I hear Krista leaving, her heels clip-clopping on the wooden floor. By leaning back a little, I manage to get a view of Gus through the eyehole, and my heart crunches, because my brother is just like he ever was. He’s sitting on the bottom stair, a place he always used to perch whenever he wanted to think. He’s leaning against the banister, running his hand idly up and down one of the spindles, and has obviously tuned out of the proceedings.
I can only see a slice of his face through my spy hole, but I can tell he has the distant, abstract expression that got him in trouble at school a million times. His teachers said he wasn’t “paying attention,” but he was. It’s just that he was paying attention to a more interesting thought than whatever they were droning on about. He’s probably thinking about some piece of computer code right now.
He turns and I see his face fully—and feel a jolt of dismay. He doesn’t just look distant, he looks wiped out. There’s a heaviness to his expression and he seems older somehow. When did I last see him? Only a month ago. He can’t have aged like that in a month.
“Gus?” Romilly snaps. “Gus, are you even listening?”
I wasn’t listening, either, I realize. I was too busy watching Gus.
“Sorry.” Gus’s face jerks guiltily. “I thought you were talking to Krista.”
“Krista’s gone,” says Romilly, rolling her eyes scathingly, as though Gus is a moron, and I gaze at her through the cupboard door in mute fury. I always suspected she was meaner in private than in public, and here’s the proof.
This is why Gus has aged. It’s Romilly. She’s bad for his health. He has to get rid of her.
“I was telling you the good news!” she adds crossly, and I clap my hand over my mouth, trying to stifle my snort. This is Romilly relaying good news? What would she look like if it was bad?
“Oh yes?” says Gus.
“We’re on the list!” says Romilly, with a kind of suppressed triumph. “She’ll fit us in tomorrow morning! Annette Goddard,” she adds, as Gus looks blank. “Remember? The go-to children’s violin teacher that Maya’s mum tried to keep secret from me? Well, we’re in! I’ll have to leave first thing in the morning,” she adds, and looks at her glass. “I probably won’t drink anymore.”
“That’s a shame,” says Gus, his face falling. “There’s a family brunch tomorrow. I thought we’d have a nice lazy morning.”
Romilly surveys him as though with incomprehension.
“It’s Annette Goddard,” she says. “If Molly and Gracie learn violin from Annette Goddard, they’ll be in there! They’ll be noticed! Luckily, I brought their violins with me, just in case,” she adds, breathing out sharply. “Because I would not trust Doug to remember them.”
Doug is Romilly’s ex-husband, and I haven’t heard her say one good thing about him, ever.
“The girls are only four and six,” says Gus mildly. “Do they need to be noticed?”
Romilly has started quivering. She does that when people challenge her; I’ve noticed it before. Her nostrils flare and she starts to tremble, as though her whole body is reacting to the unthinkable notion that someone could—oh my God—disagree with her.
“Of course the girls need to be noticed!” she retorts. “Do you know how competitive it is out there? Do you want me to read you the stats?”
I can see a tiny shudder pass across Gus’s face, though I’m not sure Romilly notices. “No, I don’t want you to read me the stats.”
“Do you know how hard this is for me?” There’s a sudden crack in Romilly’s voice and she lifts a hand to her beautiful brow.
“Look.” Gus puts a hand on her leg. “I’m sorry. I just…reacted badly. Well done.”
Wait a minute. Romilly is bailing out on the family event, but Gus is apologizing? How does that work?
“I do my best for the girls,” says Romilly in martyred tones, pulling away from Gus and stalking over to redo her lipstick in the mirror. “You know? I just do my best.”
She’s only about two feet away from my spy hole now, side-on to me, and as she bends down to adjust the strap on her shoe, I suddenly notice that she has the most amazing breasts. I blink at them in surprise, wondering how I’ve never registered this before. Maybe it’s that I’ve never glimpsed them from this angle? Or is that dress particularly revealing? Either way, I’m getting more access than usual—and they’re spectacular.