“Yes, very happy! You know what I think, Dan? I have a theory about her; I figured it out this afternoon.” Inge remembered suddenly that she had meant to share this with her husband. She ploughed forward. “People always assume that no one wants to be divorced, but I don’t think that’s how it is for Win. I think she loves being an ex-wife. In fact, I think that was always the end point for her; I think it’s what she wanted all along. It strikes me as quite possible that she never wanted to be married at all. ‘Wife’ was just a ticket she had to punch, along the way.”
Dan listened intently, not responding. Inge continued.
“She doesn’t want to live with anyone! She likes her space! You’re right about her new house. It fits one and she loves that! She thinks the tables are too close together at Measured Out!”
At this, Dan laughed, shortly. “Nice theory. But you’re forgetting something. She lives alone, but she’s not alone. She has Jason. She’s not a single mother; she’s an ex-wife, just like you said. And part of her perfect new life is she still has a piece of her former husband.What’s she going to do if she loses that?”
“She won’t lose it. She’ll keep it, because of the boys. They’re still parents, Dan.”
“She won’t have him like she does now. You’ve said it yourself, many times. She’s always talking about him. She’s always talking to him! It’s almost like they’re still married—you’ve said that yourself!”
At this, Inge fell silent.
Dan continued. “She’s not married, but she has a full partner. Jason’s totally involved, totally available, he pays for everything and he has his own place. Her toilet seat stays down. No wonder she’s happy! But all that changes if he finds someone new.”
“Why? Who says it has to change? Gwen would love those boys!”
“Doesn’t matter.”
Inge felt a small panic rising.
“So maybe he deserves to be happy,” she said.“Maybe we shouldn’t worry about Win. If Jason’s so angry and so miserable and it’s so unfair, maybe he deserves this incredibly sweet, incredibly loving young woman.”
“Maybe,” said Dan. “Did you tell him to keep your name out of it?”
Chapter 3
She had not told him to keep her name out of it. Inge reflected on this fact one afternoon several weeks later, as she drove toward Caro for the daily pickup.
Edging her way through the stoplights, Inge thought back to Jason’s polite surprise when she had told him why she was calling. She recalled his series of pointed, lawyerlike questions—a little intimidating—about the kindergarten teacher.And she remembered the unmistakable appreciation with which he had thanked her as they ended their call.He promised nothing, but he had taken Gwen’s number.
But that was as much as Inge knew. She didn’t know whether he had ever used it.
Inge hoped he had. She wanted the match to take. She wanted to have done something smart, not stupid. But Dan had managed to convince her that if it did take, the unintended consequences might be dire. So she found herself hoping both for success and for complete anonymity.
One result of these hopes was that she had avoided Gwen. For the past several weeks, Inge had driven through the carpool line instead of picking up her children on foot. If Jason had called, and if Gwen were to say anything to her, Inge did not trust her own face. She was sure that her expression would give her away.
Now, though, she decided that this policy must change. She liked Gwen. She liked picking up her kids on foot.What had she done to be ashamed of? Whom was she protecting, and why? Beginning today, she would resume contact with the kindergarten teacher.
Arriving at Caro, Inge found that it was good to park and good to stretch her legs after the long drive from the city. The afternoon was fresh and brilliant. This return to her routine was overdue.
And here was Gwen, greeting her with a warm hug.
“Inge,” she said brightly. “It’s been a while!”
Inge tilted her head, studying the younger woman. Something about Gwen looked different—better and different. “You look wonderful,” she said.
“Does it show?” asked Gwen. She leaned in closer so that only Inge would hear. “I’m seeing someone!”
“You are?” After all her worries, Inge’s happy gasp betrayed nothing that it should not. Despite everything, her pleasure and surprise at this news were authentic.
“It’s Jason Dean.”
“You’re kidding!”
“I’m not!” said Gwen. “I’m totally, totally not! He called about three weeks ago, right out of the blue. He said now that his kids aren’t in my class anymore, he wondered if I’d like to have dinner some time.”
“Wow!”
“Wow is right! I was shocked! I’d never even thought about him. There’d never been any…you know…flirtation between us or anything like that. And I almost said no. But it was the weirdest timing! You and I had just spoken, just that day! I’d been so miserable, and you’d been telling me to think more about me, and what I wanted for my life. I remember so clearly! You said, ‘think about your future; think about a man who’ll take care of you.’ And then, that very night, Jason called! And he asked me to dinner, and he asked if I like Giovanni’s! Giovanni’s! I never go to restaurants like that! I mean, it was a big deal for Seth and me to get a pizza and split the check.”
Gwen’s eyes had gone wide as she related this story and her earnestness was so funny that Inge had to laugh.
Gwen continued. “Dinner for two at Giovanni’s costs more than I earn in a week!”
“Now, money’s not everything,” Inge cautioned, a bit alarmed. “Of course not, and it’s not the most important thing, either. The important thing was, he asked. He asked ahead of time, for Saturday night! He asked if I’d like it! He was worried that I wouldn’t!”
Inge laughed again.
“It’s not funny! You can’t believe what this means to me, Inge! When Seth and I split pizza, it was never ’cause he asked.We just got dinner when he was hungry and I was there.”
This was very touching and Inge was affected. “Gwen, it’s wonderful,” she said. “I’m so glad you’re experiencing something better.”
“Much better.”
“So how was the date?”
“Which one?”
“How many have there been?”
Gwen stared into space, concentrating. “Nine. I think.No, 10,” she said.
“In three weeks?”
“Well, sometimes he has his kids,” said Gwen defensively. “And we have to take that part slowly.”
Now Inge was flabbergasted. “Wow,” she said again. “So I guess Seth…?”
“Over.”And Gwen cut through the air with the flat of her hand, like a knife.
“Wow!”
Inge’s thoughts bounced back and forth like a ping-pong ball. It was thrilling to have separated the beautiful Gwendolyn from the beastly Seth, and it was immensely satisfying to have been right about Jason. It was unexpectedly discomfiting, though, to have wielded quite so much influence. What if Jason hurt Gwen? What if Gwen hurt Jason?
Worse still, what if it all worked? It had been easy to dismiss Win’s stake in the affair while driving in her car.Now, gazing into the pretty face of the Other Woman, Inge again began to consider her many years of friendship with Jason’s ex-wife.
Gwen and Jason were certainly taking this much too fast. “Gwen, I’m really happy for you. But it’s still very new, isn’t it? I mean, Jason’s wonderful—you know we’ve been friends forever. But I’d hate to see you get hurt.”
“Jason would never hurt me,” said Gwen firmly. “He’s not that kind.He’s formal and he can seem a little stiff when you first meet him. But underneath all that, he’s a total gentleman.”
Inge’s eyebrows rose. Look who was talking. And about Jason, whom Inge had known for years. Little Miss Three Weeks. “Of course he would never hurt you on purpose, Gwen. I didn’t mean that. Jason is a good friend of ours. But the two of you are at very different stages of life.And in any romance—”
“I’m not concerned about our stages of life,” said Gwen, with the same breathtaking authority. “We’re so much alike. Know where he took me for our second date? To a concert! And none of this indie stuff, either. Beethoven! Almost nobody likes classical music, but I love Beethoven, and Jason does, too!”
This was news to Inge, who had never known Jason to listen to anything but ‘60s rock.
“And the way we talk! I know he’s older than I am, and I know he’s already been married and has kids and everything. But on that very first date, we sat down in Giovanni’s at 8 and when we got up, we were the only ones there! They were turning the chairs upside down on the tabletops! I thought it had been maybe two hours, but they were closing the place down!”
This was indeed impressive. “Gwen,” said Inge, in a softer tone. “That’s wonderful. That’s—that’s great. Jason’s a prince. I’m really happy for you.”
The girl beamed. “I’m so glad! I want you to be happy. We’re happy. And I know the boys are excited, too.”
The boys. It was certainly too soon for that. The children of divorce should not be exposed to flip-flops in their parents’ love lives.
“Do they know about this? I thought you said you were taking it slow with them.”
“We are. They haven’t seen me and Jason together, and I haven’t talked to them about it or anything. But they know we’re seeing each other. Jason told them. And he says it went great.” Gwen beamed. “So we’ve decided it’s time. I’m trick-or-treating with them on Halloween.He has the kids that night and we’re all going out together.”
“You are? That’s big.” Inge felt certain that this was a mistake. She knew she must not betray her opinion, but Gwen detected it.
“I was their teacher, Inge, don’t forget that. It’s not like we’ll be meeting for the first time.”
“That’s true,” Inge said carefully. “But in a way that could make this harder for them, Gwen. I mean, to see their father and their teacher together could be…confusing.”
But Gwen was not to be moved. “I don’t think the school thing’s going to bother them.Win was always the one who worked with me. I never really interacted with Jason, when they were in my classes.”
“Mmm,” said Inge, feeling very dubious. “Does she know?Win, I mean.”
“I don’t think so,” said Gwen.
This was a short and unexpectedly ambiguous reply. Inge raised her eyebrows questioningly.
“I don’t know,” Gwen confessed. “He says it’s an amicable divorce. But the truth is, he never talks about her.”
Before Inge could press her to amplify, from inside the school they heard the bell clang. They had been so deep in conversation that they had not noticed the line of cars growing long as they talked. Now even before the bell stopped reverberating, the first bodies launched themselves at the door and began hurtling out.
Gwen sprang into action and Inge stepped aside, musing. She was deeply divided. On the one hand, things had gone very far, very fast, and this was cause for concern. On the other, though, there was Gwen. Looking at the young woman’s buoyant step and smiling face as she chatted through the open windows of the idling cars, Inge again saw the transformation that joy had wrought in her. And maybe Gwen’s optimism was well founded. After all, she was right about Jason; he really was all that she believed him to be. That’s why Inge had called him! Maybe it would be OK.
Win turned her back to the mirror and, craning her neck, examined the way the several sleek layers of her outfit fell across her behind. It was perfect.The filmy knit of the cardigan broke precisely 4 inches above the hem of her silk blouse. The blouse, in turn, fell to a length that just highlighted her still-slim hips and drew the eye downward to her still-beautiful legs.
She knew she was overdressing for Back to School Night, but that was too bad. It was always better to overdress and look good than to follow the rules and disappear into the crowd.
Still, she must examine the full effect.Win turned again to face the mirror and this time stepped into the high-heeled pumps that completed her outfit. She rearranged her hair on her shoulders and nudged the heavy metal braid of her necklace half under the open collar of her blouse so that the gold peeked out with rich and seductive casualness. Yes. Perfect.
Win could hear the boys downstairs, moving about in the kitchen with their capable nanny, whom she had cajoled into staying late. She knew that her youngest, Phillip, had wanted to keep her company here in her room. But she tended to regard her room as her own private space. It was decorated to her precise taste, with her colors, her lighting and her fabrics. She had done it after the divorce and had had to consider no one’s preferences but her own. It was not as handsome as the new one would be—Win reflected on that future room briefly and with intense pleasure. But it did soothe her and she liked it to be immaculate. Every time the boys were in it, they drove her crazy; touching things, moving things, disturbing things.
She tried not to land on them for it. She understood that she was their mother; that they needed access to her; that they needed to be comfortable in her presence. Nonetheless, it upset her when they handled her room, so tonight she had shooed Phillip out.
“Will there be kids there?” he had asked as he left.
If she hadn’t been so concerned, she might have laughed. “No, sugar,” she had said, closing the door behind him with a wry smile. “Mommy doesn’t dress this way for kids.”
Win’s serenity was especially fragile tonight, and her last-minute decisions about shoes and accessories were particularly important. Jason would certainly be there. He never missed Back to School Night, especially since the divorce. And after what Phillip had told her this afternoon, it was vital that she look just right. Now as she examined herself in the mirror, Win couldn’t help thinking of the comparisons Jason would make when he saw her. After all, Gwen could never carry off a look like this, and he would surely know it.
Gwen was too short and too fat.
Of course, Gwen was great.Win checked herself, remembering carefully that she had always liked Gwen. She liked her still; there was no reason for that to change! Gwen was probably perfect. And really, Jason deserved to be happy.
Win resolved not to forget these things, because she very much wanted to behave appropriately in this entirely new situation. She always had behaved well. She had left her husband, but it was a matter of pride to her that she had handled the business with class. She had been discreet. She had not badmouthed him to anyone or bandied their secrets about, the way some ex-wives did. She had never said a disrespectful word about Jason to the boys; she had laid down that law for herself and proudly stuck to it. She would say nothing against Gwen, either.
She would say nothing negative, in fact, to anyone. She would give no one a chance to say that she resented her ex-husband’s entanglement with their children’s former kindergarten teacher. Fortunately, Win was strong and could afford to take the high and gracious road. She had left him, and was doing just great; everybody knew that. She was one of the top real estate agents in the region, and probably the top agent in The Hollow. She was on the far side of 40, but you couldn’t tell by looking.And of course, she had just bought a fabulous house in Morris.
Just thinking about her house calmed Win and relaxed the thoughts that had gripped her ever since Phillip had told her that Gwendolyn Brice was Daddy’s new girlfriend, and that she would be joining them for trick-or-treat on Halloween.
