Table For Eight

by Tricia Stringer

  Three! Ketty swallowed the hard lump that had formed in her throat. There was a time when she’d have given anything to have one child. The other two must have come after she’d left Adelaide. He must have stayed with Marjorie for longer than he’d intimated, unless someone else was the mother. She wanted to ask but couldn’t bring herself to.

  “All doing their own thing but still with their hands out,” he went on. “Anyway, after Marjorie…well, let’s say she got the house and nearly everything else, I started from scratch, was finally doing okay again, then last year my partner did the dirty. It’s all been messy, court proceedings, lies and smoke screens but in this case the truth didn’t out and…the bottom line is I’ve been left with little.” His voice was bitter and he stared off into the distance as ice cream dripped down his hand. He took out a clean handkerchief and wiped at the white dribbles as if they were poison. The stick and the remaining ice cream were shoved into the wrapper and stuck under his chair. “You’re lucky to have remained sole owner and manager,” he said giving her a smile now. “You’re a smart woman, Ketty.”

  “It hasn’t been easy.”

  “Running your own business never is but you’re one of the lucky ones, successful.”

  Ketty thought about that. It was on the tip of her tongue to tell him how close to losing everything she was. He’d offered to help. Perhaps he would be able to suggest something the accountant hadn’t thought of. And how good would it be to share the burden of her worry? Not with an employee like Judith but with a friend, that’s how she thought of Leo now, and a friend who understood business.

  “Josie and Bernard have turned up.” He gave a nod.

  She followed the direction he was looking. A crowd was forming closer to where the dancers were setting up and Josie and Bernard were standing among them.

  “How well do you know this Bernard fellow she’s taken up with?”

  Ketty wiped ice cream from the corners of her lips. “Little more than you do, why?”

  Leo turned to her and leaned closer. “Don’t say anything to Josie but I’ve had to bail her out in the past. She’s…she’s got a poor history when it comes to finding men. She’s got some money behind her now. I hope this Bernard isn’t after that.”

  Ketty felt offended for Josie and for Bernard. “They’re both independent adults.”

  Leo looked back across the clearing. “I just hope I don’t have to pick up the pieces again if it doesn’t work out.”

  Ketty too stared across at the couple who were chatting to someone beside them. Josie’s head tipped back and Ketty caught the sound of her deep laugh. It had only been a few days but there’d obviously been an instant attraction between them. Ketty’s people radar was usually quite accurate but she made mistakes sometimes. She hoped not in this case, she liked Josie very much and Bernard was fast turning into a friend as well.

  “Looks like the show’s about to start.” Leo stood as people came from other directions and filled the space between them and the dancers. “Shall we move closer?”

  Ketty took the arm he offered and they stepped forward together. It was difficult making herself accept his gestures of kindness. Her injured arm was not giving her much bother but he was solicitous nonetheless. She tried hard to appear grateful but she was so used to doing everything alone.

  Twenty-four

  Bernard shepherded Josie in front of him as they stepped back aboard ship. He had hoped for a bit of time alone with her before his dinner with Christine but they’d been on the same return tender as Christine and Frank who were walking ahead of them up the stairs. Now he felt obliged to include his daughter and her husband in his plans.

  “Anyone in a rush?” Bernard asked once they’d all arrived in the space between lift and stairs. “We could have a drink together on the pool deck.” He was hoping they’d say no but Frank jumped in straight away.

  “I could go a beer.”

  “I’d love a cocktail.” Josie looked at Christine. “How about you?”

  Christine glanced at her watch. “We’ve still got plenty of time before dinner. Why not? But I’d like to get out of my bathers first.”

  They all boarded the lift. “Shall I take your things?” she asked Frank.

  “Thanks.” He handed over his bag.

  Bernard glanced from Christine to Frank. They were being very polite to each other, more like acquaintances than husband and wife. The lift door opened and she left without a backward glance.

  Josie jabbed at button ten. “I might do the same.” She kissed Bernard’s cheek as the door opened for her. “I’ll see you up there.”

  “Looks like it’s down to you and me, Frank,” Bernard said.

  He led the way out to the bar where he ordered two of the drink of the day for the ladies and a beer each for himself and his son-in-law.

  “So how are the kids?” Bernard asked. “Have you spoken to them since we’ve been away?”

  “Yes, we’ve phoned twice and I think Christine plans to facetime them from Noumea. They’ve been away at the beach and reception hasn’t been good but they’ll be back at my sister’s in Melbourne tomorrow.”

  “I wish I could see them more often. They’re nearly grown up already.”

  Frank took a sip of beer, watching Bernard over the rim of his glass. “You know you’re always welcome to visit, Bernie.”

  “Ditto, Frank.”

  They looked at each other, both knowing that the status quo of a visit once a year was unlikely to change. They’d never spent a lot of time together over the years, especially not alone, but he did like Frank. He just wished he would stand up to Christine a little more and not let her walk all over him.

  “I’m applying for a new job.”

  Bernard was surprised at the way Frank blurted it out. As if he was making a declaration.

  “Something different?” Bernard gave an encouraging smile. Christine often played down Frank’s work but Bernard was a firm believer in everyone having their niche. Frank was honest and hardworking, that was all that mattered.

  “Director of Engineering and Horticulture. It’d be a step up from what I’m doing now.”

  “Good luck.” Bernard raised his glass.

  “Thanks. Nothing’s certain but I think I’ve got a good chance of getting it.” Frank swallowed half of what was left in his glass. “Thing is it’s with a different council, a bit further south. I’m thinking we should move house as well. Buy something closer to the beach.” Frank turned away, looking out over the pool deck where the usual late afternoon crowd were gathering. “We wouldn’t have to move but I think it would be better. A bit more commuting for Chrissie perhaps, but it would be close to their new suburban office so she might be able to transfer.”

  “What about the kids’ school? They’re pretty settled there by the sounds.”

  Frank turned back, his face more animated now. “No more distance for them, purely a different direction.”

  Bernie nodded.

  “I think we’d be better off.” Frank pressed on. “We could buy a bigger house, maybe even with a pool, for the money we could sell our current place for.”

  “Christine said something about money for renovations.”

  Frank frowned at that. “We wouldn’t need to renovate if we moved.”

  “Are you moving?” Josie slid onto a spare bar stool the other side of Bernard and slipped her hand through his arm.

  “Maybe,” Frank said. “Christine’s not keen.”

  “Oh.” Josie pulled a face.

  “We looked at doing renovations a few years ago,” Frank said. “Got some plans drawn up and a quote but it was a lot of money and we shelved it.”

  He looked at Bernard and once again there was a kind of desperation in his eyes. Perhaps this was why the two of them were being so cool with each other. Christine hadn’t given up on the renovations idea if their breakfast a few days ago was anything to go by. The idea of moving was apparently a bone of contention and one Bernard didn’t w
ant to get involved in.

  He passed Josie one of the chartreuse-coloured cocktails with little rounds of fruit bobbing on the top. “Try this. It’s called a Melon Ball.”

  She put the straw to her lips. “Mmm. Fruity. Love it, thanks.”

  “Here I am.” Christine joined them.

  Bernard passed her drink then raised his glass. “Cheers, my dears.”

  They all paused to sip their drinks.

  Christine licked her lips. “Thanks, Dad. That’s delicious.”

  Josie smiled. “I don’t think I’ve had one drink that hasn’t been amazing yet and I’m determined to work my way through their cocktail list.”

  Bernard grinned. Everything about this woman he liked.

  “You said you live near Dad, Josie. Which suburb?” Christine asked.

  “Teneriffe, overlooking the river.”

  “Mmm.” Christine’s eyebrows raised. “Expensive suburb.”

  “Not necessarily. I bought my apartment at a good time.”

  “Like us with our place. We bought at a good time didn’t we, Frank?”

  Bernard shifted on his stool. He sensed trouble brewing.

  “But the house isn’t very big. The kids are teenagers now and we need room for visitors.” Christine looked pointedly at Bernard. “We need to extend.”

  “Sometimes you’re better off to move,” Josie said.

  “I think you’re right.” Bernard scratched at his chin. “Renovating is a messy business.”

  Christine opened her mouth but Josie cut her off, waggling a finger towards Lifou. “Oh look, we’re underway again. I thought the view was changing.”

  They all turned.

  “The sea is so smooth,” Christine said. “You hardly know you’re moving.”

  Bernard rested a hand on Josie’s shoulder and twirled a loose piece of her hair. He loved the silky feel of it between his fingers. “It’s such a beautiful evening. We should go and watch from the front of the ship,” he said. “You two don’t mind, do you?” He slid from his stool, wrapped his arm around Josie’s waist and pulled her close.

  “I owe you a drink,” Frank said.

  “Next time.”

  Christine opened her mouth but Bernard cut her off. “See you at dinner.” He gave a wave and propelled Josie forward.

  The cabin door had barely shut behind them before Christine started.

  “Did you see the way Dad and Josie were carrying on?” She took off her lanyard and tossed it on the desk. “Old people acting like teenagers. It’s disgusting and worse when it’s my father.”

  “Josie seems nice enough.”

  Christine glared at him. “She’s a gold-digger. After his money, that’s all. Why else would she be chasing him?”

  “That’s a bit tough, Chrissie. Your dad’s a pretty good-looking bloke, fit and healthy.”

  “He’s nearly seventy.”

  “The new fifty, they say. Anyway, she’s at least sixty and it sounds like she’s got her own money. As you said, apartments in Teneriffe don’t come cheap.”

  “No doubt a pay-out from one of her divorces. She’s probably looking for a new income source.”

  Frank sighed. “Do you want a shower first or shall I?”

  “You go.” She waved towards the bathroom.

  She had to get her thoughts in order and her plan sorted before she met her father for dinner. Christine was the only one going to get her hands on his money, not anyone else and certainly not that floozy of a woman, Josie.

  Ketty sat on one of the deckchairs on the promenade deck and watched as Lifou Island slowly disappeared from view. She’d had such an enjoyable day. Up until now anyway. She tried to focus on the good rather than what unsettled her. She was expert at that. Pushing the bad stuff away. Trouble was, it involved Leo and she was unsure what to do about it. How to move forward.

  The island had been as beautiful as ever. After the welcome dance they’d run into Celia and Jim and taken a stroll along the beach. They’d caught the tender back together, enjoyed a late buffet lunch then gone on to trivia. Ketty relished trivia. It was so interesting to watch how people participated. Some were too shy to put forward a suggestion and others would calmly lean in with an answer, while there were always some who almost burst with the telling, eager to show off their knowledge.

  Celia had slipped away as soon as the quiz was finished. She’d been acting like a startled rabbit again, at one moment nearly knocking all their drinks flying when she’d reached for her glass, and then tapping one fingernail on the edge of the table. They hadn’t had a chance to speak alone. Jim had started talking stock markets with Leo, the discussion had led to investments and then Jim had asked about Leo’s previous business but Leo had changed the subject then and the conversation had fizzled. Jim had headed off and then it had been just her and Leo finishing their drinks together before they went off to prepare for dinner.

  They had been chatting about family. Ketty knew his sister Josie now of course, but he hadn’t ever met her brother Phil and then there was Phil’s wife and their son Greg. Perhaps Ketty had glowed a little too much when she spoke of Greg but she did feel a special bond with him. Leo started talking about his own children. They were all the product of his marriage to Marjorie. Ketty found it difficult to accept he’d stayed on in the marriage and they’d had two more children when he’d been adamant he no longer loved his wife.

  Next, he’d talked about his grandchildren. For some reason that had hit her hard, almost a physical reaction as if she’d been punched in the stomach. It was then that he’d pulled out his phone and she’d sat stiffly beside him looking at photo after photo as he scrolled through pictures of several children, she’d lost count of how many, of various ages from babies to young teens. He didn’t look like stopping so she’d said it was time for her to go but she hadn’t returned to her cabin, instead she’d come to the promenade deck where she sat and watched the view.

  Now she probed the grandchildren thing and it hurt, like poking at a sore tooth. Perhaps because children had been denied her, but she’d got over that a long time ago. It wasn’t until her friends and clients began having grandchildren and she saw the love and fulfilment it gave them in their later years that she felt a sadness.

  Ketty Clift, who controlled most things in her life, had no control over that, and Leo’s obvious pride and joy over his own grandchildren had opened old wounds. It wasn’t his fault she didn’t have grandchildren of her own and yet a part of her couldn’t help but feel it was.

  “Quite ridiculous, Ketty,” she muttered, then smiled sweetly at a young couple who gave her an odd look as they passed.

  She’d been so deep in her own thoughts she hadn’t noticed another couple had come to sit on the deckchairs further along from her. They were intent on their own conversation and not looking her way but the woman gave a snorting laugh which set the hairs on the back of Ketty’s neck on end. She caught glimpses of the man with Maude, lavishing attention on her. It was Pete. Ketty glanced up and back along the deck. No sign of anyone else. She wasn’t one to judge others but she understood Celia’s concerns for her friend and the implications of this dalliance. She pondered a moment then she recalled the invitation to the Diamond Lounge for late night cocktails and canapes, and a plan formed. She’d been going to suggest to Leo that they go there after the show but she could always take him another night.

  Ah, Leo. She stood and walked along the deck away from the chummy couple till she was alone again. The sun was getting low and the light was golden. She breathed in the salty air. She had rebuilt her life by not looking back, not regretting what wasn’t to be. Here she was on a cruise where she’d rediscovered the man who she’d loved so desperately and she needed to focus on that. If something came of this meeting and their friendship continued, it was possible Leo’s grandchildren could be kind of adoptive grandchildren for her. She pulled herself up at that. She was getting far too ahead of herself.

  Twenty-five

 
Night Six – At Sea

  Christine settled into her chair and glanced around the restaurant, taking in the potted palms and floral decor. It didn’t look as luxurious as their dining room. She swallowed her disappointment and turned back to her father who was studying the wine list. He was dressed smartly in a jacket and tie and she felt rather glamorous even if the surroundings weren’t. She wore a sparkling silver and black dress, the one she’d had her eye on in one of the ship boutiques. It was the perfect fit – at least it was once she pulled on her spandex and squeezed her boobs in. She had justified the expense thinking she’d wear it tonight and on the next formal night.

  At her neck was the pearl Frank had bought her. Her father’s gift was still missing and she hoped he wouldn’t make mention of its absence. Christine was sure Maria had taken it but Frank had made a fuss when she’d said again she wanted to report it. He was determined it would turn up, said they hadn’t had a proper look and how silly would they feel if they reported it and it was among their things. But Christine had had a good look and she didn’t trust Maria. She quizzed the maid each day to see if the pendant had been discovered during cleaning. Maria’s responses were always emphatically ‘no’ and there would be vigorous head shaking before she would ease away and disappear into wherever she went when she wasn’t skulking in the corridor. And her cleaning left a lot to be desired. There’d been a black hair in the shower one day and a mark on the mirror another, and she usually hurried off in the other direction when Christine approached. Definitely shifty but Frank stood up for her.

  He wasn’t usually one to dig his heels in but these last few days he had on several occasions, defending Maria, this new job he wanted, moving house. Still, she would work on that and if all went to plan they’d be able to celebrate as soon as she got back to their room. She was determined that tonight she would seduce her husband one way or another.

  She pushed thoughts of missing necklaces and changing jobs aside and smiled at her father who had just ordered an expensive bottle of wine. She felt confident tonight was going to be a good one in all respects.