As for Olivia, in high school their attitude toward her had been that she didn’t exist.
She’d never been invited to their parties or asked to join them in the cafeteria. But then, Olivia had never tried to be part of their crowd. To her, high school had been a stepping-stone to where she was going to go.
Without being invited, the girls sat down at the picnic table.
“So, Olivia,” Betty said, “I hear you were fired from your Broadway play.”
As she sat down at the end of the bench, Olivia opened her mouth to defend herself, but she closed it. It looked like the girls were still in the territory of high school, still degrading people to make themselves feel better. She smiled. “I was, and now I’m the cleaner for a couple of old men.”
Nina coughed to cover a laugh.
Olivia could give their cattiness back to them. “And what about you two? Married? Kids?”
Both of them frowned.
“I wouldn’t have any man in this town,” Betty said. “You were right to go to New York to get one.”
Olivia was puzzled by the remark. “I didn’t get a man.”
“What about the one everyone in town saw you fawning over at the tea shop? We heard it was quite embarrassing.”
“And we also heard that he runs around here wearing no clothes.” Shirley’s voice was low, suggestive.
Olivia’s face lost its fake look of complacency. They’re after Kit, she thought. They’ve come here with pounds of makeup on as bait for Kit.
“So what’s he like?” Betty asked.
“I heard he’s rich,” Shirley said. “Your father told Mr. Wilson at the club who told my uncle that the man has a palace in Italy. Is he a prince?”
Olivia looked at them in horror. She had a vision of the two of them—and the other single females in town—parading around Tattwell in four-inch heels.
She glanced at the bowls of green beans and saw it all ending. She suddenly realized that they had created a family here at Tattwell. They had inside jokes; they each had tasks. They knew about each other. Cared. Loved. Yes, they’d grown to love one another.
And she did not want that to end!
Olivia dug deep under her own emotions to find the character she needed to play. She gave a little laugh, doing her best to sound as though she didn’t care. “Are you talking about Christopher? He’s rich? You have to be kidding! Would he be mowing lawns if he had any money? And girls...” She leaned toward them as though sharing a secret. “Christopher is just a boy, a teenager. He’s not the kind of man women like us need. Really, you mustn’t waste your time on a child like him.”
She was glad to see that her words were succeeding. The made-up faces of Betty and Shirley began to deflate like punctured balloons. Not rich. Not old enough. Olivia decided to sell the idea. “If you were seen out and about with the Worthless Boy—that’s what I call him—you’d be the laughingstock of the entire town.”
At that condemnation, both of the young women stood up. “Oh. I guess we heard wrong.”
Trying to control her relief, Olivia also stood. “You should have a word with the gossips who told you those lies. I don’t think they had your best interests in mind.”
“You can be sure we will,” Shirley said.
“I think we better go,” Betty said.
“Yeah, right. Olivia, we’ll see you in town. Maybe.”
As fast as they could walk in heels on the old brick walkway, they hurried back to their car.
With a triumphant smile, Olivia turned to look to Nina, expecting congratulations. But what she saw on Nina’s face was an expression of horror. Her skin was pale, as though all the blood had drained from it.
Please, no, Olivia thought. Don’t let it be what I think it is.
Slowly, she turned in the direction Nina was looking. Standing just around the corner of the house was Kit, a shirt on over his bathing trunks. In front of him was Uncle Freddy in his wheelchair, his usually smiling face looking sad. He wouldn’t meet Olivia’s eyes. Behind them was
Mr. Gates and he wore a look of disgust. It was one thing to call Kit Worthless Boy within the family they’d created, but not to tell other people that.