Page 33 of The Bordeaux Book Club

There was silence for a minute. Grace placed her cup back on its saucer with a clink. ‘Oh of course!’ she said, changing the subject. ‘We were just about to hear about next month’s book.’ She looked at Leah expectantly.

‘Oh yes…’ Leah thought again of the brand-new hardback that had arrived yesterday. The delicious smell of new pages, the idea of diving into something she really fancied reading. But then they’d all been talking about classics, and now she was here, it seemed a bit odd to foist something blatantly aimed at midlife women onto Alfie. ‘I thought maybe…Pride and Prejudice. You know, to continue our theme of “classics”,’ she added hurriedly, choosing a failsafe she knew would at least please Grace.

Grace nodded. ‘You didn’t fancy something more… modern in the end?’ she asked, recalling something Leah had said to her recently about ordering a new book.

‘Well, I did,’ she said. ‘But then I thought, well,Pride and Prejudiceis one of the books that sort of inspired me to come to France.’ They were all silent in their confusion. ‘I know,’ she said, ‘a book about quintessential British society inspiring a move to the continent. But it was the pace of life, the countryside. The idea of having land, space. I wanted that. A simpler existence. Strolling in the gardens…’

‘And the possibility of a half-naked man in a clingy white shirt swimming in a lake?’ George said, with a grin.

‘Well, a girl’s gotta dream,’ she quipped in return.

They all laughed.

‘OK,Pride and Prejudiceit is,’ Grace said. ‘I’ll let Alfie know.’

‘And can you check he’s OK, too?’ Monica said. ‘He looked a bit… odd when he left.’

‘Probably just embarrassed,’ said Grace. ‘The last thing you want as a young bloke is a call from your mum.’

‘Then they pass, and it’s all you want,’ George said, looking suddenly melancholy. ‘Sorry,’ he said, seeing their eyes on him. ‘Mum died last year. Ah, she was old, it was time. All the things. But you know.’

They nodded. They knew.

Minutes later, they exited the café with its low conversation and the sounds of clinking and hissing from behind the counter, and emerged into the early-evening air. It was bright but had an edge of coolness to it, reminding them that summer was still a distant dream. Leah pulled her cardigan on and grinned at them all. ‘Good group,’ she said.

‘Yes, good group,’ Monica echoed. ‘Really enjoyed it.’

‘See you all next time?’

They nodded.

Monica said her goodbyes and crossed the road, disappearing down the alleyway that led to the next street, and Leah turned to make her way back to her expertly parked car. ‘Bye,’ she called to George and Grace, who remained standing together, talking about one of the other groups Grace ran.

‘It’s gardening, mostly,’ Grace was saying, ‘but they’re a lovely bunch of people…’

Leah wondered whether George’s comments about being alone had activated Grace’s tendency to get involved. George would probably find himself signed up for a week’s worth of events if he wasn’t careful. She smiled, shaking her head gently to herself. Grace’s heart was more or less in the right place, but she was definitely ‘A Lot’ sometimes.

Moments later, Leah reached the curve in the road just a few metres from where her car was parked and looked back along the street, with its vintage shops and buzzing atmosphere.

By the café, she could just about make out George and Grace, half-hidden by tourists and local shoppers, still talking animatedly.

13

To: Grace, George, Leah, Monica

From: Alfie

Subject: Sorry

Hi Everyone,

Sorry I had to rush off last night. Bit of a crisis at home, but all’s good now! Hope the rest of the group went well. Let me know the next book and I’ll get it ordered. Looking forward to seeing you all next month. Alfie.

To: Alfie

From: Grace

Subject: Re: Sorry

---