Private Player

“Well, when did you decide this?” she asked.

“Jacob just convinced me I wasn’t up to the job,” I replied, trying to hide my grin. “It’s not announced yet, so you can’t tell anyone.”

“Too late,” Jacob said. “I’ve just called my broker and told him to go long on Astro.”

My brother was ridiculous. “Do you even know what that means?” Bloody doctors.

“Not really. But it sounds about right.”

My mother took the strawberry out of my hand and then the knife, and pushed my shoulders so I was facing her. “Tell me what happened. I thought you loved working there. Jacob, what did you say to him?”

“What’s going on in here?” my dad said, entering the kitchen and heading straight for my batch of hulled strawberries.

“Nathan’s leaving Astro,” Jacob explained.

He lifted his head in a nod and popped a strawberry in his mouth. “Very good.”

“You mean the strawberry?” I asked.

“Still very sweet. It’s the later fruit, you see. Always better in my opinion.”

My mother rolled her eyes.

“I’m going to be unemployed, Dad,” I said. I wasn’t sure he’d taken in what I’d said. He’d probably forgotten what my company was called.

“Excellent. You can help me get the cabbage and turnips planted in the garden.”

“Oh God,” Jacob said. “No one likes turnips, Dad.”

Maybe Dad was going deaf.

“I’ll have plenty of time on my hands,” I said, trying to emphasize what I was saying. “Since I’ll have no job.”

“You’ll find something, son,” he said. “You can stay here if you need to.”

My parents had no concept that I never needed to work again if I didn’t want to. But the fact that my father was so nonplussed about my giving up work was a bit of a shock. He’d worked so hard his entire career. “Thanks, Dad. I don’t think it will come to that.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, John,” my mother said. “Nathan has lots of money. You know that.”

“He could have spent it all on wine and women.”

“I’ve not spent all my money, Dad. I’m not here to ask for food or lodging, don’t worry.”

“I don’t worry about you,” he said. “Nor Jacob. The others? They keep me awake at night. Bloody lunatics, your younger brothers.”

“No, they’re not,” my mother said. “They’re young doctors.”

“Exactly,” my father said. “Lunatics. They need to be careful drinking so much.”

I’d never heard my dad talk about my younger brothers like that. But their Achilles’ heel was booze, like mine was beautiful women.

Dad grabbed a handful of strawberries and sauntered out. “I’ll go and find the seeds,” he said. “Then we’ll do some planting this afternoon. Come on, Jacob, I need someone to help me lift that crate in the shed.” Jacob followed my father out.

“Now you’ve done it,” my mother said. “He’ll have you out in all-weathers. You should have pretended you’ve got a new job.”

I winced at the idea she thought I shouldn’t have told my dad the truth. “You think he’s very disappointed?”

“Nathan Cove, why would you think your father could ever be disappointed in you?”

“Well, how many of your other sons have come home and told you they don’t have a job?”

“What’s that got to do with anything?” she asked, flicking on the kettle. “Let’s have a nice cup of tea.”

“I know I’m the black sheep of the family, always the one to cause you and Dad the bother.” I leaned into the counter, my feet unable to support the sudden heaviness of my body on their own.

“Good grief, Nathan, what are you talking about?”

“You don’t need to worry about me. I’ve got plenty of money. And Dad might have been joking but I really will find something else to do.” I had no idea what. And I knew there was no way I’d ever make something the success Astro had been. Still, I’d find a way to keep myself busy. That was the main thing.

“Of course you’ll find something to do. If I’ve ever worried about you over the years, your father always reminds me that you float to the top.” She laughed. “You remember when we took you all to the lido and you crawled off the edge, headfirst?” She looked to the heavens. “I could have killed your father. I told him you were crawling but he was too interested in pushing Jacob in.” I’d been told this story a thousand times. Apparently, my mother hadn’t spoken to my father for a week after he’d taken his eye off me and I’d careered into the pool.

“But you came up, doggy paddle in full motion, and that was it—from then on you could swim. With the other boys, they all had pool noodles and arm bands and swimming lessons. But not you. You just swam. From six months, that was it. But that’s you, Nathan.” She turned to look at me and placed her hand on my cheek. “Now you’re on to fresh adventures. That’s no bad thing.”