Daughters of the Lake(58)

“I just don’t understand why you cannot seem to make small talk with these people,” Jess had said to her at the breakfast table. “It’s just a dinner party, Addie. Once again I found you in the library instead of socializing with the wives of my colleagues. Why must you be so shy? Don’t you understand how embarrassing it is for me?”

Addie looked down at her untouched oatmeal. “I didn’t realize I was an embarrassment to you.”

Jess pushed his chair back from the table with a huff. “That’s ridiculous. You know you’re not an embarrassment. It’s just . . . Addie. Aren’t you happy here?”

She met his gaze. “I love our home and the town of Wharton and especially the proximity to the lake. I love you! And I love Celeste and Harrison. But the parties and socializing . . .” Her words trailed off into a sigh.

“What is the problem, Addie? How difficult is it to make a little small talk with the wives of my colleagues? To laugh? Can’t you even appear to be having a good time? I just don’t understand why you can’t bring yourself to be more helpful to me in this way.”

With that, he had grabbed his briefcase and stalked out the door without even a backward glance.

It didn’t help matters that he had come home from the office and found Addie swimming instead of dressing for the dinner party they were to attend at the Connors’ that night. He didn’t know—as she rushed onto shore and into the house after him—that it was the lake that soothed her after his outbursts.

Now they turned the corner and started up the hill. “It will be just Harrison and Celeste tonight, my dear,” Jess let her know. “Celeste wasn’t up to hosting a crowd.”

“Darling, I’ve made a vow to myself to be better about all of these dinner parties,” Addie said, squeezing Jess’s hand.

He stopped and looked into her eyes. “Do you mean it?”

“Of course I do,” she said. “I’d do anything for you, Jess. And as you say, it’s only a little laughter and light conversation. It’s just that I can never think of anything to say. But to solve this problem, I’ll ask Celeste to give me some advice.”

Jess put his arms around his wife. “That would mean the world to me, my dear.” And then he pushed back and looked at her. “You and I could practice, also! I promised to guide you through these social minefields, and I daresay I have done a poor job. As I said, I’ve been through this. I’ve been in your shoes.”

“How did you become so good at it?” Addie asked as they continued their walk.

“I’d have a few phrases at the ready whenever I entered a party,” he said, squeezing her hand and remembering those carefree days. “Compliments are always a good way to break the ice. ‘My, isn’t your dress beautiful?’ or, to complete strangers, ‘I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Jess Stewart.’”

“I’ll remember that,” Addie promised, as much to herself as to Jess. She would never be an embarrassment to him again.

As they neared the house, Addie could see Harrison standing on the front porch. “Hello!” he called down to them, waving. Jess waved in return. Addie smiled broadly.

“My wife insisted we take advantage of the cool evening air,” Jess said as they climbed the stairway to the Connors’ massive porch. “I had hired a car . . .”

“What a wonderful idea.” Harrison smiled and took Addie’s hand, threading her arm through his. “I’ve long admired your athleticism, Addie. I wish my own wife would take more of an interest in the out-of-doors.”

“Perhaps after the baby is born, she will feel more like exercising,” Addie offered.

“Perhaps.” Harrison continued to beam at her. Turning to Jess, he said, “Celeste awaits.”

That the two women had conceived children at roughly the same time was a relief to Addie, who had been worried about how her fragile friend would take the news that Addie and Jess were going to have a child. Addie had, in fact, kept the secret to herself for weeks, and asked Jess to do the same, until she could find a way to tell Celeste about their upcoming arrival without sending her into a torrent of grief.

Addie knew that Celeste still fiercely mourned the loss of her baby daughter Clementine the year before. They couldn’t encounter a pregnant woman on the street without Celeste dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief and becoming still and silent. It was as though she was just going through the motions of a conversation, or shopping, or whatever they were doing. Outwardly, she was calm and collected, but Addie could see the firestorm that raged within.

When Addie discovered she herself was expecting a child, she knew that, soon, she would be the object of that simmering rage. Was there a gentle way to break this news to someone who would be broken by it? Addie wasn’t sure there was and had fretted about it for weeks.

She was spared finding the answer to this riddle, however. Over dinner one night, Jess told her about a conversation he’d had with Harrison that afternoon at the office.

“He confided that Celeste is with child,” Jess had said, raising his eyebrows. “He asked that we keep it under our hats for the moment. Don’t let on that you know. Wait for her to tell you. Harrison wanted us to know right away because Celeste is going to be quite the china doll until the baby comes. No more picnics, no more walks in the country. She’s going to slow down considerably. Take care of herself. They want to do all they can to ensure this one makes it.”