Persuading Annie (26 page)

Charles felt increasingly detached from all that was going on around him. The city was so different from his own traditional country background – not a golf course in sight – and he couldn’t help but be aware of how happy Victoria was in these surroundings. Could he ever make her happy?

‘This is where it all starts,’ Victoria was rapturing. ‘We’re just pale imitators – you name it, it started here – aerobics, jogging, roller-blading, skinny latte, the internet—’

‘Date rape, yardies, gridlock—’

‘Shut up, Charles.’

Annie was merely feeling as distant from her family as usual. She sat in the car, eyes barely registering the changing scenery, ears barely hearing Victoria’s commentary. The break from Jake was only serving to make him more vivid in her mind. She could see him now, touching the back of his neck, chewing his lower lip …

His constant presence was so real, that if he’d stepped out from behind one of the buildings now she’d only wonder what had taken him so long to get there.

She was also desperately worried about Marlon and Joy. But when she remembered that she was driving towards Edward, she was delighted by a small but unmistakeable twist of excitement in her stomach. Wow! Was Edward going to be her cure?

* * * * *

Although George Markham told everyone that his apartment was on Fifth Avenue, the entrance to it was technically on the corner of East 63rd Street. This caused a lot of confusion for first-time visitors, but George resolutely refused to bow down. As far as he was concerned, most of the rooms of the apartment overlooked the Park. It felt like a Fifth Avenue apartment, so it was a Fifth Avenue apartment.

The smile from the doorman’s face had just the right balance of blankness and obsequiousness to make Annie giddy with homesickness; Victoria with happiness. He helped them with their luggage and pressed the button in the elevator for them. ‘How civilised,’ sighed Victoria, closing her eyes with pleasure as they whizzed up to the penthouse apartment.

‘Darlings!’ exclaimed Katherine in the vast lobby.

‘Pumpkin!’ squealed Victoria.

The two sisters ran to offer each other their cheekbones and hugged without any bodily contact. Katherine welcomed Annie and Charles by turning her face away from them, allowing them graciously to kiss her powdered cheek.

She then led them into the drawing room, where her father and Davina sat self-consciously on separate sofas, pretending to read large hardback bestsellers. George pursed his lips into a smile.

‘My dears!’ he said and slowly got up.

Victoria ran to him.

‘Daddy!’

‘Pumpkin!’

Annie reached up and gave him a peck on the cheek.

‘Father,’ she said calmly.

‘Annie,’ he returned.

Davina hung back and when spoken to, made all the right noises and facial expressions. She was absolutely delighted to see them at last. Yes, wasn’t the apartment beautiful. Of course, they must be exhausted and famished. She couldn’t believe they’d finally got there – now the family was complete.

She was deferential yet hospitable, delighted yet humble. And Annie was surprised at how hostile she felt towards her. It seemed fully reciprocated. There was a new hardness in Davina whenever her cool blue eyes turned her way. Maybe it had always been there, and she was just noticing it for the first time, a new perception from having had a gap from Davina’s company. She couldn’t put her finger on exactly what was different – all she knew was that somehow, Davina’s hard eyes made her feel more homesick for Joy and Marlon than her family’s indifference to her.

With great effort, Annie returned all the right noises and
facial expressions, hoping that she was as good an actress as Davina. What a waste of energy. And energy was so hard to come by at the moment.

The apartment was as luxurious and intimidating as they had all remembered. One entire side of it was floor to ceiling windows, providing stunning views over Central Park and beyond to the elegant, exclusive buildings of Upper West Side. Specks of life were out there, jogging, roller-blading, power walking, strolling, and invariably just out of sight, mugging. It felt like the centre of the world.

The plan was to spend the first evening enjoying an informal dinner together at the apartment. It would probably be the last evening they’d all spend in, let alone together – New York had too many restaurants, bars, clubs and theatres to waste staying in. But for now, the flat was enough of a novelty for everyone to want to remain together. And Victoria, Charles and Annie were too tired to go out.

They sat down on the sofas, while Davina busied herself making them all drinks and passing round the canapés, and George busied himself showing off about their exploits in New York.

‘We’ve dined with the Houselmans twice,’ he started. ‘Spectacular place they’ve got, although I prefer our views, and we met Hollywood star Ginnie Salamon at the theatre last week.’

Victoria gasped. ‘Isn’t she dead?’

‘Almost,’ replied Katherine.

‘What’s she like?’

‘Fat!’

‘She’s tiny!’

‘The woman has a stomach you could sleep on.’ Katherine took a gulp of her bourbon and ice. ‘And her bottom! If she ever does a period piece, she won’t need a bustle.’

‘Sounds perfect,’ muttered Charles quietly into his gin.

‘Wasn’t she beautiful though?’ asked Victoria.

Katherine shook her head. Bones jarred from the sudden movement. ‘Too much make-up,’ she grinned and sighed. ‘It was wonderful to meet her. Oh and then there was Amanda Mortimer. I never realised how tacky that woman was – I swear, you could smell the Charlie on her.’

‘Oh my God, how disgusting!’

‘I didn’t know it had a smell,’ said Victoria, astonished.

Katherine looked at her sister as though she was mad.

‘It’s a perfume, darling, of course it’s got a smell.’

‘Oh the perfume! Oh I see. Oh, how common.’

There was a pause in the conversation.

‘Can we do Bergdorf-Goodman’s tomorrow, Kate?’ asked Victoria.

Katherine looked over at Davina.

‘We’ve rather done it to death, haven’t we, darling?’

I see, thought Annie. And I thought we were all on a budget. She hadn’t really expected anything less, but the knowledge that her family had been busy spending money they couldn’t afford concerned her greatly.

Davina looked at Katherine innocently.

‘I’d be delighted to go again,’ she said to both sisters, her expression a study in artlessness.

‘Annie will go with you,’ said Katherine.

Annie and Victoria glanced at each other, nonplussed.

‘Actually I was thinking of going to the Guggenheim,’ said Annie quietly.

‘Oh,’ said Victoria. ‘Do they do couture there?’

Annie maintained eye contact for as long as possible to make sure Victoria wasn’t joking.

Victoria maintained it back.

Nope. She wasn’t joking.

‘It’s a museum of modern art,’ Annie said finally.

There was silence.

Annie looked hesitantly round at her family. Five pairs of eyes stared unblinking at her. She felt as if she’d just announced that for her next trick she would snort all the canapés up her nose while standing on one leg whistling ‘Abide with Me’ and wearing a duck costume. Mind you, at times like these, she felt tempted to do that just to ease the tension.

‘They’ve got an exquisite gift shop,’ she added, rather weakly.

Her family let out their breath as one.

She sat down, suddenly overcome by jetlag.

‘You’re more than welcome to go together – without me,’ Davina was saying, her mouth and eyes round with innocence.

Doesn’t she get a headache pulling that face all day, thought Annie.

George coughed suddenly and ran his hand through his thick hair, trying not to smile at the thought of everyone going shopping except him and Davina.

‘I’m sure you’d love to go with your sister,’ finished Davina.

Katherine ignored Davina completely and said,

‘Oh what the hell! We’ll all go again – I don’t suppose it will harm us, will it, Davvy?’

Victoria was delighted and Annie was impressed by Davina’s act of being thrilled by the decision.

Katherine was genuinely glad to have her sisters there with her. In two months she had progressed from feeling the
town was full of eligible men to knowing that there were only two who were remotely acceptable, one of whom was more in love with his car than any woman, the other who had a back hairier than his head. Must she always compromise?

But now that her sisters were here, she could enjoy the status of Weary Expert through their eyes. Nothing made being a know-all as much fun as having witnesses.

The chef suddenly appeared to announce that dinner would be ready in exactly forty minutes.

Conversation was abruptly called to a halt.

‘Time to dress for dinner,’ announced George.

* * * * *

Annie was surprised to find that her memory of the apartment had been unnecessarily harsh. Her suite really was beautiful and she realised that if she wasn’t happy to be here, at least she wasn’t miserable. Deliciously thick cream carpet sank beneath her bare feet and the proportions of her room were so pleasing as to make her feel that despite her unhappiness, all was right with the world. She’d never before appreciated the power of proportions. She unpacked her clothes, had a quick, invigorating shower and then lay on the bed, wearing only a towelling robe.

So many people out there, she thought, barely able to hear the taxis hooting miles below. Every now and then a siren halted midway through its call. She sighed. Poor poor Marlon. Poor, poor Joy. But more importantly, poor me.

She must get access to a computer so that she could email them straight away.

She must not get maudlin. This was her new life.

Edward Goddard is here in this city. He thinks he’s in love with me. I am lovable. I’m safe and warm and clean in an ugly world. I have nice hair.

Then she stretched out on her bed and slowly closed her eyes. And saw Jake, breathless and urgent, in a dark London alleyway.

She opened her eyes quickly and stared at the ceiling.

* * * * *

Charles was ready first. He wandered into the drawing room and stood looking out at the view. He didn’t hear Annie come in behind him.

‘Pretzel?’ she asked, for want of anything else to say, picking up a bowl of snacks and offering him some.

‘Hmm? Oh no thanks,’ he said, stroking his paunch lovingly. ‘Don’t want to spoil my appetite.’

‘No of course not,’ said Annie, putting the pretzels on the coffee table.

They stood staring down at the view together in silence.

Davina was next to join them. She went straight to the coffee table.

‘Pretzel?’ she asked immediately, in a tone far more conducive to spoiling an appetite than Annie’s. She held them enticingly close to her bronzed chest.

‘Oh why not?’ said Charles, taking a handful. ‘Whet my appetite.’

Annie refused the offer, shaking her head mildly.

‘Have you been enjoying yourself?’ she asked Davina.

‘Oh, I’ve been having a wonderful time,’ Davina replied, holding the pretzels so close to her chest they gave her an even more impressive cleavage. ‘Of course,’ she rushed, ‘I’ve also been liaising with the office constantly, talking to the
consultants back in Britain, keeping your father up to date.’ She smiled sweetly at Annie. ‘Must earn my keep.’

Annie smiled sweetly back and couldn’t think of a thing to say.

Just then George appeared. He stared obediently at Davina’s bosom.

‘Ah pretzels!’ he bellowed.

Davina walked forward to him with them still in her hand.

‘Never resist a pretzel!’ he announced to the others, as he took a handful. Annie wasn’t sure if this was a statement or a command.

Katherine was close behind him and she went straight to the drinks cabinet where she poured herself a Scotch.

And then Victoria came in behind them. She was rather flushed with all the excitement of being in New York and had paid extra attention to her make-up and hair tonight, in a desperate attempt to take the attention away from her body.

‘Right!’ said George, on seeing his daughter appear. ‘Dinner time!’

They all trooped into the cosy fourteen feet by fourteen feet dining room. Placecards had been left on the empty plates.

Once everyone had found their places, they stood for a brief moment waiting for George to sit down.

‘You look – you look –
lovely
,’ said Charles across the table to his wife. The sentence had started off as a simple, open, honest expression of sentiment. So why had it grown embarrassing as he’d said it? His embarrassment made him self-conscious and his self-consciousness made him ashamed.

Victoria looked up at him stunned.

Is this what her family did to Charles? Terrified him into paying her empty compliments that made him blush?

‘What do you mean
look
lovely, Charles? Are you saying it’s all an act?’

‘I-I-I—’ Charles was baffled.

Katherine laughed. Oh, she’d missed her family.

‘No, I—’

‘Oh God, Vicks,’ scoffed Katherine. ‘Don’t go paranoid on us, just because you’ve put on weight.’

Charles felt his wife’s humiliation.

‘So what if she has?’ he asked heroically, ready to confess the depth of his feelings for his wife as never before. But a sickening gasp swept round the table. It would have taken a stupider man, even than Charles, not to realise that he’d just made a boo-boo. Something had to be done. And fast.

‘What … what I mean to say is,’ he said, his sweat glands making their presence known to him, ‘is … is who wants to be a cold, hard, skinny bitch?’

Victoria stared at him, too surprised to reply that that was her ideal of womanhood.

Charles turned suddenly to Katherine.

‘No offence, Katherine,’ he said quickly.

Katherine looked surprised.

‘None taken, Charles.’

Davina started to blow her nose loudly.

‘I mean—’ continued Charles, his sweat glands now making their presence known to everyone.

‘It’s all right, Charles,’ said Katherine, starting to take offence. ‘You know what they say … Sticks and stones may break my bones, but at least I’m not
fat
.’