The Other Wives Club

by Shari Low

  On the way to the balcony, she took two bottles of fresh orange out of the fridge and poured them into glasses, then added ice from the permanently stocked ice box. The service on this ship was every bit as magnificent as any five-star hotel she had ever been to.

  Out on the balcony, she quickly Skyped the office and spoke to her assistant, Rupert. He was out and proud, with a core of steel – most of it accrued from years of self-defence caused by growing up in Glasgow with a name like Rupert.

  She quickly ran through the following week’s shoots – completely unnecessary as she’d left a list of notes that had the same level of detail as a NASA flight manual. ‘Well done on the Cindy Trenchant spread,’ she told him. It always helped to give praise where it was due.

  Almost ten years ago, she’d plucked Rupert from a work placement stint, when he was sixteen and showed up in Gucci heels. From that moment, Rupert would take a Tiffany-designed bullet for her and she intended to ensure that level of commitment continued. ‘Oh, it was so easy. The woman is a mess, so we had plenty of options to slate. What is it with political wives? Thank fuck he didn’t shag Cherie Blair – we’d have had to dedicate a summer special to that one.’

  There was only one person that could out-bitch Mona and she was looking right back at him. She had truly created a monster, but one she loved dearly.

  ‘Right, my darling, got to go. Kisses.’

  He air-kissed either side of the screen and signed off.

  ‘Was that Rupert you were talking to?’ Drew appeared from behind her.

  ‘Yes. He’s absolutely absurd but I do love him.’

  ‘You know he flashed the mayor last week? They were at a function in One Devonshire Gardens. Apparently the mayor had to sit down with his inhaler afterwards but he decided not to take any action in case he offended the pink vote.’

  Mona’s expression combined incredulity and amusement. At least Rupert was never that hideous four-letter word: dull.

  ‘I poured you an orange juice.’ She slid it across the table to him. His bicep flexed when he picked it up. He was wearing black shorts now, but nothing else, and every single hour he put in at the gym showed. He might not be able to match a twenty-three-year-old male model, but he could give any forty-ish A-lister a run for his money. He still turned her on every bit as much as he had the first day she met him. She’d seen him almost every day of her life since then and the physical attraction had never waned. That had never been the problem. If only the other stuff hadn’t got in the way, then they’d still be together and she wouldn’t be sitting on a fucking ship with a family group that was dysfunctional with a capital bloody D.

  ‘So, how are you enjoying this so far?’ she asked him, stretching back on the chair and putting her feet up on table. He was quiet for a moment. That was Drew. No false platitudes and banal small talk. They were way too close for that.

  ‘You know what, I’m not sure.’ There was an unmistakable hint of sadness. ‘It’s great seeing John and Eliza and the kids, but…’

  He left that one hanging in the air.

  ‘Can I ask you something?’ she said tentatively. Time to start gently picking at the seams in the hope of an imminent unravel of Drew and Tess’s relationship.

  ‘Sure.’

  ‘Tell me if you want me to butt out, but I’m just concerned, and I mean this as a friend. Is everything OK with you and Tess? It’s just that – and maybe I’m imagining it – but you seem a little… disconnected.’

  Another pause. ‘I don’t know,’ he admitted wearily.

  She knew not to push it. For a guy who lived up to the typical ‘emotionally closed off’, West of Scotland stereotype, that small admission was the equivalent of three weeks of soul-baring in therapy.

  ‘Tess is amazing. She’s beautiful and sweet and funny and patient, and I’ve never known anyone like her.’

  For the sake of her ego, Mona really hoped there was a ‘but’ coming soon.

  ‘But…’

  Hallelujah and praise be!

  ‘Sometimes I wonder if I make her happy.’

  ‘Of course you make her happy. How could you not?’ The words just slipped out. The fact that they massaged his ego could only help her cause.

  ‘Because she’s given up a lot for me, Mona. She agreed to not having kids. She plays second fiddle to work. I don’t give her enough time and, to be honest, I’m too damn knackered to make the kind of effort that I need to make. I don’t want to get home at midnight and sit up until 2 a.m. catching up with her day. And if I’m supposed to meet her for dinner and a story breaks, then I’m not going anywhere. It’s what I am. You understood that.’

  ‘I did. I still do.’

  ‘But it’s impossible for anyone who’s not in the industry to get that. Sometimes I think she deserves more.’

  This was it. He was about to realise what he had to do. All she had to do was nudge him along.

  ‘Maybe she does.’

  The second she said that he flinched and his eyes locked with hers.

  ‘I don’t mean that badly, Drew, but come on, how long have we known each other?’

  He thought for a moment. ‘Twenty years?’

  She nodded. ‘And the one thing I know is that you need to be with someone who understands you and gets turned on by the same things. Tess is all those things you said she is, but I’m not sure that she’s right for you. I hate seeing you this miserable.’

  She thought about stopping there but how many more times this week would they get the opportunity to speak on their own like this? How many more chance would she get to apply subtle persuasion that it was time for Drew to rethink his current marital situation and opt for a new one. Or more accurately, an old one?

  ‘I think you should be with someone you have more in common with, and trust me, you are more than enough to keep a woman happy.’

  Drew smiled at that. ‘I didn’t keep you happy, did I?’

  Shit, she walked right into that one.

  ‘That was a different time and place, Drew.’ There was no way she was getting into why they split up now. No way. This was supposed to be an attempt to get closer to him, not remind him of the very worst of times. ‘Look, Drew, there’s no point going over all that again. You have to deal with what’s happening now. If Tess isn’t right for you then you have to let her go. It’s the decent thing to do, and in all the years I’ve known you, my darling, the one thing you have always been is decent.’

  He looked so miserable, her heart almost ached for him. Decency was definitely overrated as far as she was concerned.

  Much as she was tempted to stay and play the empathetic friend for a while longer, she was well enough educated in the ways of men, and Drew Gold in particular, to know that you should always be the one who chooses when to stay and go. Besides, now that she’d planted the seeds, she wanted to give him time to think about it. He was a smart guy. She was becoming more and more convinced that he would do the right thing.

  Making a big play of checking her watch, she sighed loudly. ‘Drew, I have to go. Piers will be back soon, and to be perfectly honest with you, I’m going through something similar.’

  ‘Really? God, Mona, I’m so sorry to hear that. I had no idea.’

  ‘It’s OK, how would you? I’m beginning to think that Piers and I want completely different things. He’s always on at me to slow down, stop working, take time out.’

  ‘That’s not you.’

  ‘No, it’s not,’ she agreed. She leant over and kissed him on the cheek then squeezed him into a hug that he was more than happy to reciprocate. As she pulled away, she gave him her best parting shot. ‘You know, Drew, sometimes I think the only two people that really get who we are is us.’

  She didn’t stop to see if his eyes followed her as she left and she didn’t turn back at the door. Her job for today was done. Now she just wanted to get some time on her own before Piers returned to think about her next move.

  Sarah

  Sarah wandered along
the port side of deck fourteen looking for a nice spot to sit down and relax. She had thought about taking the Tasmina Perry book she was reading out on the balcony, but the twins were wide awake and having supper in the cabin with John and Penny, so there was much shrieking going on. Not that she minded that in the least. When she’d returned from Alghero, she’d gone straight in to see the kids, then volunteered to take Lawrence and Lavinia swimming with John, so that Penny could have an hour to herself to get ready for dinner. They’d fallen into a routine that suited them perfectly. The nanny would take the children in the mornings to give them some ‘couple time’. They’d all have lunch together, then John and Penny would put the little ones down for a sleep and chill out on the balcony. After their nap came a couple of hours of fun time, then supper, and some quiet play before bedtime.

  Now it was almost six thirty and the ship had just begun to gently rock as it left the bay and headed into the horizon. They had no plans to meet for dinner tonight and Sarah was glad. She was enjoying getting to know everyone better, with one bitchy exception, and Piers, Tess and Max had been an absolute revelation, but it was nice to have some space, too.

  The deck was virtually empty, most of her fellow cruisers either getting dressed for dinner, already at dinner or at the early show. There were now only a few stragglers left.

  She wondered if she might bump into Eliza. The note on the coffee table saying, ‘Out with Kai, be back later,’ didn’t exactly furnish her with many details about her daughter’s day.

  A couple on two adjacent sunbeds caught her eye, both of them entwined, kissing passionately. On second thoughts, perhaps it was better if she didn’t stumble across her daughter. Although perhaps it was time for a gentle grilling as to the status of her friendship with this boy.

  She carried on past the lovebirds and settled for a thick, padded wicker chair and footstool under a bright light. It was still daylight now, but she’d noticed that the night descended quickly, and earlier than at home.

  As soon as she sat down, a barman appeared at her side. ‘Can I get you a drink, madam?’ asked Benji, Philippines.

  ‘I’ll have a gin and tonic, please. And a black coffee.’ She didn’t want to trouble him to do another journey in half an hour, so it was easier to order both now. At home a gin and tonic was normally her Friday night indulgence, but hey, she was on her holiday.

  She opened up her book and began to read, stopping only to say thank you when Benji, Philippines delivered her drink. Bliss. Utter bliss. It still seemed strange to her that she’d been invited on this trip in the first place, but she was glad that she had been as it had been full of laughs. It was just a shame that there had also been a few not so funny surprises. When Tess had confided in her today she’d been both surprised and touched. She just hoped she’d handled it well.

  ‘Is this seat taken, ma’am?’

  She glanced up to see the cowboy she’d met on the first day on board and instinctively smiled. ‘Well, good evening,’ she replied. ‘Please, be my guest.’

  For a man who could pass as an extra at the Alamo, he was looking pretty good. He was wearing black jeans, beat-up cowboy boots and a steel-grey shirt with the top couple of buttons open.

  ‘Your husband ain’t up here with you?’

  Oh bugger, she’d forgotten all about that whole debacle at their first meeting.

  ‘I’m not married, Nate. That was my ex-husband. And his other ex-wife. And his current wife. And yes, I know that makes us sound like we belong on one of those shows with the lie detector and DNA tests.’

  ‘Yup, that just about covers it, I reckon. Glad we got that straight. I was trying to work out if you gals were those polygamist sister wives.’ He was obviously teasing her, so she gave him her very best stern look, the raised eyebrow of doom that had been the major force of discipline in her house since the children were tiny. He responded by grinning and winking at her, so she decided to stick to more neutral subjects.

  ‘How have you been, Nate? Is Europe living up to your daughter’s expectations?’

  ‘Hey, you remembered. Yes ma’am, it sure is. We took the little ones to see Neptune’s Grotto today. Kinda blew my mind how old it all is.’

  ‘My friends went there, too. Said it was incredible.’

  ‘That it was. So why are you sitting up here on your lonesome, then? Sick of everyone you’re travelling with already?’

  Sarah loved the mischievous glint in his eye. ‘Absolutely.’ She bought into the joke. ‘Sick of the lot of them. Was just contemplating whether to jump and swim for shore. What about you?’

  ‘Already cased out the lifeboats. Reckon I’m making a bid for freedom soon as night falls.’

  ‘Yeah, well, give me a shout. You row one side and I’ll row the other. We might just make land by daybreak. I’ll bring cakes from the buffet so we don’t starve.’

  Nate was laughing now, a gorgeous, husky gurgle that came from the back of his throat. ‘Sarah, I know this is a bit forward an’ all, but would you like to have dinner with me tonight?’

  Wow, she hadn’t seen that coming. What to do? It didn’t take much consideration. Back at home she’d have panicked, phoned Patsy, panicked some more, made a plan, shopped for an outfit, panicked and then cancelled with an hour to go. But that was the old Sarah. The new ‘I’m on my holidays and I’m damn well going to enjoy it’ Sarah made her mind up pretty quickly.

  ‘Can we have it here? Over at that table there.’ She pointed to a small wicker table for two at the edge of the deck overlooking the water.

  ‘I reckon that looks just about perfect.’

  When Benji next passed, they asked him for a couple of menus and he produced them from under his tray. They both ordered steak sandwiches and fries. It might not be the most exotic of romantic dinners, but it was just what Sarah was in the mood for. Perhaps this was where she had been going wrong all these years. Whipping dates up into a frenzy in her head when really she should just have chilled out and gone with the flow. And a steak-sandwich-eating cowboy.

  ‘Now you know I’m gonna ask – why are you on vacation with your ex-husband and all his other wives? Ain’t that just a bit strange? I mean, I like my ex-wife fine, but I don’t want to go to Disneyland with her.’

  Her laughter even made the snogging couple stop and glance over. ‘Do you know, I’m not entirely sure why. It’s my ex-husband’s fiftieth birthday celebration and I guess he just wanted everyone who’d been significant in his life to be here. I’m sure I was just invited in case the nanny service wasn’t up to scratch.’

  Benji arrived with two bottles of beer, prompting them to move to the table.

  Over the next three hours they discussed family and jobs. They talked about their teenage years and their marriages. They shared stories that were normally reserved for friends. And they laughed. It was easy, uncomplicated and – Sarah decided – absolutely perfect.

  Or at least, it was perfect until their peace was shattered by noise from the big screen further along the deck. It was used to show concerts and movies all day long to the guests who were lying by the pool.

  Sarah checked her watch; 11 p.m. She’d noticed in the Daily Vista schedule that there was a late-night showing at this time every evening. Oh, crap. Their peace was about to be shattered by some bloody action movie and they’d have to shout to be heard over the racket of hand grenades and whatever weapons the invading Martians were using. ‘Time for the movie,’ she said, with a hint of sadness.

  She was about to suggest that they call it a night when the sound of roaring applause came through the speakers, followed by a familiar voice.

  ‘Thank you very much and I’m mighty thrilled to be here with you all tonight.’

  More applause. Sarah was so dumbstruck her eyes actually filled up. She blinked away the tears. This was unbelievable. It wasn’t a movie, it was a concert, but not just any concert.

  ‘The first song I’d like to sing for you tonight is called “Just To See You Smile”.’r />
  It was only bloody Tim McGraw. Her very favourite singer of all time. The man who only married that tall, gorgeous, leggy, talented, blonde, multi-platinum selling artist Faith Hill because he didn’t realize that she, Sarah Gold, was available.

  Now he was here, serenading her under the stars while another cowboy reached his hand out to her.

  ‘Would you like to dance, Sarah?’

  She looked at Nate. Handsome, craggy, lovely Nate, and nodded her head. ‘I’d love to.’

  They stood up, came together, and by the time Tim McGraw was onto the second chorus, they were giving the snogging couple on the sunbeds a run for their money. Yes, Sarah Gold was kissing a virtual stranger.

  And it felt great.

  So great that half an hour later, as she was still slow-dancing in the moonlight, she didn’t notice a jogger stop, turn, and stare at them for a long, long time.

  And she didn’t hear the sound of Drew’s trainers hitting the deck as he jogged on into the night.

  11.

  Messina

  Tess

  ‘So the weather today is – let me see – yep, hot and sunny,’ Tess announced in the voice of a breakfast television weather forecaster. Hot and sunny might have been an understatement. It was only 7 a.m. and already the heat coming through the open balcony door was stifling.

  Today was a new day and she was determined to turn over a new page on her marriage and her holiday. Lying awake last night she’d decided that the answer was simple: she was going to ignore Cameron’s notes, pay lots of attention to Drew, remind him why they fell in love, and all was going to be fine. Oh, and she was going to ignore Mona being a meddling, annoying pain in her slightly rotund arse who seemed to spend more time in their suite than her own. Optimism. It had always been one of her strongest characteristics and it was time to switch it back on. Yes, she might have made this same resolution before, but this time she was going to stick to it. She was going to fix her marriage. It was all going to be great. They’d work it out and get through this. Although, if she was being picky, so far this morning the start of the new chapter wasn’t perfect.