Chapter 22 #2
“I think you’re right,” she said in her calmest voice, “since we’ve been hooted at three times. No worries. I’m getting used to the car, that’s all. It’s much wider than ours.”
“It has the same number of seats, though,” Finlay said. “It’s not that much wider.”
“Thank you,” she said, “for your soothing note of understanding.” You weren’t meant to be sarcastic with your kids, but sometimes, the temptation was just too strong.
You are not going to scrape anybody’s car, she told herself fiercely, as she felt the sweat trickle down her back.
Look at all the delivery vans and trucks on the road!
This thing is wider than you’re used to, that’s all.
Breathe, slow down, be cautious, and you’ll be fine.
Of course, she was hooted at again by the driver behind her, who didn’t appreciate her new deliberate pace, but what did she care?
She didn’t know whoever it was back there.
It was Wellington, and she didn’t know anybody in Wellington.
Except her granddad, who met her at the front door of the big house on a hill when she’d finally brought the people-mover to a grateful stop and they’d all straggled up the sidewalk to the front door with their luggage, a bit weak in the knees in her case.
She got a beaming smile, cuddles for his great-grandkids, and a pronouncement that, “Maureen and I can kick up our heels a bit now you’re here, eh. Brilliant.”
Not Cinderella. A fortunate woman.
Maureen said, “Show the kids to their rooms, you lot, and then show them over the place. Pity it’s raining, though the pool’s well heated, but the weather will soon change. It’s Wellington.”
“I want to swim in the rain,” Finlay said. “It seems like it would be exciting. Let’s get in before it stops.”
“It would be mysterious,” Olive agreed. “Like being in a story, or even being a mermaid.”
“It’s not mysterious,” Scarlett said. “It’s just wetter.”
“No swimming unless an adult is watching,” Skylar said.
At the chorus of disappointment, she added, “But I’ll watch you for a bit, once everybody’s changed.
” All her kids were fairly strong swimmers, even George, but she wasn’t compromising on this one.
Fortunately, she’d been able to get the audiobook of her story from the library just before she’d left, which meant she could listen to it and watch them in the pool.
(She also could’ve painted the downstairs with that audiobook for company, but never mind.) She’d be doing her duty and holidaying at the same time.
What could be better? She could even swim herself, for that matter.
In the evenings, possibly, after the kids had gone to bed.
The pool probably had lights under the water, right?
Didn’t they usually? Swimming in the warm waters of a mysteriously glowing pool in the rain …
maybe she could imagine herself as a mermaid.
Imagining was free, and it wasn’t even fattening.
“Let’s get into our togs, then!” George said. “I’ll race you, Georgia.”
“You don’t know where my room is, though,” she said.
“Oh,” he said. “OK. Then I’ll follow you instead. And then get into my togs. Except Mum says we need to change clothes in the toilet so we don’t see each other’s naughty bits.”
“Oh, my God,” Scarlett said.
Granddad said brightly, “Brilliant. Maureen and I will have a wee break and take in the City Gallery. That’s modern art. I can never tell what it’s meant to be, but she’s dead keen, and she says she’ll educate me.”
“Make you less of a Philistine,” Maureen said. So she could tease. “Never mind. Your granddad’s been teaching us woodworking. The kids and I have all made birdhouses, if you’ll believe it.”
“We have three birdhouses at our house, too,” Finlay said. “He already taught us. No birds have ever come to live in them, though.”
“Maybe they don’t seem cozy enough,” Georgia said. “We could make a sign that says, ‘Nice Home for Birds.’”
“And ‘No Cats Allowed,’” George said. “That would be a good sign.”
Finlay said, “Except that birds can’t read. Or cats.”
“Oh,” Georgia said.
“Oh, well,” George said. “We could still make your birdhouse very cozy, Georgia. We could take fluff out of a pillow, maybe, so the birds could build a nest. Then they’d all want to come.”
“No taking fluff out of pillows, please,” Skylar said. “We can look for some moss for the birds when we take a walk in the bush. Twigs, too, and plant down, if we find any. We’ll put all of it in a mesh bag, hang it outside, and see if the birds are interested.”
“Mum knows all the things about animals,” George said.
“And she has the funnest ideas for things to do. She won’t have to think of so many things here, though, because we can go swimming and play games and do so many things, and she says we can go all sorts of places, even the expensive ones, because we don’t have to pay! ”
“Why don’t you have to pay?” Scarlett asked. “We have to pay.”
“Because your dad’s paying,” Finlay said, with absolutely no tact. “He paid for our car, too, even though Mum can’t drive it very well yet, and he’s paying for us to go to all the museums and things.”
Scarlett’s eyes were narrowing. “Why?”
“Because he likes Mum, I think,” Finlay said. “I told you, I saw them kissing. And Mum doesn’t have enough money to come here unless he pays for it. She doesn’t have any extra money at all.” A revelation Skylar could definitely have done without.
“You did not see them kissing,” Scarlett said. “I’ve never seen Dad kissing anyone, and I live with him. He doesn’t bring girls on our holidays, either.”
“Well, he did this time,” Finlay said. “Why would I lie about it? It’s not like I wanted to see my mum kissing somebody either!”
“Well, here we all are at last,” Granddad said, rubbing his hands together and appearing completely oblivious, “cozy as anything. We’ll be back in time for tea, Skylar.
House is full of groceries, so no worries, because I took the car this morning and stocked up for you.
I thought you might like to do spaghetti, or maybe venison stir-fry.
Something simple like that, as it’s your first day.
You can take your choice, as I nearly bought out the store.
Got ice cream, too. You won’t even have to make pudding. ”
So, yes. Dinner for nine. A brilliant start.
But still. She was in a new city, and she was going to enjoy herself, no matter what anybody else thought about it.
And so what if Zane was paying for it? She’d done everything right for nearly twelve years, and what had her exemplary life got her?
An Educator of the Year finalist spot, that was what.
With that and six dollars, she could buy a flat white.
Maybe. Oh, and it had also got her three kids with opinions.
Well, she had opinions, too. She had opinions, and desires, and probably even dreams, somewhere down there.
Just now, she desired to swim in a glowing blue pool in the dark.
In the rain and the wind, too, because she wanted excitement, and she wasn’t going to find that with all those kids traipsing after her, as Jess had so helpfully pointed out.
And if Scarlett wanted to make a federal case of any of that, she might just find herself on washing-up duty.
If Skylar was going to be the only adult here, she was going to be the adult in charge.
Look out, world.