CHAPTER 9
Rob wasn’t a churchgoer. A registry office wedding was good enough for him, he said. Slightly disappointed, Natalie fell in with his wishes. He tried his luck with her several times again but on that point she was adamant. In other ways, she tried to please him, agreeing with him without much argument. Truth to tell, she had nothing against his suggestions, except for that one.
Time passed swiftly. Like water running down a drain, it seemed to go faster and faster as less and less was left of it. A bit like life itself, she considered. There seemed so much to see to, so much to do. She pooled her small savings with Rob’s and placed a deposit on a house, planning to pay off the mortgage over twenty five years. She remembered well going to look for house details during her morning coffee break one day. Even that was done in a rush. She took Brenda on a Saturday shopping expedition, buying going away clothes, and something just a bit special for the honeymoon, which was to be two weeks in Majorca, a favourite place of Rob’s.
’What about this?’ asked Brenda, holding up something so sheer it was transparent for all practical purposes.
Natalie blushed furiously, not for the first time that day. ’Oh, I couldn’t, Brenda. That’s really a bit too much. I wouldn’t feel comfortable.’
’That’s not the idea, Natalie. You’re supposed to make him uncomfortable. This is the sort of thing that men like. Believe me, I know. Well, if you won’t, then you won’t. How about this then?’
Natalie blushed again. ’It’s so small, I might as well not wear anything as wear that,’ she said.
’Well, it is your honeymoon you’re talking about. You’re not supposed to wear a lot, you know. Half the time you won’t be wearing anything, at least half. Go on, give him a thrill.’
’Do you really think so?’
’If you can’t take the advice of your bridesmaid, there’s no point in asking me to give it. Go on, put it in the basket.’
It was with some reluctance that Natalie bought the goods Brenda had recommended. She wasn’t used to this sort of thing at all. At least, the items were only brief and sheer. They didn’t look at all tarty. At least, she hoped they didn’t. She sighed. Maybe that’s the way Rob liked it anyway. She tried on each item in turn when in the privacy of her home and inspected herself gravely in the mirror. The result shocked her more than a little. Considering how he was so easily worked up normally, she wondered how he would react to this. Smiling, she realised that she would very soon find out, only a week to go.
The following day, Natalie realised that she had lost the window measurements for curtains in the new house. She had the material and intended to make the curtains herself but could do nothing without the measurements. There was nothing for it but to go there and measure up again. She looked at the clock. Yes, there was plenty of time before Rob came to pick her up. She hunted for a tape measure, pencil and paper and walked briskly to the house she and Rob would share. To her surprise, Rob’s car was in the drive. Well, that was all right. It would even save a bit of time. There would be no need for him to call on her, as she was there already. It would be a surprise for him. She used her key and let herself in.
’Rob?’ she called. ’Are you there, Rob.’
No answer came. She moved into the kitchen. No-one. The living room was as thinly inhabited. She looked out of the windows. He wasn’t in the garden either. She moved upstairs and glanced into the small box room which he had fitted up as a temporary workshop. It was empty. She walked to the main bedroom and went very still. Her face tensed and paled. Rob was there all right. He was in bed, obviously undressed and apparently fast asleep, with only a sheet to cover him to the waist. His arm was wrapped around an equally obviously unclothed and sleeping Brenda. Clothing lay scattered on the floor, items of male apparel mixed at random with more feminine lace, lacier and even more transparent than those Brenda had tried to offer to Natalie earlier. The sight disgusted and horrified her. She lifted her arms and reached out with her hands to wake them up, then changed her mind, not quite understanding just why she did so. As in a trance she dragged her suddenly weary feet downstairs to the living room, where she took the pencil she was carrying, and scribbled a short note, leaving it in a conspicuous position, where Rob couldn’t help but see it, then walked away without a backward glance.
’A week before our wedding,’ she cried to herself. ’How could you, Rob? How could you do it? I trusted you. How could you do it?’
Forty eight hours later, Natalie left for another town far away, finding work in a large department store. She was unknown there and the anonymity gave consolation of a sort.