Chapter 20
TWENTY
The startling content of the novel went through Marian’s mind as they drove to Claire and Pierce’s new house the next day.
Theo had picked her up in his rented Toyota saying it was his turn to do the driving.
She had tried Sean’s number that he had given to her the last time they met, but it went to voicemail.
She had told him to call her back as soon as he could about an urgent matter, but so far there had been no sign of life from him at all.
She had also sent several text messages, but there was still no response.
It made her nearly sick with nerves and she knew she had to warn Sylvia about what she had read.
Theo shot a look at her as they neared the house. ‘What’s the matter? You look worried. Is it me?’
‘No,’ Marian said. ‘Nothing to do with you. Something I have to talk to Sylvia about and I don’t know how to put it to her.’
‘You have to try to be gentle with the old lady,’ Theo said.
Marian had to laugh. ‘Wait till you meet her. She’s tougher than you think.
I just want to make sure she doesn’t find out…
Oh, never mind.’ Marian had been about to tell Theo about her part in the story, but stopped herself in time.
He didn’t need to know she had been drinking wine and talking about herself and her family with another man on the plane.
‘By the way,’ she said, quickly changing the subject, ‘what were you talking to Dominic about last night?’
‘Oh, just something we’re both interested in,’ he said cryptically. ‘Hey, is this the house?’
Marian looked up at the bungalow on the hill that rose above them. It was whitewashed with a slate roof and the front garden had an array of hydrangea bushes in full bloom in a riot of purple, brilliant blue and white. ‘It looks fabulous. What a wonderful home they have made.’
‘A bit small, though,’ Theo remarked.
‘Yes, but it’s only the two of them most of the time,’ Marian replied.
‘Except when Jo, Pierce’s teenage daughter, comes for a visit.
They have three bedrooms, so that’s not a problem.
And Pierce insisted that she has her own bathroom as well, so they added that in an extension at the back of the house. ’
‘Smart move,’ Theo said. ‘Remember what Rebecca was like as a teenager?’
‘I do.’ Marian smiled at the memory. ‘She was constantly locking herself in the bathroom, so nobody could come in.’
‘We had to move to a bigger house with two bathrooms. And then Conor and Rebecca used to fight about whose turn it was to be in the second bathroom,’ Theo said as he pulled in at the side of the road. ‘Should I park here?’
‘No. Go up to the house. Claire said there’s plenty of space for several cars.’ Marian sat there, momentarily stunned by the reminder that they had once been a family. And mostly happy, taking everything in their stride. We were a team then, she thought. So united through every storm.
‘Okay.’ Theo drove slowly up the driveway and when they had reached the top, they saw that there was indeed plenty of room beside three cars that were already parked on the tarmac in front of the house.
Marian got out of the car and stood looking at the panoramic views of Ventry Harbour. She could see the wide sweep of the sandy beach, and boats swaying on the waves further out. ‘Gosh, this is lovely,’ she exclaimed. ‘I didn’t know the views were so great from here.’
‘Gorgeous spot,’ Theo said behind her. ‘Very similar to a house I saw…’ He stopped.
‘You saw where?’ Marian asked.
‘Oh, somewhere in Dingle when I was walking around,’ Theo mumbled.
‘Okay. Well, anyway, let’s get the housewarming gift and the bottles of wine,’ Marian said and opened the boot of the car.
Then she saw that besides the gift-wrapped box and the three bottles of wine, there were also some tools and two small pots of paint.
‘What’s this?’ she asked, pointing at the items.
‘Oh, that,’ Theo said. ‘Uh, just something I picked up for Dominic on my way to meet you.’
‘Really?’ Marian glanced at him, feeling he wasn’t telling the truth. ‘Can’t he pick up his own stuff?’
‘Oh, well, it’s…’ He stopped and pushed his fingers through his hair. ‘Look, Marian, this is about something that I can’t tell you about yet. But in the end, I think you’ll approve.’
They were interrupted by the door opening and Claire rushing out to meet them.
‘Hi,’ she squealed, ‘you’re here at last. Everyone has arrived and Pierce has just lit the barbecue.
’ She glanced up at the sky where dark clouds were drifting in, hiding the sun.
‘We have to get started before the rain begins.’ She hugged them both in turn and then went back up the steps and held the door open.
‘Have a quick tour of the house and then we’ll go out to our new deck. ’
‘Great,’ Marian said and followed Claire into a bright hall with a wooden floor and walls painted a light green.
There was an antique hallstand, a shelf for hats and an umbrella stand.
Then they went down a corridor to the bedrooms which were all cosy with colourful rugs and walls hung with prints of landscapes and seascapes of Kerry.
The kitchen had an island in the middle and a wood-burning stove opposite the cooker and fridge.
A kitchen table stood under the window that had lovely views of the mountains.
Then they went into the large living room furnished with a mixture of old and new.
‘Some of the furniture came from Magnolia Manor,’ Claire explained, showing them a chintz sofa with two matching armchairs.
‘It’s gorgeous,’ Marian said and handed Claire the parcel. ‘This will go well with your décor.’
‘Thank you, Marian.’ Claire tore the wrapping from the parcel and discovered a throw in shades of green, turquoise and navy. ‘How lovely,’ she exclaimed and draped the throw on the arm of the light green sofa. ‘The colours of the sea. It matches my colour scheme perfectly.’
‘I had to guess,’ Marian said. ‘But I knew what colours you like, so it wasn’t that hard.’
‘You’re the best sister,’ Claire said. ‘But now we must go out on the deck.’
They stepped through the French windows that opened to a deck where most of the family were gathered. The back garden consisted of a wide sloping lawn, where all the children were running around playing a game with a large beach ball, screaming and laughing.
‘What a lovely space,’ Marian said as she took in the views of the mountains on one side and the ocean on the other.
‘Marian, welcome,’ Pierce said and gave her a hug.
Then he shook hands with Theo. ‘Hi, Theo and welcome. I’m so glad to have an Aussie onboard.
Could you give me a hand with the barbecue?
’ He gestured at a large barbecue emitting smoke at the end of the deck.
‘I’m not sure when to put the meat on and then I always overcook it. ’
‘G’day, Pierce,’ Theo said. ‘Nice to meet you at last. I’ll be happy to help out with the steaks and stuff.’
‘He has to meet everyone first,’ Marian cut in. ‘So we’ll do the introductions and then Theo can give you a few pointers.’
‘Wait for the charcoal to turn white,’ Theo said to Pierce before Marian led him away to meet the others.
They were all gathered around Sylvia, who stepped forward to greet Theo. She shook his hand and beamed her most charming smile at him. ‘So this is the Aussie hunk,’ she joked. ‘I must say I’m not disappointed. You’re a sight for sore eyes, Theo. I hope you’re enjoying your stay here.’
‘So far it’s been brilliant.’ Theo smiled back at Sylvia, who looked at her most stylish and youthful tonight wearing blue linen slacks and a flowing blue and green paisley silk shirt.
Arnaud, standing beside Sylvia, smiled and took Theo’s hand in a warm handshake. ‘Welcome,’ he said. ‘We’ve heard so much about you.’
Rose was next, followed by Vi and Lily and they all surrounded Theo, asking him about Queensland and the surfing scene there. Then the men joined them and Theo soon found himself surrounded by the whole Fleury family.
The children were making so much noise it was hard to hear what anyone was saying. But the voices and screams receded into the background as Marian stared at Sylvia, thinking about what she had read in Sean’s novel.
Sylvia met Marian’s gaze and went to her side. ‘What’s the matter?’ she asked.
‘The novel,’ Marian said. ‘Is it true?’
‘Is what true?’ Sylvia asked in a low voice.
‘I’ve just read the whole story,’ Marian explained.
‘I mean, that novel on . Pierce is doing the publicity, so the author made it available to us before publication. And now I’ve read the part which was inspired by your…
I mean, what he must have found out about you and then exaggerated to put in his book to make the story even more exciting. ’
‘So what did this fictional woman who was modelled on me do that was so exciting?’ Sylvia asked with an ironic twist to her mouth.
‘Well, she—’ Marian started but was interrupted by Rose, who had joined them.
‘Are you talking about all the gossip that’s going around?’ Rose asked. ‘That novel is up on and I’ve been told the blurb hints at some kind of shocking facts that are going to be revealed once it comes out.’
‘Yes,’ Sylvia said. ‘Marian seems very worried about it.’
‘Aren’t you worried, too, Granny?’ Rose asked. ‘The guessing is getting wilder and wilder.’
Sylvia shrugged. ‘Am I worried? Yes and no. I don’t know what’s actually in the novel. Marian was about to tell me.’
Rose stared at Marian. ‘You’ve read it?’
Marian nodded. ‘Yes. Last night. We’re doing the publicity, you see.’
Rose stared at Marian. ‘You’re doing the publicity? For a book that will reveal all the family secrets? This seems really weird to me.’
‘I know,’ Marian said. ‘To me as well. But we figured that this way we might be able to have things changed. We’ve already managed to have the author push the publication to late September.’
‘And you’re hoping to have talked him into some rewrites by then?’ Rose enquired.
‘Well, yes, if we can,’ Marian said.
‘So what is it that’s so bad?’ Rose asked. ‘Will it cast a shadow over our family?’
‘Well, of course it’s fiction and the author has a disclaimer at the beginning of the book,’ Marian started.
‘Not worth the paper it’s written on,’ Rose said with a snort. ‘Ask Noel; he’s always saying that a disclaimer doesn’t mean anything. You can sue, Granny, if it turns out that the content in the book is untrue and damages you in any way.’
‘Yes,’ Sylvia said. ‘But what if it isn’t?’
Rose stared at her grandmother. ‘You mean… it might all be true?’
‘I have no idea,’ Sylvia said. ‘As I haven’t read the novel yet.’
‘But I have,’ Marian said. ‘Last night. So I know what’s in it, and if all that is true, I have to say I’m impressed.’
‘With what?’ Rose asked, looking from Marian to Sylvia.
‘With the young woman who came to Paris and…’ Marian stopped as Sylvia put a finger to her mouth.
‘Not yet, Marian,’ Sylvia said. ‘I will tell everyone the true story and what I’m going to do about it in a minute. Let’s enjoy the dinner first, and then I’ll make a speech afterwards.’
‘Okay, Granny,’ Rose said with a resigned sigh. ‘We’ll do it your way.’
‘Don’t we always?’ Sylvia said over her shoulder as she walked away.
Rose laughed and nodded. ‘Oh yes, we do. Come on, Marian, I forgot about dinner and everything but now I see that Theo and Pierce have cooked up a storm at the barbecue. And it smells divine.’
Marian had to agree. The smell of barbecued meat and sausages was so enticing that she had momentarily managed to forget Sylvia’s secret and her promise to reveal all.
It also brought her back to their own back garden years ago, the Sunday barbecue and the family gathered around the table on the deck on a summer’s evening.
She remembered what a lovely dad Theo had been when the children were small, weaving magic into everyday things: blowing on a dandelion and telling the children they were blowing wishes into the wind, looking for shapes of animals among the clouds and even making a daisy chain and gently putting it on Rebecca’s dark blonde hair when she was three.
And now she watched him handing the Fleury children bread rolls with sausages, telling them to eat them carefully because they were hot, and making sure every one of them were served before the adults.
‘Theo has a great way with kids,’ Lily said to Marian when they were sitting down at the table with loaded plates. ‘He must have been such a good dad.’
‘Yes, he was,’ Marian said, looking at Theo with a dart of affection close to love that surprised her.
She suddenly saw the gentle, caring side to Theo that she had forgotten about.
It was a reminder that they would one day have grandchildren and that Theo would be a wonderful granddad.
But if they were to separate, the grandchildren would have to deal with grandparents that were at odds with one another, and that would not be a good way for them to grow up.
If only, she thought, we could come to terms with what is dividing us and settle down in this beautiful place.
He has to reveal his feelings too, instead of keeping it all to himself.
Then and only then can we be happy. Why can’t he see that?
When everyone, including the children, had finished and the plates had been cleared away to make room for dessert, Sylvia stood up and clapped her hands. ‘I’m going to make a little speech,’ she said when everyone fell silent. ‘Before the rain starts and we have to run inside.’
‘Can we have ice cream first?’ Naomi, the eldest of the children, asked.
‘With sprinkles,’ her cousin Sophie said.
Sylvia nodded. ‘Yes, serve all the children ice cream and then they can eat it while I talk. With sprinkles and wafers and whatever they want.’
‘Good idea,’ Lily whispered to Marian. ‘That way, they’ll be quiet for a bit.’
The children were quickly given ice cream topped with sprinkles and they started eating at once, looking at Sylvia with big eyes.
‘Are you going to tell us a story, Granny Sylvia?’ little Liam asked.
‘That’s right,’ Sylvia said. ‘I’m going to tell you a story about a young girl called Sylvia, just like me, who went to Paris a very long time ago to learn French, see the world and have a little fun.’
Marian stared at Sylvia standing there, looking so composed, as she waited for the revelation and wondered if it matched the plot of the novel. But as Sylvia began, Marian knew that the real story was much better than any fiction.