Aunt Bessie's Holiday (7 page)

“Time for dinner,” Mai said loudly and
brightly.
 
“Come on.”

Bessie looked at the tables as she followed
Mai.
 
They were all set with linen
tablecloths covered with what looked like expensive flatware and glasses. Crystal
chandeliers sparkled above them.

“You two are over here,” Mai told them, showing
them to a small table for two in a quiet corner.
 
“Enjoy your meal.”

Doona picked up the small card that was
leaning against her plate.
 
“Mrs.
Doona Moore Adams” had been printed on it.
 
She stared at it for a moment and then shook her head.
 
Bessie sat down in her seat and watched
as Doona very carefully tore the word “Adams” off the card.

“That’s better,” she said as she sat down
opposite Bessie.
 
There was a candle
burning in the centre of the table and Bessie grinned as Doona dropped the
piece she’d ripped off the card onto the flame.
 

Bessie watched as the dining room filled
with guests.
 
When everyone was
seated, waiters began to move around the space, carrying trays full of the
first course and pouring glasses of wine.

For several minutes the pair ate and drank
silently, letting the background noise of the room wash over them.
 
Bessie watched as Mai and Harold moved
from table to table, presumably making sure everyone was happy.
 

They had just started on the second course
when a tall blonde woman appeared in the doorway.
 
She looked around the room as if she was
trying to find someone.
 
To Bessie
it seemed as if her eyes stopped on Doona for a short while, before moving
on.
 
The room grew quiet as everyone
noticed the new arrival.

Bessie looked over at her friend.
 
“Someone you know?” she whispered.

“Jessica Howe,” Doona whispered back.
 
“The woman Charles was seeing behind my
back.”

“What’s she doing here?” Bessie asked the
obvious question.

“I’ve no idea,” Doona hissed.
 

“Ah, Mai, there you are,” the woman called
from the doorway.
 
“Do us a favour
and tell Charles I’m here, would you?”

“Certainly, Ms. Howe,” Mai said, turning and
heading towards the kitchen door.

The room remained silent while Mai was gone.
 
Bessie used the time to study Jessica
Howe.
 
She would have put the woman
somewhere in her thirties, but it was hard to be certain, as she was wearing a
great deal of makeup.
 
Her hair was
platinum blonde and it looked dry and brittle, even from across the room.
 
Her eyes were a luminous blue that
Bessie suspected came from coloured contact lenses.
 
She had generous curves that were being
showcased in a very tight dress that was not only cut low at the front, but had
a very short skirt.
 

“Charles is really busy in the kitchen,” Mai
announced when she returned.
 
“He
said to tell you he’ll see you later.
 
In the meantime, you’re welcome to enjoy the dinner.”

“Oh, am I?” Jessica asked, her voice rising
in pitch with every word.
 
“Busy in
the kitchen, is he?
 
Tell him to get
out here right now or he’ll regret it,” she shouted shrilly.
 
“I won’t be treated like this, not after
everything he’s put me through.”

“Calm down, Jess,” Charles said as he walked
in behind Mai.
 
“There’s no need for
a scene.
 
Have some dinner and we’ll
talk later.”

“I don’t want to talk,” Jessica
shouted.
 
“I want to kill you.”

It seemed as if everyone in the room gasped
at the same time.

“Surely you’ll do a better job on a full
stomach,” Charles suggested.
 
“I’m
not going anywhere.
 
I’m working.”

“I think we’ve had quite enough of this
little drama,” another voice chimed in.
 
Lawrence Jenkins walked in behind Charles and nodded tightly at
him.
 
“Ms. Howe, if you’d like to
come with me, we can have a chat while you wait for Charles to finish here.”

“Charles is finished here,” she
replied.
 
“In every possible way.”

“Yes, well, that’s something we can better
discuss elsewhere,” Lawrence said smoothly.
 
He walked over to her and took her
arm.
 
“Let’s go somewhere a little
more comfortable.
 
I’m sure we’ll
find lots to talk about.”

For a moment it looked as if the woman was
going to argue, but Lawrence turned her around and led her out of the
room.
 
It seemed as if everyone
sighed with relief together as the front door shut behind the pair.

“Well, that was interesting,”
Bessie
said brightly to Doona.

“Do you think we can change our return ferry
booking?” Doona asked.

“If not, we can always just drive down to
Heysham and stay in a hotel there,” Bessie suggested.
 

The waiters were busily refilling wine
glasses and serving the next course.
 
Doona took a bite of chicken in a white wine sauce and sighed.
 
“We can’t leave,” she said.
 
“The food is too good.”

Bessie laughed.
 
“The rest of the holiday will probably
feel quite dull after tonight’s excitement,” she said.

“I certainly hope so,” Doona said
emphatically.

The rest of the evening went more
smoothly.
 
Various courses were
served as the wine flowed continually.
 
By the time the puddings were being distributed, Bessie was feeling very
full and rather sleepy.

“I think I ate too much,” she said as she
finished the last bite of her crème caramel.

“I know I ate too much,” Doona replied.
 
“And I drank too much as well, but at
least I haven’t thought about Charles for at least five minutes.”
 
She giggled.
 
“Oooops, I just thought about him,” she
told Bessie.
 

“I do hope you aren’t thinking fondly of
him,” Bessie said.

“No, I was thinking about stabbing him with
this spoon,” Doona said, holding up her spoon.

“I’m not sure you could do much damage with
a spoon.”

“I’m pretty sure I’m mad enough to kill him
with a spoon,” Doona countered.

“If I could have everyone’s attention,” Mai
said loudly from the centre of the room.
 
“I want everyone to meet Nathan Beck, our chef.
 
He’s responsible for all of the gorgeous
food you’ve enjoyed tonight.”

Mai gestured towards the thirty-something man
who was standing beside her.
 
His
long dirty-blond hair was tied in a ponytail down his back.
 
He smiled vaguely at the tables full of
people who were applauding politely.
 
When the applause stopped, Mai nudged him.

“Oh, um, well, thank you for coming.
 
I hoped you enjoyed the meal and I hope
to see all of you back again during your stay,” he said.
 
He glanced around,
then
focussed his gaze on one of the waitresses.

“And, of course, my thanks to all the hardworking
wait staff, especially my beautiful wife, Monique.”
 

Bessie watched the pretty brunette blush
brightly.
 

“Yes, well, of course, everyone has worked
hard tonight,”
Mai
said, sounding annoyed.
 
“Anyway, thanks again to Nathan.”

The guests clapped again, with somewhat less
enthusiasm.
 
That seemed to mark the
end of the evening.
 
Guests began to
gather up jackets and handbags and depart back to their cabins and cottages.

Bessie looked at Doona.
 
“Ready to head back to our temporary home?”
she asked her.

“That’s probably a good idea,” Doona
replied.
 
“If I stay here I might
just tell Charles a few things.”

“We should definitely go, then,” Bessie
said.

The pair stood up and picked up their
bags.
 
They were nearly to the door
when Mai caught up to them.

“I do hope you enjoyed your evening,” she
said brightly.

“The food was delicious,” Bessie replied.

“And the entertainment was definitely
interesting,” Doona added dryly.

“Ms. Howe was a bit overwrought,” Mai
said.
 
“She and her husband have
been having difficulties.”

“I’m sure her affair with Charles hasn’t
helped,” Doona shot back.

Mai flushed.
 
“I don’t know anything about that,” she
said.

“I know far too much about that,” Doona told
her.
 
“But what did Charles tell you
about me?”

“Oh, but, that is, I mean,” she looked
confused.
 
“He said, but, well, I
don’t think, I mean, maybe I should let you get back to your accommodation.
 
Do ring me if you need anything.”

The girl hurried away before Doona could do
anything more than shake her head.
 
“What has Charles been telling them about me?” she demanded of Bessie.

“I’m sure I don’t know,” Bessie
replied.
 
“And I’m also sure that
Mai isn’t going to tell you.”

“We’re here for a week,” Doona said
grimly.
 
“She’ll tell me before we
leave.”

The pair headed for the door, and this time
they weren’t stopped.
 
Outside, it
was a perfect autumn evening.
 
The
air was crisp, but not cold, and both women inhaled deeply.

“It smells like autumn,” Bessie said.

“It does,” Doona agreed.
 

“It seems strange not to smell the sea,
though,” Bessie remarked as they started along the path that would take them
back to Foxglove Close.
 

They walked in silence, both lost in their
own thoughts.
 
Bessie wanted to ask
Doona hundreds of questions, but she didn’t want to upset her friend.
 
Back at their cul-de-sac, people were
still arriving and dashing about with suitcases and boxes.
 
Bessie and Doona quickly made their way
into number eight.
 
As soon as they
got inside, Doona went into the kitchen and came out with a bottle of wine and
two glasses.
 

“I’ve probably had enough for tonight,”
Bessie said.

“Let me pour you a glass anyway,”
Doona
replied.
 
“You don’t have to drink it, but it will keep me from drinking the
entire bottle.”

They took their wine out onto their small
patio and sat down.

“What a mess,” Doona said after a few
minutes.

“Why would Charles bring you here?” Bessie
asked the first question that popped into her head.

“I haven’t the foggiest idea,” Doona
replied.
 
“We haven’t spoken in over
two years.
 
Once I found out he’d
cheated, my advocate and his solicitor handled all contact between us.
 
I didn’t even think he knew I’d moved to
Laxey.”

“You’ve told me some things about your
marriage, but certainly not everything.
 
I didn’t know you found out he was cheating from a letter,” Bessie
said.
 
“I don’t want you to talk
about anything that you’ll find upsetting, but I’d love to hear the whole
story.”

Doona nodded.
 
“It might do me some good to talk it all
through,” she said.
 
“Maybe we can work
out what Charles really wants, as well.”

She topped up both of their wine glasses and
then sat back in her chair and closed her eyes.
 
“We met at a party,” she began in a low
voice.
 
“I was leaving just as he
was coming in.
 
He was gorgeous and
so very charming.
 
I fell in love
with him when our eyes met for the first time.”

Bessie took a sip of wine, wondering what
she could possibly say to make this easier on her dear friend.
 
“I’m sorry,” she finally muttered as the
silence stretched between them.

“He was incredible,” Doona continued
now.
 
“He’d travelled all over the
world as an important manager for a major hotel chain.
 
They were opening a new hotel on the island
and he’d come for the grand opening.
 
Within minutes he’d invited me to join him at the big party the next
evening.
 
The party itself was full
of minor celebrities and the very cream of the island’s social crop, and I was
completely overwhelmed, but Charles made me feel as if I were the only woman in
the room, or at least the only one who mattered to him.”