Page 36 of The Awful Truth

“So…an hour?” She took a guess, knowing that Ben didn’t want to tell her the truth because it would make her worry.

He tilted his head from side to side. “A little more.”

“Two?”

“Maybe, yes. But it depends on when they bring up the lines. I’ve changed course so we can meet them.”

She clenched her jaw, starting to feel slightly frustrated. “The reason I’m asking is because I need to decide what time to serve dinner.”

“How about nine o’clock? A nice late meal for everyone.”

“Oh. So, they’ve gone really far.”

Offering her a reassuring smile, he said, “You gotta follow the fish if you’re going to catch one.”

“Yep, right,” she answered, her mind already solving the problem of feeding everyone. She smiled at him, even though inside she was seething—wasn’t it enough that she had three children already, including Grace with all her troubles to worry about twenty-four hours a day? She had to cover for Travis’s awful behavior too. “I’ll go talk to Yuri.”

“I can see you’re worried. Don’t worry, okay? You’ll make little lines on your beautiful face.”

She smiled at him. “I won’t. Do you need anything?”

“No, Signora. Enzo is going to take over for me in a few minutes and I’ll go eat my supper. Thank you for asking.” He took her hand and gave it a little squeeze, reminding her very much of her grandfather. “Always so thoughtful. Signore Travis is so lucky to have you.”

She was about to say what she usually did. I’m the lucky one. But this time, she surprised herself by saying, “Yes, he certainly is.”

9:00 P.M.

MIGUEL

Miguel sat at the bistro table on their private balcony staring out into the night sky. God it was dark. If it weren’t for the stars, it would be impossible to see where the water ended and the sky began. Something about being enveloped in darkness made him feel as if they were up in space, about to be devoured by a black hole, yacht and all. His stomach growled and he sighed, annoyed at himself for having told Mercy he would wait to eat with Winslow. With all the delays, Mercy had canceled their formal dinner in favor of a relaxed, private meal, and told each of the guests just to call down to the kitchen when they were ready. Miguel, who could have used the distraction of an evening with the women, told himself that he deserved the punishment of being alone to think about what he had done.

But now all he could focus on was how hungry he was and how much he was regretting eating all of the truffles the night before, instead of saving a couple for an emergency. He looked through the welcome basket and came very close to opening the water crackers and jarred caviar, before deciding not to let himself indulge.

He would wait for the love of his life to return, as a sign of solidarity for what must feel like a horribly long day. It had taken a bad turn with a call from the risk officer, Alec, who had given him some very bad news. Winslow was still on the phone when Miguel returned to their room after Travis refused to open his heart and help him out. He had held up a hand and shook his head when Miguel walked in. “It was the only thing I could do, given the circumstances.” There was a pause, then Winslow let out a strangled laugh. “Christ on the cross, Alec, I most certainly would never do such a thing. It was a mistake. A terrible mistake and I did what anyone would do to fix it. If you just give me another week, maybe two, I’ll have it sorted out, and we can carry on as usual.”

There was another long pause, and when Winslow spoke again, he sounded defeated. “In thirty-six years, I have never once done anything even remotely untoward. Not one time. It was a slip of the mind, yes, but going public with this is the nuclear option. If you wait until I’m back, we can sit down and talk this out, and I know you will see it my way.”

Miguel stood silently watching as Winslow rubbed his face with his free hand. Finally, he sighed. “No, of course not. I would never do that to you.”

A moment later, Winslow said goodbye, then tossed his phone onto the bed and dropped onto the armchair. Miguel opened the mini-bar and took out two bottles of water. Walking over, he handed one to Winslow. “That sounded bad.”

“It is,” Winslow said, avoiding eye-contact.

“Wanna tell me about it?”

Standing, Winslow straightened his back. “No. It would bore you to death. Besides, I have to leave for a fishing trip I don’t want to go on.”

And now, as Miguel sat staring out into the darkness, he realized he had never seen Winslow so upset. He was distraught. Defeated. Whatever was going on, he was needed back in London, not out here on the sea. And by the time he returned this evening, Winslow would also be furious. Exhausted. And starving.

Hmmm…maybe tonight was the wrong night to tell him the truth. Only, he really couldn’t wait, could he?

9:07 P.M.

ANTONIA

Antonia stood under the spray of the shower, squinting as she tried to shave her nether regions. It would be a nice little surprise for Ted, and if there was one thing they always preached to couples, it was the importance of nice little surprises. Change things up. Put in the extra effort. After all, if your marriage isn’t worth going the extra mile for, what on earth is?

9:09 P.M.