Of course it was. I was reassured.
We went into the house through the mudroom, but the kitchen and hallways were empty. Marlene and Terrance were absent. Upstairs, even the theater was quiet behind its closed pocket doors.
I turned on the lights in the ballroom and we were immersed in the reflection of the lights on the dark red wallpaper with its stern, identical men and beautiful Japanese women. Abram ran his hand over the wallpaper. “You want this paper painted over?”
I bristled. It was only wallpaper.
“I do. Is that a problem?”
His hand dropped from the wall.
“I can do that.”
“You can get rid of those, too? And patch the ceiling?” I pointed to the giant metal circles screwed into the ceiling.
“Yes, ma’am. I can do that too.”
Chapter 20
The Dinner Party
Dinner that night was a fairly tame affair with Rachel and Jack for company, and the sheriff, Hugh Walters, to round out the table. Even though we were technically in mourning (a tradition that had fallen away more and more since I was a girl), I’d suggested a slightly larger party because I didn’t relish the idea of spending empty hours with J.C. and Press. But Press had vetoed the idea quickly.
“She’s not worried about being entertained. I really want you to take the time to get to know her better. I’m sure you could be wonderful friends. I’ll make sure Rachel, Jack, and Hugh are here.”
I’d been doubtful. Rachel and J.C. at the same table again? Despite the formidable nature of Bliss House, I wasn’t sure it could remain standing.
I was wrong. The evening was unseasonably warm, so, after Michael was down for the night, we ate on the patio outside the dining room, our faces softened by the light of several torches. Press had brought a record player out and put on a stack of records that began with Tony Bennett, a favorite of mine. J.C. and Rachel exchanged a few very civil words, but otherwise J.C. dominated the conversation with gossipy New York stories that the men seemed to find very funny. Not surprisingly, Rachel was subdued, picking at the dinner Terrance served: oysters on the half-shell, consommé, breaded veal cutlets with zucchini and yellow squash, and Marlene’s special iced pumpkin-ginger cake. Rachel was elegant in her black knit maternity dress and jacket, but beneath her eyes there were dark circles that worried me. After the coffee came, she got up, restless, to smoke a cigarette. I followed her to the other side of the patio. The torchlight glimmered in her eyes as though they were wet with tears.
“What’s going on, Rachel? Is it Jack?” She rarely complained about Jack. He was slavishly devoted to her—the kind of man someone like Rachel required. But men often reacted strangely to pregnancy.
“What could possibly be wrong?” First cutting her eyes to Jack, who was listening carefully to something J.C. was saying over her wineglass, she looked back at me with a small, tight smile.
I knew when she was being sarcastic, but also knew better than to try to drag information out of her, particularly information about her feelings. She would proclaim them loudly or she wouldn’t say anything at all.
As we watched, J.C. stood up from her chair and declared that she couldn’t bear to sit any longer with Frank Sinatra singing “Night and Day,” right there under the stars. She asked the men who might possibly be brave enough to dance with her.
Jack looked over his shoulder at Rachel, who stared back, impassive.
“He wouldn’t. Not with J.C.,” I whispered. “Jack would never do that to you.”
Rachel gave a harsh little laugh. “Of course he wouldn’t. Not our Jack. But he does look worried, doesn’t he? Men are such bastards.” She rested a hand on her belly. “Every one of them.”
“You city girls,” I heard Press say to J.C. “You can’t sit still.” But he didn’t get up either.
“What a couple of mama’s boys you are!” She turned abruptly and waggled a finger at Hugh. “I guess that means you win, Sheriff.”
Hugh stood quickly, knocking over his folding chair with a loud clatter, and everyone laughed. I felt bad for him. It had seemed to me an odd invitation for Press to make to Hugh. We didn’t often socialize with him. Because he had come to the house after Eva’s death, I still felt awkward around him. But at least I liked and trusted him.