Now, ten minutes to start, Augie was worried for different reasons. She had a feeling Robin would be there. She had forgotten to ask Leah outright, but she knew Robin and Miriam were friends. It would be the first time she’d seen Robin since New York.
She was also stressed about seeing Mrs. Crawley, though she was trying to feel more apathetic than afraid.
Augie still braced herself as the women began to arrive, each wearing a dress fit for Easter brunch. First, there was Mrs. Anderson, then Schmidt, Fravel, and Cline. Augie always found the women worse as a group. Even if they were fine individually, together, there was an air of competition, a passive-aggressive politeness. It wasmost obvious at the women’s golf or tennis tournaments—everyone silently undercutting one another. At least the men didn’t hide their outbursts and insults. It was almost a relief when people were openly volatile.
Then suddenly, there was Mrs. Crawley, drawing everyone’s attention as she entered the room. She looked stunning in a light blue dress, nude heels, natural yet refined makeup. Augie fingered her bowtie.
“Thank you,” Mrs. Crawley said to the new girl as she took a Bellini from her tray, tucking her straw clutch under her arm. She surveyed the room, and Augie felt her pause as she saw her—betraying the briefest blip of recognition and scorn—before turning to Miriam and Mrs. Harrison. She gave them each light hugs, congratulating Miriam.
Augie kept her head down as she refilled drinks and reminded Mrs. Harrison of the timeline. But as the shower continued and women shuffled, she became overly aware of Mrs. Crawley. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched her every move. It didn’t help that Mrs. Crawley was seated in her section, which meant Augie would be serving her. So be it. At least they were on a more equal field at the Club. This wasn’t the cabin. The Club belonged to them both.
Nonetheless, as lunch service started, Augie tensed each time she approached her table.
She couldn’t help but notice every detail about Mrs. Crawley: how she barely ate, how she kept touching her pendant necklace, how she smelled of patchouli and Riesling. She seemed more talkative than usual, too, discussing some design project, the boys’ Spanish classes, Hilton Head. She was acting strangely outgoing and chatty, her words sliding into one another like a sentence with no spaces.
The only time she stopped speaking was when Mrs. Cline complimented her necklace. Mrs. Crawley froze, mid-sentence, as Mrs. Cline leaned down to study the pendant, asking if it was amber.
“Is it from the Baltics? Latvia? Poland?” Mrs. Cline asked, using it as an excuse to dive into her own story about purchasing gemstones during her Viking Baltic cruise. Mrs. Crawley held the stone firmly between her thumb and forefinger, silent. Everyone eyed one another awkwardly until, finally, Mrs. Crawley came to and said, “Yes, amber, from Latvia. Yes. It was a gift. From an ex.” She laughed loudly, hiccupped—and Augie was sure then: She was drunk.
Of course she had the freedom to get drunk on a random Tuesday afternoon, of course she had endless men buying her jewelry, of course she’d been to Latvia—a place Augie could not place. She didn’t even know if it was a city or a country.
Augie focused on clearing the room from then on, eager to stay out of Mrs. Crawley’s sight. She knew it was a mean thought, but she hoped Mrs. Crawley would make a fool of herself. She also wondered if she always drank this much and Augie simply hadn’t noticed before, or if it was something about today. As always, she wondered what Chat thought.
“Augie, my girl!” Robin appeared out of nowhere, arms outstretched despite balancing a silver gift bag.
“Robin!” Augie fixed her face.
“I was hoping I’d catch you! I’ve missed you.” Robin pulled Augie into a hug. Augie typically made sure not to be overly friendly with members while working, but Robin didn’t play by the rules. Augie wouldn’t get in trouble, either. Robin was more or less royalty.
“I missed you, too.” Augie realized it was true. Robin had always been so supportive of her, so enthused that, unlike Leah, she wanted to move out of state.
Miriam and Mrs. Harrison approached.
“I’m so sorry I’m late.” They all hugged, and Augie noticed everyone watching. Robin was a true force: She had the same long, lean body as Leah, same inviting smile, and even more radiating confidence. Plus, everyone knew she was brilliant, successful. In a twisted way, their family’s tragedy also gave her power. People couldn’t imagine her grief. They respected her strength. The fact that she had maintained Lyle’s innocence all this time, yet never blamed anyone else, put her on an even higher pedestal. She was a class act.
“I wrapped a meeting at the Carlson Towers, and I raced here,” Robin explained to Miriam. “I’m thrilled to see you. Look at you!”
Augie went to the kitchen. Robin always drank spiked Arnold Palmers, and she rushed to make one. Robin was busy talking when she returned, but as Augie handed her the drink, she focused on Augie once more.
“I really cannot believe I’m just seeing you now, here, Aug.” Robin grabbed her hand. “I’m sorry the agency turned out to be a bust. Who could have predicted that merger? I know Julia and Micah were shocked. I’m still so proud of you. I know something better will come along.”
“Yeah, yes. I was over the other day. The pool—it’s freezing.”
“Polar plunge! And can you believe it? Leah! Officially at the Hotel Harrison.” She clucked her tongue. “It is good experience, but, I really do wish she’d explore.”
Despite everything, Augie felt a tinge of solidarity.
“We’ll see how it goes. We have to catch up properly. Come over this week. We’ll order Thai, like old times.”
“Robin,” Mrs. Cline interrupted. “Can I steal you for a moment? I wanted to talk to you about the South Loop fundraiser, if you have time.”
“I’ll see you this week, okay, Augie? Don’t work too hard.”
As Robin backed away and Augie resumed cleaning, she was unsure how to feel. Anytime she talked to Robin at the Club, she felt both proud and pitiful.
“Augie,” she heard then. She couldn’t place the voice at first, but as she looked around, she stopped. There in the corner, Mrs. Crawley was waving her over.
“Can you come here for a moment, please?” She smiled in a straight line.
