The doorbell rang, and I saw Ted go toward it to open the door. I could hear them offering Ted their condolences. Of course, Cookie sailed past them and into the dining room to assess the progress.
“Well!” she said, smiling like a cat that had swallowed the proverbial canary. “The table looks lovely, Eliza! Very nicely done!”
Cookie had just paid me a compliment, which was highly suspect. When Cookie was nice in one situation, it always meant she had just dropped a giant stink bomb in another. In an instant I knew that she’d told Carl about seeing Eve with Adam at Charleston Grill. This woman could not control her tongue. There was no filter.
“Thanks, Cookie. It reminds me of a table at Charleston Grill. They have the most beautiful dining room, don’t you think?”
Put that in your bong and smoke it, I thought.
That stopped Cookie in her tracks for a moment. Then I watched as all the good humor in her expression drained, just like I’d pulled the stopper.
“I’m not the troublemaker, Eliza.”
We stared at each other for a moment. I wasn’t going to answer her. Cookie turned and left the room without another word.
How we were going to get through the weekend was anybody’s guess. I was determined to be polite to Eve and Adam because this was not the time or place to duke it out. I went to the kitchen to warm the container of jus that came with the roast and to reheat the vegetables. I was looking inside the refrigerator for ingredients to make another sauce.
“Hey, Eliza. How was Greece?”
I looked around the door and there stood Carl, handsome as ever, with the kindest eyes.
“Well, you know . . .”
I put a container of sour cream and a bottle of horseradish on the counter. We hugged and then he held me back to examine my face.
I said, “Greeks hate change as much as Charlestonians do! So it’s about the same as it was in the days of Plato except it’s wireless. How are you?”
“About the same. Adam and Eve can’t seem to help themselves,” he said.
“Adam says he’s over Eve, but why should I believe him?”
“True. I wouldn’t. Well, Daphne is clueless about all this. Do your boys know anything?”
“No. Unless Adam has told them, but I doubt that he has. And why would he? He still doesn’t think that he did anything wrong.”
“Incredible. Well, I think the best plan is to keep our differences quiet for now. This weekend is about Clarabeth and for Ted. Of course, Cookie is just waiting to stir up trouble.”
“She’s truly one dreadful woman.”
“Yes, she sure is. Would you like me to carve the roast?” he said.
“I’d love it. Thanks.”
I dropped two heaping tablespoons of horseradish into a small bowl that held the contents of the container of sour cream and finished it with a little lemon zest and a good pinch of salt.
“Instant sauce,” I said and began opening cabinets looking for a bowl nice enough for the dining room.
There was a small crystal bowl in the butler’s pantry and a serving spoon in the silver chest. I put it down on the dining table and brought the empty gravy boat from the china closet back to the kitchen. Carl was doing an expert job on the roast.
“You should’ve been a surgeon!” I said and we laughed.
“Right. So, are you going back to Corfu?”
“Yes, I am. Monday.”
“What exactly are you doing over there? Did you dump Adam?”
“Good grief! No!”
“Too bad,” he said and smiled at me.
“Your flirting has the worst possible timing,” I said, teasing him back.
“Just tell me there’s a chance,” Carl said.
“Okay, Romeo, that’s enough.” I was laughing then.
I told him about my cousin Kiki and my aunt and the restaurant and all about how beautiful the island was and that I was so fascinated by the history that was literally at your fingertips.
“It’s a simpler life, but it’s so gorgeous. I mean, Carl, everywhere you look it’s like a movie set. I love it there, and not just a little bit.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“Well, I’m not sure how, but I’m definitely going to spend time there every year.”
“With Adam?”
“Maybe. Maybe not. We’ll see.”
“You’re really furious, aren’t you?”
“Furious? No. It’s more like this. I thought I knew what was in his heart, and I didn’t. And for some asinine reason he doesn’t understand why what he’s done changes the way I feel about him. And now he says he’s not interested in Eve because he’d rather have me. Well, excuse me, is that really supposed to make me feel good about our marriage?”
“I hear you. Eve’s very busy swearing her love to me too. I don’t know. It all seems like too much work. And Cookie is on the sidelines, stoking the fires. Where’s that damn shark when I could use him again?”
“You said it.”
I pulled the container of vegetables from the oven. If we didn’t eat very soon it would all be cold. We lined all the food up on the counter to serve it buffet style.
“I’ll call everyone to come fix their plates,” I said.
Remarkably, everyone moved quickly to the kitchen to serve themselves and then to the table. And Eve, of course, swanned into the room.
“Hi, Eve,” I said. “How are you?”
“Fine,” she said, fighting back tears I wasn’t the least bit interested in seeing. “Isn’t it just terrible about Clarabeth?”
And did she expect me to believe the tears were caused by Clarabeth’s untimely death?
“Yes. But as you know, life goes on, right?” I said.
“That’s kind of cold, Eliza,” Adam said, having overheard.
I didn’t answer him. I didn’t take my directions from him anymore. I could decide what to say all on my own.
I kept myself very busy on Friday when Adam was at work and on Saturday I did errands, got my hair done and my nails too. Cookie’s date had gone fine the night before. So fine, in fact, that she wanted to bring him Saturday night. There was no objection, so she brought Reginald Finley IV to Cypress for all of us to ogle and interview. He looked harmless with his white hair and wire-rimmed glasses. Reggie, as he liked to be called, sat on Cookie’s left and Ted sat on her right. He simply smiled and nodded all through dinner until Cookie started picking at Eve and it looked like a fight might break out.
“Stop! Stop!” he said.
The group stopped talking and he cleared his throat.
“Give me a minute. I have to put my hearing aids in. I don’t want to miss this. God, I love a good catfight.”
That was the nugget of the evening, as everyone had something to say about it.
Adam said later, “That’s the only way you could have a relationship with Cookie. Take your hearing aids out.”
“That was actually very funny,” I said in agreement.
The dinner at Cypress was so delicious. Again, I noticed Adam was pushing his food around the plate.
“What’s wrong? Is your food okay?” I asked him.