What Alice Forgot - Liane Moriarty [126]
“Did Nick kiss that Mrs. Holloway in the laundry?” asked Alice, feeling juvenile to be discussing kissing with this elegant gray-haired woman.
“Nick?” said Nora. “No, honey. It was Michael. Gina’s husband. Gina walked in on them.” She looked at Maggie. “She really has lost her memory.”
“She doesn’t remember anything,” said Maggie, excitedly taking a huge bite of muffin. “It’s like she’s Rumpelstiltskin in the fairy tale.”
“I think you mean Rip Van Winkle.”
“Do I?”
“But I remember it so clearly,” said Alice slowly. “I remember it as if it was me.”
“Well, you were so upset for Gina,” said Maggie. “Oh God, I just still cannot believe Gina isn’t about to walk in here right this minute, carrying another bottle of champagne. Whenever I hear the pop of a champagne cork I think of her. I don’t think I’ve accepted it yet.”
“Unless, of course, the troll kissed Nick as well,” said Nora thoughtfully.
“Can I take something in?” chimed a childlike voice.
“Mrs. H.!” said Nora calmly. “We were just talking about you.”
“All good, I hope?”
“Of course! I’m sure our fine deputy principal doesn’t have any dirty laundry that needs airing,” said Nora.
Maggie choked on her muffin.
“Here you go,” said Nora. “You can take those mugs in for Alice.”
“Sure thing.” Mrs. Holloway seemed unruffled. “Will we be getting started soon, Alice?” She looked at her watch. “It’s just that I’ve got to be back at the school.”
“Won’t be long,” said Nora briskly, her eyes hard.
Mrs. Holloway took the mugs and left.
As soon as the deputy principal walked out the door, Maggie slapped Nora on the back of her head, ruffling her smooth hair. “You’re a shocker.”
It was just like being with girls at school, except with wrinkles and gray hair and talk of children. Alice felt comforted by this. It seemed you still got to be silly when you grew up.
“But I don’t understand,” she said. “How can this Mrs. Holloway be deputy principal if she’s . . .”
“Kissing dads in the laundry?” finished Nora. “We’re the only ones who know about it. Gina made us promise not to tell anyone. Mrs. H. has got children herself at the school. Gina said she didn’t want to be responsible for breaking up another marriage.”
“You don’t know how often I’ve had to bite my tongue whenever Dominick talks about her,” said Maggie. “He thinks she’s so professional. But anyway, I guess she just had too much to drink that night. We all make mistakes.”
“Don’t go all forgiving on us, Maggie,” said Nora. “She doesn’t deserve forgiveness. The bitch didn’t even flinch when I said ‘dirty laundry.’”
“She might have forgotten about it,” said Maggie. “It’s been three years.”
“Were Mrs. Holloway and Mike having an affair?” asked Alice, and realized she was steeling herself for the answer. Even though she knew it hadn’t been Nick, that raw, betrayed feeling remained.
“As far as we know, it was just that one drunken kiss,” said Maggie. “But it seemed to trigger all of Gina and Mike’s problems. It never seemed fair. Gina and Mike break up, and meanwhile the Holloways still look like the golden couple. I saw them holding hands, do you mind, at the Trivia Night the other week and I thought, ‘Someone please bring me a bucket.’”
“Maybe they’ve got an arrangement,” mused Nora. “It could be an open marriage.”
“Do you think?” said Maggie with wide eyes. Then she shook herself. “We’d really better go do this meeting.”
“Maybe I should stay here,” said Alice. “Tell them I’m sick.” She had no idea how to “do a meeting.”
“I’ll run through the agenda,” said Nora. “Just nod along. Anyway, you’ve had everything organized so well in advance, we all know exactly what we’ve got to do. You’re the most efficient person I know, Alice.”
“I wonder how that happened,” sighed Alice. She licked her finger and pressed it against the muffin crumbs on the plate in front of her. She saw the two women were studying her, as if she were behaving oddly.
Instead of sucking her finger, she let it drop by her side and said, “Why are we making the world’s biggest lemon meringue pie, anyway? Why not a