Jodie smiled happily as she placed the tray of almond cantuccini biscuits, fresh from the oven, alongside the madeleine cakes already cooling on the rack. Annette had rung earlier and asked if she could come over for coffee – if she wasn’t too busy?
‘I’m having a morning in the kitchen,’ Jodie had said. ‘I thought I’d have a go at making some madeleines – Ben seems rather fond of them.’
She hadn’t added that baking had currently become her favourite occupation as a means of passing the time. ‘You can test them for me.’
‘See you about eleven then,’ Annette said.
While the biscuits were cooling Jodie tidied the kitchen – a tidy cook she was not – and set the dishwasher. Annette was her mother-in-law, after all. She’d hate her to see the kitchen in its current state.
When Annette arrived twenty minutes later, Jodie took her straight through to the small veranda where she’d set up the coffee.
‘Ben is working, I’m afraid,’ she said, handing Annette a cup. ‘So he won’t be joining us.’
‘I’ve come to see you rather than Ben,’ Annette said. ‘I’m worried about you.’
Jodie looked at her, surprised. ‘Why?’
‘I know what my son is like when he is working on a book. Everything else – and everyone – gets shut out.’
‘The edits will soon be finished,’ Jodie said. ‘And Ben has promised to take a break before he starts his next book.’
She held out a plate of madeleines. Had Annette guessed how difficult she was finding it adapting to this new life of hers, without a definite role in it for herself?
‘Good,’ Annette said. ‘I would hate to think you were unhappy and he was neglecting you. Days can go very slowly when you have nothing much to do.’
‘I’m having a French lesson every week with Madame Colbert and…’ Jodie hesitated. ‘I haven’t mentioned it to Ben yet but I’m thinking of trying to do some freelance PR work over the internet. I know I have to do something for me. But first I’m looking forward to spending more time with Ben in the next couple of weeks.’
‘You have to find your own interests here and have a life independent of Ben,’ Annette said. ‘For when he is away in his other world.’ Annette gave Jodie a searching look. ‘Do not make the same mistake I made in my marriage.’ She shrugged when Jodie looked at her questioningly.
‘Different times but the little-woman syndrome in marriage still exists here and is difficult to break. Although I hope I brought Ben up believing in equality,’ Annette said.
‘You sound like Tina – she’s afraid I’m going to turn into a Stepford wife,’ Jodie said, laughing. ‘Which I have no intention of doing.’
Annette took a bite of madeleine and ate it thoughtfully.
‘These are good, well done. It is a shame you did not go to London in the end.’
‘I left it too late,’ Jodie said, shrugging. ‘Besides, my flatmate has rented my old room.’
‘Next time, you do not dither. Now, there was another reason I came.’ Annette hesitated before saying, ‘I want to talk to you about my friend Thierry – you like him?’
‘Yes. He seems nice,’ Jodie said, wondering where the conversation was headed now.
Annette beamed. ‘He is, but I know Ben is not happy about our friendship. I need you to put in a good word for him whenever you can. I am too old for conflict in my life. My son and my friends have to get on. And Thierry and I have been friends forever. Which, of course, is a big part of the problem,’ she added under her breath.
Jodie looked at Annette. It sounded as though Thierry was more than a friend. ‘I’d noticed Ben is very abrasive whenever he sees Thierry or even when his name is mentioned.’
‘I have to tell you there is a reason Ben doesn’t like Thierry,’ Annette said quietly, looking at Jodie and taking a deep breath. ‘It’s because he knows I was his “cinq à sept” secret for a long time, when I was married to André.’
Jodie looked at her, puzzled. ‘What on earth is that? I’ve never heard the expression before.’
‘It’s the traditional time lovers in France meet secretly – between five and seven o’clock in the evening, hence “cinq à sept”.’ Annette looked at Jodie silently, waiting for her reaction.
Jodie stared at her in astonishment, reeling from the revelation Annette had just made and not knowing how to respond. No wonder Ben was somewhat anti-Thierry.
‘Is it a bit like the modern-day “friends with benefits” that became fashionable after the film?’ she said finally.
‘I don’t know about that,’ Annette said, shrugging. ‘It’s a French thing. It doesn’t happen so much now – at least I don’t think it does. People are so busy, but maybe it’s even more secret. Romantic trysts are a bit frowned upon these days. Since a certain president got caught out.’ Looking at Jodie’s shocked face, she added, ‘It does sound far seedier than it was in reality. At the time, thirty years ago, it was accepted. You could be in a loving relationship with your partner and be “emotionally fidèle” but still enjoy sex without any commitment in a cinq à sept relationship.’ Annette shook her head sadly. ‘The problem comes when you’re not in a loving relationship with your partner and love enters the equation of those two hours.’
‘But if it happened all those years ago, how does Ben know about it? He must have been very young at the time?’ Jodie struggled to get her head round Annette having secret liaisons with Thierry while she was still married to Ben’s father.
‘André found out about Thierry and me and one day, some years ago, when he was being particularly spiteful, he told Ben,’ Annette said. ‘Of course, he didn’t bother to mention that he himself had had several of these arrangements during our marriage. Or that Thierry comforting me, when he found me in floods of tears after I discovered for about the sixth time that André was unfaithful, was how it all began between us.’
‘Ben did say they had a major falling out. Was that what it was about?’
Annette nodded. ‘Yes. To this day I’ve never told Ben that André had several cinq à sept trysts during our marriage. I have no intention of doing so either. And I’d like you to promise me you won’t tell him.’
‘Not my secret to tell,’ Jodie said. ‘But it might change his view of Thierry if he knew the truth.’
‘Maybe one day I’ll tell him. He’s accused Thierry to his face of being after all he can get. He’s not, but will Ben listen?’ Annette gave a deep sigh. ‘Sometimes his imagination… it goes into overdrive in real life. I’m rather hoping you’ll put in a good word for Thierry and me.’
‘I’m not sure he’ll listen to me either, but I’ll certainly try,’ Jodie said.
‘Thank you. Now, let us forget our men and talk about something else.’
Half an hour later, as Annette stood up to leave, having refused an offer to stay for lunch, Ben came onto the veranda.
‘Mama. I thought I heard your voice. How are you?’ he asked, kissing his mother on both cheeks.
‘Ça va. I’ve been keeping your wife, whom you’ve been neglecting for the last few weeks, company.’
‘Unavoidable,’ Ben said, turning to Jodie and smiling. ‘But it is finished. The final manuscript has been sent on its way to my editor. I’ve awarded myself a fortnight off before I start the next book. So have you organised lunch?’
Jodie shook her head. ‘No. I was…’
‘In that case we’ll walk down and eat in the village,’ Ben interrupted. ‘Celebrate writing The End. Mama, you will join us?’
Annette shook her head. ‘You two go alone. I have things to do before I see Thierry this evening.’ A defiant look in Ben’s direction and then, with a flurry of cheek kisses, she was gone.
To Jodie’s surprise, when they reached the village, Ben strolled past the small restaurant on the square where they normally ate and made for the large hotel tucked away down a side street.
‘I thought we’d celebrate in style,’ he said, ushering her up the small flight of curved steps into the hotel’s foyer.
The restaurant was busy but not overly crowded and Jodie and Ben were shown to a table in the orangery overlooking the rear garden with its palm trees and lake. Ducks waddled about near the shoreline, before upending themselves in the water with only their wagging tail feathers visible as they busily searched for food. Further out, two swans were gliding gracefully around, ignoring the shoreline commotion.
Jodie sighed happily, looking at the view. Once they’d ordered their meal and the celebratory champagne Ben insisted on had been opened and two glasses poured, she raised her glass in a toast.
‘Here’s to your book. I’m so looking forward to reading it.’ Smiling at each other, they clinked glasses.
‘I’m looking forward to two weeks of freedom,’ Ben said. ‘To spending the time with you. We must make a list of the things we want to do together before I start again.’
‘A fortnight won’t be long enough for everything,’ Jodie teased. ‘But it’s a start.’ She glanced at Ben. ‘Nicola has suggested that an hour’s French conversation with you every day would really help to improve my French. I haven’t liked to suggest it before, but maybe over breakfast?’
‘Good idea,’ Ben said. ‘We’ll start tomorrow morning. We need to think about finding a house too.’
‘Is Grumpy Villager the only estate agent here?’ Jodie said.
‘There’s another branch of the same firm in the next town,’ Ben said. ‘But Herve isn’t that bad once he gets to know you. I went to school with him so I’m used to him.’
‘Well, I’ll let you deal with him then,’ Jodie said. ‘I’m not sure I’d manage to speak to him without being really rude. Ben?’ She hesitated but at that moment the waiter arrived with their meal – a large dish of a mouthwatering daube to share between them, some early asparagus and creamed potatoes – and the moment was lost.
Several minutes passed while they both tucked into the delicious food before Jodie looked across at Ben.
‘There is something I need to tell you. I’m thinking about finding some work to do while you’re busy writing. I miss the buzz of having lots to do. I’ve still got contacts in PR so I thought I’d see if I could find some freelance work via the internet.’
Ben looked at her. ‘You couldn’t wait to get off the treadmill when we got married. You were stressed out. I wouldn’t want you to get like that again.’
Jodie shook her head. ‘Don’t worry – neither do I. I’ll pick and choose my clients. Three or four at the most. I just need something to do while you’re busy writing.’
Ben reached out for her hand across the table. ‘Leave it for the next week or so. Let’s enjoy our time together. I was planning to take you down to the Riviera for a few days. I’ll show you around the local sights up here too, introduce you to a few more people. We’ll do some serious house-hunting as well. Who knows, you might get so involved and busy you won’t have time to think about extra work.’
‘OK.’ Jodie smiled at him. She’d put her freelance ideas on hold while they spent some precious time together. Kickstarting her working life might have to wait another couple of weeks, but whatever Ben said, it was something she was determined to do, for her own sake.