"What have you been doing since you got here?"
Astrid hesitated for a moment. She didn't think it would be a good idea to tell Isabel that she'd spent most of the week planning her upcoming Hong Kong wedding, and yesterday, Charlie had taken her to see the breathtaking new house he had built for them in Shek O. "Not much really, I've just been decompressing. It's good to be away from Singapore, you know?"
"Yes, the past few weeks must have been very hard on you. I'm so sorry about your grandmother's passing. She was a great lady, from everything I know."
"Thank you."
"As I told you in my note, I was very close to my Ah Ma. In fact, she used to bring me here for afternoon tea once a month. So this place holds many memories for me."
"My grandmother used to take me to afternoon tea as well. One of my earliest memories, I think, is of having tea with her at the Raffles in Singapore. But soon after that, she stopped going out."
"So she became a recluse?" Isabel asked.
"Yes, and no. She didn't go out much, but that's because she felt that the standards had slipped everywhere. She had very exacting standards, and she didn't much care for restaurant food. So she only went to friends' houses-the ones that she knew had good chefs-or she entertained at home. She liked to have people over all the time, and she was very social up until the end of her life."
"Sounds like quite a character. All the women of her generation, like my grandmother, were characters. My grandmother was known as the hat lady. She had the most incredible collection of hats, and she never left the house without one."
The waitress came over and took their orders. After Astrid ordered the cream of asparagus soup, Isabel looked across the table at her with an almost embarrassed look. "You know, I have to confess I've been so nervous all morning about this lunch. I am still so mortified over what I did when I was in Singapore."
"It's fine, really. I'm just happy to see you so well again."
"Those women whom I scalded. Was one of them a nun or something? Is she okay? I have such a strange memory of that day. Because I remember everything, you know, but I just had no control over my actions."
"A nun?" Astrid didn't know what she was referring to.
"I remember the look on her face when I threw that soup. Her eyes got so huge, and she had Tammy Faye levels of mascara on. She was wearing a nun's habit."
"Oh! You're talking about the Dowager Sultana of Perawak-she was wearing a hijab. She was fine, the soup hardly touched her. Don't worry, it was probably the most thrilling thing that's happened to her in decades."
"Well, I appreciate your understanding, and I really must thank you for taking such good care of my daughters during that difficult time."
"Don't mention it. Chloe and Delphine are lovely girls."
Isabel paused for a moment and looked out the window at the view of the hillside park. It was apparent to Astrid that she was going through a spectrum of emotions. "Soon, you will be their stepmother. You'll be spending much more time with them, and I'm … I'm actually glad they will have you in their lives. Not just their crazy mother."
Astrid reached out and put her hand over Isabel's. "Don't say that. You've done such a great job raising them. You're their mother, and I'm not going to try to be any sort of substitute mother. I only hope that in time they will come to see me as a friend."
Isabel smiled. "Astrid, I'm so glad we are having lunch together. I feel like I finally know who you are now."
-
After lunch, as the two of them stood at the entrance of the Helena May on Garden Road bidding farewell to each other, Isabel asked, "What are you going to do now? Some shopping in Central? Can my driver drop you off anywhere?"
"Well, I'm leaving for Singapore in a few hours, but I'm going to meet with Charlie first. I think he's at the house, waiting for me to make some decisions about the decor."
"The new house in Shek O? I'd love to see it sometime. After all, Chloe and Delphine are going to be spending half their lives there."
"Of course. Actually, if you're free, why don't you come with me right now?"
"Oh … well … I wouldn't want to intrude … " Isabel said hesitantly.
"No, no, I'm sure it will be fine. Let me just text Charlie."
Astrid quickly shot off a text:
ASTRID LEONG: Hey! Just finishing up with Isabel. It went GREAT.
CHARLIE WU: I'm so glad.
AL: Isabel would like to see the house. Ok if I bring her?