Page 45 of Lessons in Love at the Seaside Salon

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

‘So …’ Anna rotates her glass on the coaster, which is harder than it looks like it should be.

‘So …’ Evie looks a little nervous, and Anna worries she might have made Evie feel obliged to come out for this drink.

On a Friday night, when Evie probably has other things to do.

Anna knows she has a young son – they have that in common – but Evie said it was fine, Billy’s father usually takes him on Friday nights.

Anna’s left her kids with Ingrid, who doesn’t look after them that often and complains when she does yet asks when she can have them again.

She asked Evie to come to the pub for dinner not because she saw her crying on the beach – well, yes, kind of because she saw her crying on the beach, as that’s the reason they formed a connection beyond the salon – but mainly because she likes her, and she thinks it’s returned, and it’d be nice to have a friend with a kid around the same age as hers.

Come to think of it, they’re probably at the same school – hers go to Terrigal Public, and Evie’s must too.

Why hasn’t she seen Evie at anything there?

Probably all the mum-things are during the day, and Evie can’t attend them because she works.

And her kids often take the bus to and from school, so she wouldn’t see her then.

It’s funny to think they’ve been closer in life than they realise, and they could have kept going without knowing each other better.

That’s all connections in life, though, Anna guesses – they’re made out of a combination of luck and timing and circumstance, which means we probably don’t choose our friends so much as fate chooses them for us.

It’s nice, in a way – like we’re destined to meet certain people.

Then we have to keep up our end of it, of course, by putting in the work to keep the connections going. Hence the invitation to the pub.

The pub is one that she and Gary occasionally went to when they were together, the Avoca Beach Hotel. It’s not actually on the beach, but that means it gets less of the tourist crowd so it’s nice for an evening meal. And it’s not too far from her place or from Evie’s.

‘Is your son at Terrigal Public?’ Anna asks. May as well find out.

‘Yes. You have a boy too?’

‘Yes, and a girl. Troy and Renee.’

Evie frowns. ‘Renee? There’s a Renee in Billy’s class.’

Anna smiles. ‘Yes, I, ah … I think that’s my daughter. I think our kids go to school together.’

Evie looks confused. ‘How come we’ve never seen each other at school?’

‘I was just wondering the same thing.’

They both laugh, and Anna feels herself relax a little, the way you do when you realise there are some things you don’t have to explain to the other person. Some stories you may even have in common.

‘Have you had a run-in with Mr Phelps yet?’ Evie asks.

Mr Phelps is the unpopular principal, who, among other things, keeps firing male teachers, much to Anna’s despair – she likes her kids having male role models due to the fact their father is barely around.

Has been barely around. Yes, he’s making more of an effort now, but that hardly compensates for the lack of effort before.

Anyway , she’s not here to talk to Evie about Gary.

Although maybe they can compare notes about being single mums.

‘Not yet. I’m waiting for it, though.’

Evie sips her drink. ‘He really has it in for the boys. And the boy teachers.’

Anna nods her agreement and starts to sip her own wine when she sees something that makes her inhale that sip and start coughing.

‘Are you okay?’ Evie hops off her stool and comes round to put a hand on Anna’s shoulder. ‘I suppose water won’t help – you inhaled, didn’t you?’

Anna nods, still coughing, looking in the direction of the cause of her startling: Gary, in the company of some blonde woman, heading for a table in the corner.

So much for him wanting to spend more time with his kids. Not that he’s been seeing them on Friday nights but is this what he’s been doing with his time? Seeing someone? All while trying to get back together with her?

‘That bastard,’ she murmurs, the coughing abating as her lungs settle down.

‘What?’

‘My husband. Ex. Sort of. Husband.’ She nods in the direction of the table, where Gary half has his back to her – thank goodness – and where she can also get a good look at the woman he’s with.

Anna hasn’t seen her before, so she wouldn’t be a school mum.

That’s something. Is she the paralegal? That’s it, isn’t it?

He’s getting it on with the new staff member.

What a bloody cliché. She’s married to a cliché!

Was married to a cliché! Is still! Doesn’t want to be!

Evie is looking at Gary’s table and Anna is now worried they’ll be spotted.

‘That guy over there?’ Evie asks.

‘Yes. With the blonde .’ Anna can hear something in her voice. Feel it, too. It couldn’t be … could it? No. It can’t be. Not … jealousy.

No way. She’s not jealous of the blonde. She doesn’t want Gary back . That’s been her line for weeks now.

‘Is he seeing someone?’

‘Not that I knew of. In fact, he’s been saying he wants to get back together.’

They both glance his way. He’s definitely going to notice shortly.

‘Would you like to leave? Go somewhere else?’ Evie says.

‘I would but … our fish and chips.’ They put in an order when they got their drinks.

‘Oh, stuff that. We can tell them to not make them. They probably haven’t started.’

They both look to the kitchen, where there’s not a lot of activity.

‘No,’ Anna says. ‘No. Why should you have to change your night just because of my stupid marriage?’

‘It’s –’

‘No, Evie, really. I need to get used to it.’ She swallows.

Does she, though? This jealousy – there’s been nothing else to provoke it the whole time they’ve known each other, because he’s never even looked at another woman sideways.

‘But maybe we could move over there.’ Anna jerks her chin toward a corner that’s as far away from Gary as they can get, as well as being fairly dark.

‘Good idea.’

Evie picks up their drinks and Anna their cutlery and tries not to be noticeable as she goes.

Once they’re resettled, Evie has a quick glance in Gary’s direction.

‘So how long have you been split up?’ she says.

‘Not long. He was working so much. Never coming home while the kids were awake. So I thought he may as well leave. He didn’t take it well. He’s been …’

She was going to say, He’s been trying to come back , but is that true any more?

Evie smiles at her – it’s unguarded and warm, which is not how Evie smiles in the salon. ‘Do you still love him?’ she says.

‘He’s the father of my children, so …’

‘Anna, you saw me blubbering on the beach.’ Evie looks amused. ‘I think we’ve kind of moved past the pretending stage.’

Anna is so taken aback she almost rocks off her stool. What is Evie seeing in her?

‘I wasn’t pretending,’ she says. ‘I just … I thought …’

‘You thought you were over him until you saw him with the blonde chick.’

‘Well … yes.’

Evie smiles again. ‘You know how I knew I was over Billy’s dad, if I was ever that into him?’

‘You weren’t into him?’

Evie waves a hand. ‘Story for another time. But I saw him at the pub with this girl, right. I went there to see a friend for dinner, Billy was with me in a stroller. The girl was pretty, I guess. They were all over each other. And I felt nothing. Not a twinge. Not a pang. Nothing.’ She sips her drink.

‘Up till that point I thought maybe Stevo and I could work. You know – we got on well, we both loved Billy. We enjoyed each other’s company.

It was just …’ She shrugs. ‘Something was missing. And I found out what it was: I didn’t want to see him naked. ’

Anna bursts out laughing. ‘But you managed to have a kid together!’

‘It was dark. I was drunk.’ Evie raises her glass. ‘Here’s to working out which men we want to see naked.’

After they’ve put their glasses down, she looks serious.

‘I guess the question for you is whether you still want to see your husband naked.’ She holds up a hand. ‘And you don’t have to answer that. I’m just offering it to you.’

From her new position Anna can’t see Gary, but she can feel him there, across the room, and she desperately wants to know what he’s doing. So she does care. She cares that someone else may get him. That someone else may see him naked. What does that tell her?

‘Thank you,’ she says to Evie. ‘You’ve been a good friend and I hardly even know you.’

‘You were a good friend when you didn’t even know me at all.’

They sit and smile at each other for a few seconds, and Anna feels reassured that she’s not barmy for suddenly realising she still fancies her husband after all. Evie doesn’t seem to think it’s strange.

‘Number forty-three!’ comes the call from the kitchen.

‘I’ll go,’ Evie says.

Anna uses the opportunity to glance Gary’s way. She doesn’t quite know what to do with her new information about her feelings but she can’t help thinking that fate brought her here so she could find out.