Sunset in St. Tropez Read Free Page A

know it. You"re even afraid to drive in Paris.”
    “I"m not afraid of anything in France, except your mother.” She rolled her eyes, and turned her attention to Robert.
    He always enjoyed talking to her. He had a passion for classical ballet, as did Anne, and good theater. And he and Pascale talked about ballet sometimes for hours. He also enjoyed practicing his rusty French on her, which pleased Pascale immensely.
    The group chatted amiably till dinnertime, drinking champagne, and talking and laughing. John conceded finally that he was pleased to have taken the bus, to have been spared the price of a cab, and everyone teased him about it.
    He was famous in their midst for his distaste for spending money, and they loved to tease him about it. He was the butt of endless jokes, and loved them all.
    Eric and Anne talked about the skiing in Sugarbush, and Diana chimed in that she was dying to go back to Aspen.
    Pascale and Robert chatted about the opening of the ballet. And Diana and John talked about the state of the economy, the stock market, and some of the Morrisons" investments. John was an investment banker, and he loved talking business with anyone who'd indulge him. The interests of the group had always meshed well, and they moved easily from serious subjects to light ones. And as Diana told them they were ready to sit down to dinner in the dining room, Anne mentioned to Eric that her elder son and daughter-in-law were having another baby. It would be their sixth grandchild.
    “At least I will never be traumatized by having someone call me Grandma,” Pascale said lightly, but they all knew that to Pascale there was more sorrow to it than her casual comment suggested. They all remembered the half-dozen years when she had reported to all of them regularly about her intensive treatments, the medicines she took, the shots John had to give her several times a day, and her ongoing failure to get pregnant. The group had been unfailingly supportive of them, to no avail. It had been a terrible time for them, and one that they all had feared would ultimately cost them their marriage, but fortunately, it hadn't.
    The real tragedy for Pascale had come when John absolutely refused to adopt a baby. For Pascale, it was the final sentence meted out to her that she would never have a child, which, at the time at least, had been all she wanted. In recent years, she claimed that she no longer thought about it. But she looked wistful still sometimes when the others talked about their children. Eric had even tried talking to John, to convince him to adopt, but he had been intransigent about it. John was nothing if not stubborn, and no matter how much it meant to Pascale, he refused to consider it as an option for them. He did not want to bring up, support, or attempt to love someone else's baby. He was very clear about the fact that he felt he couldn't, even for her sake. And the others in the group had been deeply sorry for them.
    But there was no talk of it now as they moved to the elegantly set table. Diana set the prettiest tables of them all, and did the most exotic flower arrangements. Tonight she had mixed birds-of-paradise with cymbidium orchids, and there were little silver bells spread all over the table, handsome silver candlesticks with tall white candles in them, and the embroidered tablecloth she'd used had been her mother's and was spectacular. The table looked superb.
    “I don't know how you do it,” Anne said admiringly, taking in the magic Diana had created, as she stood by looking as elegant as her table in a white satin gown that was the same color as her hair and showed off her youthful figure.
    She was in almost as good shape as Pascale, though not quite, since Pascale danced for six hours every day, with her students. Anne hadn't been as blessed as either of the other two women. She was attractive, but she was tall, and bigger boned than either of the other two, and now and then she complained that they made her