Borrowed Time Read online

  “You didn’t put one on under your clothes? We’re on a boat, dude! You didn’t think about going swimming?”

  “Not when it’s this chilly,” said Kyle in a slightly disapproving tone.

  Grace said, “I think you’re going to be on your own, Scott. But the captain pointed out there was some sort of diving board on the bottom level.”

  He quirked an eyebrow. “Not on the top level? How disappointing.”

  Roz said sharply, “I guess he didn’t want the liability if someone broke his neck.”

  Scott scoffed. “It’s just a swim, guys. Live a little. See you in a few.”

  He took off his shirt and headed down the stairs to the lower level of the boat.

  Kelly said, “This, I’ve got to see. He’s probably going to turn blue. Want to come with me, Kyle?” They followed Scott downstairs.

  Roz looked at Grace. “Scott’s being so obnoxious today. Even worse than usual. He’s really baiting Kelly. And drinking way too much.”

  Grace sighed. “I know. Let’s try to view his antics as entertainment for the group.”

  Felicity said, “I don’t see it as being very entertaining.”

  “No, of course you don’t,” said Grace. “If you want me to, I can call him a taxi and ask him to leave. I only invited him here because he was part of our old group at school and because he’s dating Kelly. His drinking must have gotten a lot worse than I remember it being.”

  Felicity shook her head. “No, I don’t want that. He’s just really irritating, that’s all, especially with Kelly right there.”

  Roz said darkly, “Yeah, Kelly isn’t appreciating it, but she knows it’s not your fault, Felicity. I’d like to give Scott a piece of my mind. It’s too bad this boat is so tidy. I remember that Scott’s terrified of bugs. That might be entertaining.”

  Felicity said, “I’m going to make myself a lemonade. A little hydration is in order. Anybody want to join me?”

  “Good idea. I’ll come along,” said Roz.

  “I think I’m going to follow Luna’s lead and doze off for a little while,” said Grace with a chuckle.

  “And I think I’m halfway there,” I said sleepily, surprising myself. I wasn’t usually one for taking naps, but the lulling motion of the boat and the food and drink I’d had weren’t helping. I slid on my sunglasses, pushed the chaise all the way back and fell into a gentle sleep.

  I wasn’t sure how much time had passed when I woke up to what sounded like an angry, hushed conversation. The nice thing about my sunglasses was that they were mirrored and totally opaque. I opened my eyes to see who was talking.

  It was Scott and Grace and whatever they were talking about, neither one looked very happy. Scott was sneering and swaggering—or possibly staggering—as he weaved in front of Grace. Grace was still seated and looked coldly furious. No one else was on the upper deck besides me, and Luna snoring away beside me.

  Scott said, “You’re wrong if you think I won’t go through with it, Grace.”

  “Friendship clearly counts for nothing, does it?” Grace asked briskly.

  “Friendship? There are friends and there are friends. I’m not going to let a childhood friendship from ages ago affect what I do today. Besides, it’s hard to be friends with someone like you,” said Scott.

  “Keep quiet!” she hissed. Grace looked right at me and I froze, feeling like she could somehow tell I was awake.

  He laughed. “You’re worried about those two? They’re total lightweights, Grace. They’re out cold. The two librarians aren’t used to drinking that much.”

  “Look, you’ll get it,” said Grace in a clipped voice.

  “Just make sure I do. I’m glad Kelly got you to invite me. Aren’t we having fun? Now I’m going to head downstairs to get a real drink . . . there’s only beer left up here.”

  I saw him head to the stairs, unsteady on his feet. Grace stayed behind and took deep breaths as if to collect herself. She stood up and held onto the rail tightly, staring off blankly at the gorgeous view for a few minutes before slowly heading downstairs herself.

  I was glad I was finally able to move because I was starting to get a real crick in my neck, but hadn’t wanted to disturb the conversation. I glanced over at Luna and saw she was turning a really unhealthy shade of red.

  “Hey, Luna,” I said softly. She snored on and I reached out a hand and gently touched her arm. “Hey, you need to wake up.”

  “What for?” asked Luna groggily. She frowned and sat up, as if realizing where she was. “Wow, I was really out.”

  “I know. I took a nap, too. It must be all the sun and food. But you’re starting to burn.”

  “What?” asked Luna again. She took her sunglasses off and studied her skin, gingerly touching it. She grimaced. “Great. Yeah, I’m burned, all right. This is going to feel awful tomorrow.”

  “Want to borrow some sunscreen?” I asked.

  “It’s a little late for that,” said Luna wryly. “I probably should just stay out of the sun for the rest of the day.” She glanced around. “Where did everybody go?”

  “They’re all downstairs. I’m pretty sure the boat is going to start heading back to the house in a few minutes.” I added in a low voice, “While you were sleeping, I overheard a really weird conversation between Scott and Grace.”

  Luna’s eyebrows flew up. “Really? Tell me about it?”

  “I don’t know exactly what I was hearing because I woke up in the middle of it. But it almost sounded like Scott was trying to force Grace into something. He said he’d definitely go through with it and then she said she’d make sure he got it. I don’t know what they were talking about, but it wasn’t friendly.”

  Luna blinked. “Huh. That’s weird. They were good friends when they were in school. Let’s go downstairs and see what’s going on now. If he’s had even more booze, there’s no telling what we might see or hear.”

  But when we got back downstairs, everything seemed to be normal. Kelly and Scott were sitting together and Scott was actually being attentive, getting up to refresh her drink or to get her a snack. Kyle was tentatively having a conversation with Felicity, who was smiling at him. And Grace and Roz were chatting together.

  The boat started moving again to head back to the house. Roz glanced over at us and her eyes grew big. “Wow, Luna, you’re burned to a crisp!”

  Grace made a face. “That’s got to hurt.”

  Luna said sadly, “Not yet, but I’m sure it will soon.”

  “I have aloe vera back at the house,” said Grace.

  “Good. I’m going to slather it all over myself,” said Luna glumly. “I can’t believe I forgot to put sunscreen on. But now that it’s fall and with the air as cool as it was, I guess I just didn’t think about it.”

  “Aloe vera, for sure. And maybe take an ibuprofen, too,” said Roz, wincing. Then she asked, “So what’s the plan for the rest of the day?”

  Grace said, “I wanted to make sure I didn’t overschedule everybody, so I built in some downtime this afternoon. When we get back, everybody can take a nap, or play ping pong or pool, take a swim in the pool, or go for a walk. There’s an amazing trail that the neighborhood association keeps up, if anyone is looking for exercise. Then I thought we’d have supper on the screen porch.”

  I’d glimpsed the screen porch earlier and it definitely wasn’t a modest or casual space. It was more like a tremendous room with a carpet, a television, a stone fireplace, fancy ceiling fans, what appeared to be stained mahogany floors, and wooden chairs and sofas with cushy linen pillows and cushions.

  I said, “I can help you put supper together, Grace.”

  She gave me a smile. “Thanks for that. I really appreciate the offer, but I’m having it catered and there’s a team to serve it and to clean up.”

  Luna shook her head. “You’ve put a lot of time and thought into this weekend. And . . . money.”

  Grace said, “It’s really nothing—I’ve really looked forward to having a party
like this. It’s been sort of a stressful year and this is one way for me to see friends, get to make some new friends, and bless my new house. I’m just delighted to have everybody here.”

  When we got back to the house, everyone went their separate ways. Luna followed Grace in to get some aloe vera and have a nap. Felicity declared she needed to stretch her legs a little and Kyle quickly said he’d join her for a walk on the trail that Grace had pointed out. Roz said she’d swim some laps in the pool. And I climbed into the hammock with my book in a section of Grace’s wooded yard facing the lake. I gave a deep, happy sigh. The hammock was almost like being in a bed—it actually had a thin mattress covering it and a soft pillow. Even though I’d fallen asleep on the boat, this was the point where I felt completely relaxed. I could hear the water lapping gently against the dock, birds singing as they visited the nearby bird feeders. And the trees above me provided shade from the bright sunshine.

  The backyard itself was amazing, aside from the lake. It had been landscaped with mature bushes providing nooks with benches and comfortable chairs to relax in. It all lent a beautiful, private air to the space.

  I started reading And Then There Were None again, marveling over the way Agatha Christie had created such a mysterious atmosphere at the isolated island party in the story. A few pages in, I heard voices approaching. They settled in one of the garden nooks nearby and I grimaced. It looked like I was going to be eavesdropping again. The voices, which I recognized as Scott’s and Kelly’s, were already engaged in an argument, so I didn’t want to make myself known . . . they’d likely already be embarrassed.

  “Slow down with the drinking,” said Kelly in a furious voice. “It’s like you’re on a mission to get sloppy drunk. I don’t understand—you’re not always like this.”

  “Maybe I just need a break,” snapped Scott in a slurred voice. “Don’t you ever take a break?”

  “Not like this. You’re starting to humiliate yourself.”

  Scott drawled, “Funny, I don’t feel humiliated.”

  “Well, you should. You’ve been rude to everybody. What you should be doing right now is going off to take a nap. Take a break from the booze. Then you can start up again at dinner if you want to. But if you keep hitting the bottle as hard as you have been, you’re going to make a total fool of yourself.”

  Scott said in a sarcastic tone, “I do appreciate your concern, Kelly. But I’m totally fine. Look, I’ve been under a ton of stress lately. Is it so bad that I’m taking the chance to unwind at an absolutely gorgeous lake house in the mountains? Nobody else seems as uptight about my drinking as you are. Unless it’s one of those librarians. That Ann has been shooting me some looks.”

  “She’s not the only one,” hissed Kelly. “I bet there’s one person who wants you to stop drinking even more. Felicity. You need to just back off.”

  “I haven’t done anything. I’m just being friendly. Besides, I have something I need to talk to her about. These are people we haven’t seen in ages—it’s good to just catch up with them.”

  Kelly said, “I think there’s more going on here than just catching up.”

  I heard sound of sticks and leaves underfoot as Kelly left. “Oh, come on, Kelly. Don’t be like that,” called Scott after her. Then he gave a dramatic sigh and followed her.

  Chapter Four

  After that, it was blessedly quiet. I had gotten my fill of quarreling guests and happily delved back into the wonderful, deadly, world of Agatha Christie until it was time to get ready for dinner.

  Since dinner had sounded like a pretty fancy affair, I put on my black dress and some simple jewelry and headed back downstairs to join the others. I was relieved to hear the sound of laughter when I walked out on the porch. Apparently, everyone had lightened up and was prepared to be on their best behavior for the dinner that Grace had clearly put some effort into planning. Even Scott appeared to be behaving himself.

  The porch was lit up with candles as the sun set and the table was laden with food—side dishes of every type imaginable. There were servers hovering in the wings, waiting for us all to settle before the main course was brought out. We all sat down where our place cards told us to go and Grace started us off with a toast. “To friendship,” she said with a warm smile to everyone as we all took a sip of our champagne.

  Grace added, “We have a variety of food here, hopefully something for everyone. For the meat lovers, the main course is a London broil with herb butter. For the vegetarians among us, there are grilled bruschetta portobello mushrooms and eggplant cannelloni. There should be enough of everything for the London broil folks to have both.”

  I said genuinely, “Grace, this is fantastic. Thanks so much.”

  She waved her hand, dismissing my compliment with a smile. “It’s my pleasure. I was so looking forward to this and had fun figuring out the menu.”

  The servers quickly came around, dipping in front of us as they proffered various dishes for us to help ourselves from. The food was melt-in-your-mouth good and the view was just as fabulous as the sun set behind the mountains, creating a color palette that rivaled the changing leaves and reflected pinks and purples on the still water of the lake.

  Luna, next to me, gave a contented sigh. “I could get used to this.”

  I grinned at her. “We might have chosen the wrong profession if we’re aspiring to this lifestyle.”

  “Totally,” said Luna with a snort. “It’s just a good thing I like books more than I like . . . all this.” She gave a wave of her hand to encompass everything around her.

  Felicity was on my other side and struck up a polite conversation with me about the library.

  “I hate to admit it, but I haven’t been much of a reader.” She grimaced. “I feel like it makes me sound stupid to say it. But in the last few years, whenever I’ve tried to pick up a novel, I just couldn’t focus on it. I kept feeling like there was something else I needed to be doing. I’d end up reading the same paragraph over and over again before I just totally gave up and went back to my spreadsheets.”

  I said, “Were you only trying to read fiction, then?” She nodded her head and I added, “You might find it easier to read nonfiction, instead. There are a lot that are very popular with our readers who are big in business that you might enjoy. Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg is one that a lot of businesswomen have enjoyed.”

  Felicity brightened at this. “I didn’t even think about that. The people I’ve spoken with, whenever they recommend a book, they’re always talking about fiction bestsellers.”

  “Nonfiction might be a better match for you right now,” I said. “I could email you some recommendations, if you’d like.”

  She immediately fished out her phone and sent me her contact information via text.

  I said, “We also have a book club at the library that focuses a lot on nonfiction.”

  “Could you send me the info on that, too?” asked Felicity.

  Roz grinned down the table. “I hear Ann talking about work. Remember, we’re supposed to be taking a break here.”

  Kelly snorted. “As if you take many breaks, yourself, Roz. You know you love your job just as much as Ann does.”

  “And me!” piped up Luna, raising a hand.

  “What is it that you do, Roz?” I asked. I felt like she or Luna had told me at some point but I couldn’t remember.

  “I’m a nurse,” said Roz. “And Kelly’s right—I love it. The patients are usually great and I like that I’m helping people.”

  Kelly said, “What I couldn’t handle about your job—well, actually, there are plenty of things I couldn’t handle—is the shift you work. I’d never be able to function. And here you are during normal hours and you seem perfectly fine.”

  “I’ve just gotten used to it.” She glanced around and filled everyone in. “It’s a 3 a.m. to 3 p.m. shift, but it’s only for three days in a row and then I get four days off. It’s easier to adjust to it that way.”

  Everyone continued with pleasant
conversation and eating until finally we’d all reached a stopping point.

  Luna said, “That was so good, but if I keep eating, someone is going to have to roll me away from the table.”

  Grace said, “Is anyone up for a swim? It might be a good way to work off some of the food we just ate. And I like to have a little exercise in the evenings.”

  “Won’t it be too chilly to swim?” asked Kyle, raising an eyebrow.

  “The pool is actually indoors,” said Grace. “And we can bring our drinks with us. It should be really relaxing.”

  Everyone agreed and went up to change clothes. Fifteen minutes later, we were all gathered around the pool. The pool room was just as elegant as the screen porch had been. One of the walls was stone, the ceiling and other three walls were glass so, as you swam, you could look up at the moon and stars or across to the mountains and lake. There was a cabinet full of soft, thick towels and white robes in the corner of the large room. And there was a full bar with champagne bottles in ice waiting for us.

  Luna leaned over and said to me, “I don’t know about you, but I’m way too full to exercise right now.”

  “I’m the same way. I couldn’t seem to stop filling my plate,” I said wryly. “Do you want to exercise first thing tomorrow, instead? That’s usually a better time for me, anyway.”

  Luna nodded. “Before everyone gets up? Maybe six or six-thirty?”

  Grace overheard what we were saying and nodded. “The pool temperature is always set really warm, too, so it won’t be a shock to your system going in that early. Or, if it is, you can always warm up over there.” She pointed to a hot tub, which I hadn’t even noticed when I came in.

  Luna grinned. “I may not be able to exercise now, but sitting in a hot tub sounds right up my alley.”

  “Mine, too,” chimed in Roz and the three of us made our way over to the large tub. Grace hit a couple of buttons and the hot tub’s lights came on and the water bubbled up.

  “Once again,” breathed Luna, “I could get used to this.”