to her immense shame, on impulse one day had driven onto the 1-45 S from Lamar Street and Allen Parkway and hit Galveston in just over an hour. She knew where the apartments were; they were part of Cal’s property portfolio. Ocean View Cove was in a prime location on Seawall Boulevard.
She and the girls had spent a week in one of the apartments a few years back when it was vacant after being refurbished, and while Savannah and Madison had enjoyed building their sandcastles and swimming in the Gulf, Sally-Ann had found it somewhat boring, and hated the busy highway that snaked along the seafront.
She wondered how long Lenora would stick the laid-back life on the Gulf coast. Still, a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment with all mod cons, a balcony with ocean views, pool, gym, tennis court and outdoor barbecue area was not to be sneezed at when you were used to a lot less.
She’d sat like a stalker for half an hour, parked across from the gated complex, watching cars driving in and out, wondering would she see Cal’s SUV or would she see a pregnant brunette strolling out to cross to the beach.
‘Jackass,’ she’d cursed herself. ‘What are you like?’ The Bold and the Beautiful had nothing on her, she thought wryly, looking at three blonde middle-aged women all looking vaguely ‘surprised’, heavily made-up, jangling with bangles and dangly earrings, designer-label bags hanging from their arms, chattering animatedly as they made their way towards a beachside restaurant for lunch. No, she would die with boredom if she were stuck down here with a baby, Sally-Ann admitted.
Hunger drove her from the car to walk along the shore, with the wind whipping her hair into her eyes. She headed to Benno’s, where she’d ordered a platter of shrimp, oysters, and fish crab balls, with coleslaw and potatoes, washed down with a beer, before heading home, disgusted with herself for driving to Galveston in the first place, and, even worse, for pigging out.
In the weeks following her stalking trip, she’d tried not to think about the impending birth which would add a whole new dimension to their family set-up; but now, finally, Lenora’s baby was born and she had to face it. Her daughters had a half-brother and Cal was father to a child who had nothing to do with her and with whom she wanted to have no relationship.
How weird it all seemed, Sally-Ann mused, sliding in behind the wheel of her Buick Enclave and driving out of her tree-lined drive. Cal could tell the girls, it was all his doing. She wasn’t going to make life easy on him. Why should she? she thought angrily, surprised at how upset she was. She’d felt as the months progressed that she’d come to terms with Lenora’s pregnancy. Now that the child had actually been born, everything had changed. This new male would impact on all their lives no matter how much in denial she was about it.
Should she keep it a secret from the twins? Or should they know about their new half-brother? She’d argued the pros and cons of it with herself for weeks now. The news of the birth would emerge around town, scuttlebutt would make sure of that. What with social media and the never-ending tentacles of bitchy gossip that pervaded her social scene, it was a wonder anything was kept private anymore. It was a miracle that Cal hadn’t been spotted already down in his hidey-hole in Galveston. No, it had to be faced and dealt with and Cal would be doing all the talking, Sally-Ann was adamant as she called up her lawyer’s name on Bluetooth to tell him the news.
‘Great ammo for more alimony, darlin’. Don’t you go gettin’ knocked up until you have your divorce papers signed, sealed an’ delivered,’ her lawyer drawled, pragmatic as always, and she’d laughed.
‘Not gonna happen, even if George Clooney begs me to have his child.’
‘Especially if George Clooney begs you to have his child,’ he chuckled and hung up.
The traffic was heavy and she was lucky to find a space outside the school. It lifted her spirits to see her twin daughters chattering happily to their friends, Madison’s ponytail swinging back and forth while she talked animatedly to her two besties on either side of her.
‘Mom, can you go and have a coffee so we can hang out at the mall, pleeezzze?’ Savannah begged, throwing her schoolbag into the back of the car with a clatter.
‘I have to work, Savannah, and I don’t like you hangin’ in malls, and you know that,’ Sally-Ann said firmly.
‘But Mom, lots of the girls in our class go to the mall after school,’ Savannah whinged.
‘Don’t whine please, Savannah.’
‘Aw Mom, just this once,’ wheedled Madison. ‘You don’t have to work twenty-four/seven.’ Sally-Ann hid her amusement. How many times had she said that to Cal during their marriage? Little ears had picked it up clearly.
‘Come on then,’ she agreed. The girls might as well have an hour of fun. She could have a latte and work on her iPad. She was very strict about letting the girls hang out in the local mall. Fortunately they were still biddable and hadn’t got to the truly truculent stage of teenhood that some of her friends’ children had. Sally-Ann was determined that Savannah and Madison would not become spoilt, sulky mall rats with the sense of entitlement that seemed to be the norm these days.
‘You are a very good mother, Mom,’ Madison said earnestly, planting an unexpected kiss on Sally-Ann’s cheek.
‘Am I, Maddy? That’s a nice thing to say.’ Sally-Ann was touched.
‘Yup, you can be a bit strict, stricter than Dad, but you have a kind heart too.’
‘Well thank you, darlin’, I suppose you’d like your allowance early?’
‘See that’s your kind heart part, Mom,’ her daughter grinned.
‘Do you think certain mall rats could be seen having a soda and a cookie with their mom before they go hangin’ or would that be just too uncool for words?’ Sally-Ann teased.
‘We could go to Dunkin’ Donuts, ’cos the girls don’t go to that end of the mall
,’ Savannah suggested, surreptitiously sliding a slick of nude lipstick across her lips.
‘Nope, too many additives, how about Maracon?’ Sally-Ann suggested, rather fancying one of their Irish blend Kumsi iced teas, and a raspberry white chocolate cupcake. She’d start her diet tomorrow, she promised herself.
‘Cool,’ agreed Savannah.
‘We have to bring Dad home a key lime mini, they’re his favourite,’ Madison said loyally.
‘And a Monarch for Luiza,’ reminded Savannah.
‘Absolutely,’ agreed Sally-Ann, swinging into the McDuffie Street entrance to River Oaks. The girls still had generosity of spirit, she thought gratefully. It was a trait she would do her very best to nurture through the rocky road of growing up that lay ahead. She watched them walk across the car park towards the mall in excited anticipation and remembered how she and her friends would gather at Slim’s Diner after school for soda and a cookie, flirtin’ with the boys. It was a safer world then than the one her daughters inhabited, and watching other young teens gather in giddy groups, unsupervised, she knew there would be battles ahead when her daughters got older and wanted more freedom.
Motherhood wasn’t easy, as Lenora would find to her cost, Sally-Ann thought, not feeling one bit sorry for the younger woman.
‘Hey Dad, we bought you a key lime mini.’ Madison flung herself at Cal when he walked into the house the following evening.
‘You are the kindest gals in the whole of Texas.’ Cal enveloped her in a bear hug, and held out his arms to Savannah.
‘Only Texas?’ pouted his other daughter.
‘Excuse me, ma’am,’ he teased. ‘The Universe is what I meant to say. Do I get a Coke as well as a pie? I got a thirst on me that a waterin’ hole wouldn’t satisfy.’
‘Come on, Daddy. I’ll get it for you.’ Madison led the way into the kitchen where Sally-Ann was stacking the dishwasher after their supper.
‘Hi,’ she said with faux cordiality, having heard his key in the door and the girls’ conversation with him. ‘There’s chicken popover pie, or mac cheese if you’re hungry.’ She kept her back to him.
‘I already ate, thanks but I’ll have the key lime the girls bought me,’ he said, sitting on a bar stool at the kitchen counter. ‘How y’all doin’?’
‘Fine, jest fine,’ she said calmly, wanting to stick the steak knife she had in her hand into his ribs, and give it a good twist as she did so.
‘Here you go, Daddy.’ Madison presented him with his cake and Savannah poured his Coke into a glass she’d filled with ice cubes.
‘I’m a lucky man,’ Cal smiled, taking a swig of his drink. Sally-Ann swung around and eyeballed him. She had an inexplicable urge to smack him one in the chops. The twins were going to be shattered by what would soon be unfolding in their lives. She wanted to get it over and done with. This fake, happy family malarkey was doing her head in. Sally-Ann was so tempted to say ‘And now Daddy has something to tell you . . .’ while they were all there in the kitchen.
Cal studied her warily and realized what she was feeling and an expression of alarm crossed his face. Watching her daughters’ happy, innocent faces, she just could not bring herself to ruin their unconditional love for their father simply because she was feeling bitter and twisted and full of resentment. Tears came to her eyes and she struggled to maintain her composure.
Why was she so emotional? Her marriage was a marriage in name only. All for the sake of the girls, and had been for a long time. She and Cal had gone their separate ways. She’d had lovers after his betrayal of her. What was her problem? Why all of a sudden did it matter again? The questions raced around as the twins cuddled up to Cal, oblivious to their mother’s turmoil.
Cal shook his head ever so slightly, wordlessly pleading for her silence as he stared at her in apprehension.
She lowered her gaze and saw his shoulders slump in relief. ‘I need to phone a colleague, excuse me,’ she said flatly, fearing that she would blurt out some snide remark the longer she was in the room with him, and then the energy would change and a fight would start and the girls would become tense and watchful, and she didn’t want that for them. She closed the dishwasher door and walked from the kitchen as casually as she could.
‘Fuck you, Cal Cooper,’ she muttered, hurrying up the stairs, ‘and that manipulating little gold digger who got her claws into you, and stitched you up, you dumbass jerk.’
Cal watched her go and his heart rate slowed down. He knew the time was coming when he’d have to tell his beloved daughters that all was not as it seemed. But thankfully not right now. Sally-Ann had given him a bit of leeway.
The reveal had been postponed. He would not fall from his daughters’ good graces today, because of the good graces of his wife, he thought with immense relief, and some amount of uncomfortable shame.
‘And what about me? I want an end to this charade. I want the divorce over and done with so that I can move forward and get my life together. I hate living in this limbo you expect me to live in,’ Sally-Ann kept her voice low as she and Cal stood in the kitchen with the door closed, facing each other over the counter bar. The girls were doing their lessons.
‘I know, I know, and thanks for not sayin’ anything earlier. I felt you wanted to.’ Her husband ran his hand wearily over his stubbly jaw and tried not to yawn.
‘Are you going back to Galveston now?’ she demanded, making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for herself. She’d only picked at the pie for dinner; now her anger was making her hungry.
‘No, I wasn’t planning to.’ Cal thrust his hands into the hip pockets of his jeans.
‘Lord Almighty, your girlfriend’s just had a baby, you should be down there.’ Sally-Ann couldn’t hide her disgust.
‘She needs to sleep, I spent the afternoon with them—’
‘More time than you ever spent with me when I had the girls,’ Sally-Ann retorted, slugging a mouthful of milk from her glass.
‘First you ask me why I’m not there, then you say I didn’t spend enough time with you. Do you want to have a row, is that what you’re gunnin’ for?’ Her husband glared at her.
‘You bet I want to have a row with you, mister,’ she snapped. ‘I look at how happy our girls are and I dread what hearing about your new son is going to do to them.’
‘It doesn’t mean I love them any the less,’ he protested.
‘They’re kids, Cal, they see that their mom and dad are splitting up, and that their dad’s got a new family, and they’re going to be devastated, and feel rejected no matter how much you love them. Face up to it and stop running away from it and sticking your head in the sand. Deal with it, because we all have to.’ She was so angry she almost choked on her sandwich.
‘Ah, quit naggin’, woman,’ he muttered defensively.
‘See that’s your answer, always has been. You don’t want to hear the truth when things get rough. Cal, you need to grow up.’ They glowered at each other.
‘When do you want to do it then?’ he grimaced.
‘Eh . . . hello . . . I’m not doing it . . . you are,’ she said indignantly.
‘On my own?’ His jaw dropped. ‘Aw come on. Sally-Ann—’
‘Come on nothing, Cal. It’s all your doing.’
‘So you want me to tell them we’re divorcing and they have a new baby brother and you’re not even going to be there? That’s a bit callous. There’s no need to rub my nose in it. I know you’re mad at me, but it would make it easier on them if you were there to back me up when I tell them it’s got nothing to do with them and I still love them.’
‘Easier on who? You?’ she said truculently.
‘All of us,’ he said quietly.
‘I suppose so,’ she conceded. ‘Let’s not drag it out. We’ll do it at the weekend. What are you calling the baby?’
‘Jake Wyatt, after her pa and my granddaddy,’ he said, somewhat abashed.
‘Nice, congratulations,’ Sally-Ann managed. Hearing the child’s name made her feel a
mixture of sadness, rage, and misery.
‘He’s a fine little guy, with a full head of black hair,’ Cal said awkwardly.
‘You better take some photos in case the girls want to see them,’ Sally-Ann said. ‘Excuse me, I’m going to see if they need any help with their lessons.’ With her head held high she swept past him through the swing doors into the hall, wiping away the tears he hadn’t seen as she walked upstairs to assist their daughters.
Cal swallowed hard watching his wife leave the room. He’d never felt so miserable in his entire life. His phone pinged. Reluctantly he flipped it open.
Don’t stay away too long, your son and I are missing you! We love you, Lenora had texted. Bad timing, darlin’, he thought grimly because right this minute he was as angry with Lenora as much as he was with himself. Getting pregnant should be a joint decision. Having a child so early in their relationship had not been in his game plan. Now he was being forced to break up his family against his will and right this moment resentment and anger, not love and tenderness were the predominant emotions he was feeling towards his lover, the mother of his son.
He remembered the moment Jake had been placed in his arms. His son had stared at him, studying him intently before he’d given a tiny yawn and closed his eyes, his little fists crossed over his chest. Cal had been rocked to his core by the sudden, shocking, overwhelming wave of love he’d felt for this tiny being. His daughters had been born prematurely and whisked off to ICU without him having a chance to hold them. Their early birth had been traumatic for Sally-Ann, and his energies had gone into comforting and supporting her rather than marvelling at the perfection of their babies. That had come later. His heart softened as he thought of his son.
Orange Blossom Days Page 11