Chapter Thirteen
As it turned out, Cristy, David and Tom were all up in time for a pre-brunch walk in the morning, so after checking tide times and collecting Tom from his hotel, David drove them all over to Cobo Bay.
It was gloriously sunny, freezing cold and windy, but the beautiful, elongated curve of the beach was quiet and calm at this hour, with no one else around apart from a couple of dog walkers and a solitary jogger.
‘So, looks like we could be roomies.’ Tom was laughing as they trod the wet sand, arm-in-arm, with Cristy in the middle and Henry the Retriever racing ahead.
‘Or I guess we should say flatmates being British and all. Whatever, this is an amazing opportunity for you, Cris, to set up a major new podcast company …’
‘What about you, moving to UCL, my alma mater? My brother, Professor Ward, the head of history. You won’t miss Canada?’
‘Of course, but hey, we’re neither of us getting any younger – time for us both to seize the day and make our marks on the world. I’m keener than ever now I know you’re going to be in London too.’
‘I haven’t accepted the job yet,’ she reminded him, ‘but obviously having you around is going to be a huge sway. How does Sandie feel about the move? Aren’t all her family in Toronto?’
‘Or nearby, but that’s my other news. We’ve decided to split …’
‘Oh God, Tom!’
‘It’s all amicable,’ he assured her. ‘We’ve been growing apart for some time, different interests, unshared goals … Lucky, I guess, that we don’t have kids, although I’d have liked them as you know, just that she was never keen … Well, as it turns out, I’ve met someone who is.’
Cristy came to a stop. ‘Jesus, Tom!’ she exclaimed, as he and David turned to face her. ‘This is … mind-blowing! Who is she? I want to know everything.’
Laughing, he said, ‘Her name is Serena, she’s thirty-six, so a little younger than me, Belgian, a lecturer in fine arts at Sint-Lukas in Brussels, and the plan is for her to try and get a position in London at some point in the next couple of years.’
‘So when do we get to meet her? You should have brought her to the party …’
‘Of course David invited her,’ Tom assured her, ‘but she was keen for us to talk without you having to meet her at the same time. She felt it would be overload: new job, marriage break-up, move to London, possibly kids on the horizon, and I guess she had a point, especially after we decided to spring me as the big surprise last night.’
Loving the memory of it, Cristy linked his arm again and hugged it hard as they walked on, while David threw sticks into the waves for the dog. ‘So what’s the immediate plan?’ she asked. ‘How long have I got you for?’
Tom laughed. ‘Knowing you as I do, I’m sure you’re in the middle of some project or other, so my immediate plans are not to disrupt yours.’
‘But …’
‘Which means I’ll fly to Brussels on Tuesday, and from there, Serena and I are planning to go to Paris, our first stop on a two-to-three-month tour of Europe and perhaps the Far East. I’ve already quit my job, so I was always planning to make it over for your birthday, and Serena’s sabbatical has been agreed, so hopefully, by the time we come back, the four of us will have worked out how to spend a good amount of time together. ’
Shaking her head in mock despair, Cristy said, ‘That’s so like you to have everything all worked out then just announce how it’s going to happen.’
‘Is there something you want me to change?’ he asked.
‘No, not at all. It sounds perfect to me … I just don’t want to let you go so soon.’
‘Says the woman who’s already booked on a flight tomorrow morning …’
‘Which could be changed …’
‘But doesn’t have to be.’
‘I could delay until Tuesday.’
‘Your decision, but we’ll have most of the summer to catch up on everything, and we – David and I – have already arranged a day’s sailing tomorrow.’
Astonished, Cristy laughed, ‘Well, please don’t let me stand in the way of that.’ Hearing a phone ring, she fished in her pocket, before realizing it was David’s.
‘Connor,’ he announced and turned away from the wind as he clicked on. ‘Hey, good morning,’ he said, pressing a finger to his other ear to hear better. ‘Everything OK at the cottage?’ He listened, looked at Cristy and said, ‘Yeah, she’s right here, I’ll put her on.’
Taking the phone, she automatically put it on speaker in time to hear Connor saying, ‘… if you don’t have your phone, you won’t have seen Honey Blackwell’s message.’
With a jolt of surprise, Cristy said, ‘She’s been in touch already? What’s she saying?’
‘Apparently, Nicole’s seriously considering letting us help her, so Honey is keen for us to keep going.’