do it deliberately or is it just our mutual chemistry?
‘I don’t think Prue needs her doctor’s permission to put in four weeks in an office.’
Now
I’m
making
him
pompous. If I wasn’t so angry I would find it funny. A great human limitation, to realise something is laughable and yet not be able to laugh at it.
‘You must realise I’d be more than happy to pay Prue’s fare.’
‘I do realise that, sir, but we couldn’t accept.’
He enjoyed using that ‘we’. Damn him. I realise I actually,
actively
hate every bone in his body. He’s going to ruin my daughter’s life and he’s made a good start already.
‘Well, of course, if your pride is more important than Prue’s welfare…’
‘That’s not how I look at it, sir.’
This exaggerated, phony respect makes me choke. ‘How do you look at it?’
Shrugs. Really those clothes of his are detestable. ‘We need the money and it won’t do Prue any harm to work. It’s no harder than studying.’
‘Tea-up.’ Prue shrieking across the lawn. We both turn and wave. Cassie with a tray coming nearer and nearer, white linen cloth and the best china. Different kinds of bread, pots of honey and jam, biscuits and chocolate cake alreadystarting to melt in the sun. He gets in first, leaping up to take the tray from her. ‘Gee, that looks good.’ Prue, a little behind, looks from one of us to the other.
‘What’s the matter? What have you two got such long faces about?’
Cassie: ‘Prue, darling, do hush. Have a little tact.’
‘But they look so
grim.’
Quite unabashed, my daughter.
‘Your Dad can’t join us in France, hon, that’s all.’
‘France?’ says Cassie enquiringly.
* * *
‘Mrs. Manson, can I give you a hand?’ Gavin’s sudden appearance in the kitchen gave Cassie quite a shock.
‘Oh. No, thank you, Gavin. I think everything’s under control.’
‘Oh, pity.’ He hovered by the sink. ‘I guess I wanted an excuse to talk to you.’
‘Do you need one? All right, then, you can peel the mushrooms.’
‘Great.’ He perched on a stool and began. ‘I thought—well, I thought maybe I should leave Prue and her father alone for a bit, I thought maybe they’d have things to say.’
‘That was very tactful of you.’
‘Well, I thought we might too. I … don’t know quite how to put this but … well, I sure hope our being here isn’t going to create any kind of discord.’
Cassie frowned. ‘Between whom?’
‘Well, you and Mr. Manson. And look, I’m sorry about that Mother and Father bit but I just can’t manage it yet.’
‘That’s all right,’ Cassie said easily. ‘Nobody expects you to. Nobody but Prue, that is.’
‘Oh, she likes playing. That’s nothing.’
The remark struck a chill into Cassie. How well you know her, she thought, my daughter. Is this what she wanted, this absolute knowledge and acceptance? ‘Well, I shouldn’t worryabout discord,’ she said. ‘We’ve been married a long time and we understand each other.’
‘Yeah.’ He brooded, peeling a mushroom with extreme care. ‘Well, I sure hope Prue and her Dad are going to get over this thing.’
Cassie said with feeling, ‘Yes, so do I,’ and wondered if she was being disloyal.
‘Because—to be quite honest with you—it makes me uncomfortable to be around it. Look … I wouldn’t have come. I mean it’s okay with me if Prue wants to visit on her own. But she wouldn’t come without me. So I said I’d try to keep out of her Dad’s way.’ Another pause. ‘I guess I haven’t been too successful.’
Cassie sighed. ‘Gavin, it’s going to take time, that’s all. It’s—very difficult.’
‘But not for you. You’ve accepted it. I mean you don’t treat me like I’d crawled out from under a stone.’
Cassie said lightly, ‘Well, you haven’t, why should I? Anyway, it’s easier for me.’ She felt he deserved an explanation but that was as close as she could get.
‘Is it? Oh, I guess it must be harder for
‘I don’t think Prue needs her doctor’s permission to put in four weeks in an office.’
Now
I’m
making
him
pompous. If I wasn’t so angry I would find it funny. A great human limitation, to realise something is laughable and yet not be able to laugh at it.
‘You must realise I’d be more than happy to pay Prue’s fare.’
‘I do realise that, sir, but we couldn’t accept.’
He enjoyed using that ‘we’. Damn him. I realise I actually,
actively
hate every bone in his body. He’s going to ruin my daughter’s life and he’s made a good start already.
‘Well, of course, if your pride is more important than Prue’s welfare…’
‘That’s not how I look at it, sir.’
This exaggerated, phony respect makes me choke. ‘How do you look at it?’
Shrugs. Really those clothes of his are detestable. ‘We need the money and it won’t do Prue any harm to work. It’s no harder than studying.’
‘Tea-up.’ Prue shrieking across the lawn. We both turn and wave. Cassie with a tray coming nearer and nearer, white linen cloth and the best china. Different kinds of bread, pots of honey and jam, biscuits and chocolate cake alreadystarting to melt in the sun. He gets in first, leaping up to take the tray from her. ‘Gee, that looks good.’ Prue, a little behind, looks from one of us to the other.
‘What’s the matter? What have you two got such long faces about?’
Cassie: ‘Prue, darling, do hush. Have a little tact.’
‘But they look so
grim.’
Quite unabashed, my daughter.
‘Your Dad can’t join us in France, hon, that’s all.’
‘France?’ says Cassie enquiringly.
* * *
‘Mrs. Manson, can I give you a hand?’ Gavin’s sudden appearance in the kitchen gave Cassie quite a shock.
‘Oh. No, thank you, Gavin. I think everything’s under control.’
‘Oh, pity.’ He hovered by the sink. ‘I guess I wanted an excuse to talk to you.’
‘Do you need one? All right, then, you can peel the mushrooms.’
‘Great.’ He perched on a stool and began. ‘I thought—well, I thought maybe I should leave Prue and her father alone for a bit, I thought maybe they’d have things to say.’
‘That was very tactful of you.’
‘Well, I thought we might too. I … don’t know quite how to put this but … well, I sure hope our being here isn’t going to create any kind of discord.’
Cassie frowned. ‘Between whom?’
‘Well, you and Mr. Manson. And look, I’m sorry about that Mother and Father bit but I just can’t manage it yet.’
‘That’s all right,’ Cassie said easily. ‘Nobody expects you to. Nobody but Prue, that is.’
‘Oh, she likes playing. That’s nothing.’
The remark struck a chill into Cassie. How well you know her, she thought, my daughter. Is this what she wanted, this absolute knowledge and acceptance? ‘Well, I shouldn’t worryabout discord,’ she said. ‘We’ve been married a long time and we understand each other.’
‘Yeah.’ He brooded, peeling a mushroom with extreme care. ‘Well, I sure hope Prue and her Dad are going to get over this thing.’
Cassie said with feeling, ‘Yes, so do I,’ and wondered if she was being disloyal.
‘Because—to be quite honest with you—it makes me uncomfortable to be around it. Look … I wouldn’t have come. I mean it’s okay with me if Prue wants to visit on her own. But she wouldn’t come without me. So I said I’d try to keep out of her Dad’s way.’ Another pause. ‘I guess I haven’t been too successful.’
Cassie sighed. ‘Gavin, it’s going to take time, that’s all. It’s—very difficult.’
‘But not for you. You’ve accepted it. I mean you don’t treat me like I’d crawled out from under a stone.’
Cassie said lightly, ‘Well, you haven’t, why should I? Anyway, it’s easier for me.’ She felt he deserved an explanation but that was as close as she could get.
‘Is it? Oh, I guess it must be harder for
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