"Montague, Art - Suburban Renewal" - читать интересную книгу автора (Montague Arthur)

Harv found that, beyond putting out the invitations, he didn't have to do much. The women brought food, perhaps out of deference to his loss; men brought booze. Harv spent most of his time sitting on a wrought iron chair beside the wrought iron table. They had been Ethel's wish for the patio and Harv had decided that the least he could do was honor that wish. After all, she hadn't been all bad.

Harv's seat was a good vantage point. From it he could watch Peter Muir by the beer keg putting some moves on Jane Coltrane. He wasn't shocked, not even surprised. Harve had seen them together several evenings at O'Malley's, where these days he was dropping in for a few brews after work.

Earlier Harv had had a moment with Carl, Jane's husband.

"It's a beautiful pool, Harv. It must have set you back a bundle," Carl said.

"Just the initial outlay. I can write off most of it through the business. You know, sales promotion, that sort of thing. It has an extra thick base. It'll still be here after the house is long gone. Call it a hidden feature. An earthquake wouldn't budge it."
"I can see advantage in that," Carl replied. "Never any chance of it leaking, that's for sure."

"Right you are, Carl. Say, if you ever want to talk seriously about a pool like this, give me a call."

Carl looked thoughtful for a moment. His eyes strayed to Jane, now well clutched, swaying against Pete. He said, "I may, Harv. Yessir, I may just do that. Maybe next week sometime." With that Carl had moved off into the growing crowd.

Of course, Nan and Larry Jeffers were there. Nan, it turned out, was a good friend of Annie Muir. "Small world," Harv commented when Nan mentioned this.

"Annie's told me you build the best custom pools in upstate New York but I wouldn't have believed it until I saw this. It's too bad Ethel isn't here to enjoy it."

"Yes," agreed Harv, "but it reflects her planning totally, and in some sense I'm certain she's here."

"Oh, I thought she hated barbecues?"

"She does, but I hate wrought iron furniture. We compromised."

"A first for her, I'm sure," laughed Nan. "You know, Harv, a pool in our yard down the street wouldn't be a bad idea. It'd be great for the kids, and for me a kind of. . . monument to the joys of family."

"They can be that for all of us, Nan. Should I give Larry a call?"

"Heavens, no, Harv. Let's surprise him." They laughed together.

The day's highlight for Harv was Annie's presence. "I brought something," she said. "For you, not for the masses." He lifted the cloth from the plate, oatmeal raisin cookies. "I baked them this morning. Peter even ate one and told me they were to die for. I don't what's gotten into him lately."

Harv looked from the cookies to Annie's eyes, still deep, still understanding, but maybe twinkling, and still a comfort. "I'm glad he liked them. But he's wrong. They aren't to die for, they're to live for."

She smiled then. "Peter has some buddies coming in Monday night for the pre-season game. Would you like to meet at the bingo hall? It's soon, I know. After Ethel, I mean. But you should try to get out a little."

"You may be right. Yes. Yes, Annie, I'd like that."
Later in the afternoon he saw her in the pool. She was ignoring Peter, who had progressed to nuzzling Jane Coltrane. Annie was slim, all of her as porcelain pale and smooth as her face. And light; he watched her splashing about with some of the smaller children, obviously having as much fun as they were. Anyone who could do that could live forever.

When she got out of the pool, she grabbed a towel and came over to sit beside him. "I love this pool," she said. "I'm going to tell Peter I want one exactly like it."

"No need, you can use this one any time. And I think there'll soon be so many in town you can have your pick."


From crime and horror to satire and romance, Canadian ART MONTAGUE's writings reveal his eclectic interests and diverse writing styles. Art's fiction has been published by Peridot Books, Plots With Guns, and The Harrow; he has an upcoming story in the October 2000 issue of LoveWords.

Copyright (c) 2000 Art Montague