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.She’d always considered Billy a good friend—so he should have come to her first and at least have had the courtesy to inform her of what he was planning to do with the Rices.But she didn’t want to think about Billy Litchfield or the Rices and their apartment.She was at the ballet now.Attending the ballet was one of the great pleasures in Enid’s life, and she had her rituals.She always sat in the first row in the first ring in seat 113, which she considered the best seat in the house, and she always treated herself to a glass of the most expensive champagne during the intermissions.The elegant first act, “Emeralds,” was over, and after paying for the champagne, she turned to Lola.“What did you think of it, dear?” she asked.Lola stared at the piece of strawberry in her glass.The ballet, she knew, was supposed to be the height of culture.But the first movement had more than bored her, it had literally made her want to scream and tear her hair out.The slow classical music grated on her nerves; it was so excruciating that for a moment, she actually questioned her wisdom in being with Philip.But she reminded herself that this wasn’t Philip’s fault—he wasn’t even here.He wisely—she realized—was at home.“I liked it,” Lola said cautiously.They moved away from the stalls and sat at a small table on the side, sipping their champagne.“Did you?” Enid said.“There’s a great debate over which ballet is better, ‘Emeralds,’ ‘Rubies,’ or ‘Diamonds.’ I personally prefer ‘Diamonds,’ but many people love the fire in ‘Rubies.’ You’ll have to make your own decision.”“There’s more?” Lola said.“Hours and hours,” Enid declared happily.“I’ve done quite a bit of thinking on the matter, and I’ve decided ballet is the very opposite of the Internet.Or those things you watch on your phone.What are they—podcasts? Ballet is the antidote to surfing the Web.It forces you to go deep.To think.”“Or fall asleep,” Lola said, attempting a joke.Enid ignored this.“Ideally, the ballet should put you into a transportive state.I’ve often said it’s a version of meditation.You’ll feel wonderful afterward.”Lola took another sip of champagne.It was slightly sour, and the tiny bubbles caught in her throat, but she was determined to keep her displeasure to herself.The evening was an opportunity to make Enid like her—or at the very least, to make Enid understand that she meant to marry Philip, and there was no use in Enid standing in the way.But still, Enid’s invitation to the ballet had taken Lola by surprise.When she and Philip had returned from Mustique, she’d expected Enid would be furious about her moving in.Instead, Enid pretended to be overjoyed and immediately asked her to the ballet.“A girls’ night,” she’d called it, although Enid couldn’t possibly believe she was still a girl, Lola thought.And then a more disturbing idea had crossed her mind: Perhaps Enid didn’t object to her moving in with Philip at all, and planned to spend lots of time with them.Lola lowered her head over her glass and glanced up at Enid.If that were so, she thought, Enid would be in for a shock.Philip was hers now, and Enid would have to learn that when it came to relationships, three was a crowd.“Did Philip tell you he danced ballet as a boy?” Enid asked.The thought of Philip in white tights startled Lola.Could this be true, she wondered, or was it merely a sign that Enid was becoming senile? Lola carefully took in Enid’s appearance.Her blond hair was coiffed, and she was wearing a black-and-white plaid suit with a matching emerald necklace and earrings, which Lola coveted and wondered if there was some way she could get Enid to leave to her when she died.Enid did not look particularly crazy—and Lola had to concede that for an eighty-two-year-old woman, Enid looked pretty good.“No, he didn’t tell me,” Lola said stiffly.“You two have only just gotten to know each other, so naturally, he hasn’t had time yet to tell you everything.But he was in The Nutcracker as a boy.He played the young prince.It was, and still is, a terribly chic thing to do.Ballet has always been a part of our lives.But you’ll learn that soon enough.”“I can’t wait,” Lola said, forcing herself to smile.The bells signaling the end of intermission began to chime, and Enid stood up.“Come along, dear,” she said.“We don’t want to miss the second act.” Holding out her arm, she motioned for Lola to take it, and when she did, Enid leaned heavily on her, shuffling slowly toward the door to the theater and keeping up a relentless prattle.“I’m so happy you love the classic arts,” she said.“The winter season of the ballet only lasts until the end of February, but then there’s the Metropolitan Opera.And of course, there are always wonderful little piano concertos and even poetry readings.So one never need be deprived of culture.And now that you’re living with Philip, it’s so easy.You’re right next door.You can accompany me to everything.”Back at One Fifth, Philip was shaving for the second time that day.As he scraped the side of his cheek, he paused, holding up his razor.Something was missing.Noise, he thought.There was no noise.For the first time in months.He went back to shaving.Splashing his face with water, he felt guilty about sneaking around behind Lola’s back.Then he was irritated.He had every right to do as he pleased—after all, he wasn’t married to the girl [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]