Table For Five. Susan WiggsЧитать онлайн книгу.
Praise for the novels of Susan Wiggs
“Wiggs writes with an even hand, thus adding another excellent title to her already outstanding body of work.”
—Booklist on Table for Five
“Wiggs excels at portraying the delicate dynamics among lovers, friends and family members, and her keen awareness of sensory detail ensures that the scents and sounds of Rosa’s kitchen are just as palpable as heady attraction between the protagonists.”
—Publishers Weekly on Summer by the Sea
Rave Reviews from Publishers Weekly
starred review
“Wiggs’s characterizations are strong, jumping off the page with a winning blend of realism and warmth. A richly textured story…this book will polish Wiggs’s already glowing reputation.”
—on Passing Through Paradise
starred review
“Wiggs richly evokes her multi-faceted setting while depicting equally complex human relationships…the story’s theme—the all-encompassing power of love—is timeless, and it is this theme, along with the author’s polished prose and well-rounded characters, that make Wiggs’s story so satisfying.”
—on A Summer Affair
starred review
“With its lively prose, well-developed conflict and passionate characters, this enjoyable, poignant tale is certain to enchant.”
—on Halfway to Heaven
Also by SUSAN WIGGS
SUMMER BY THE SEA
THE OCEAN BETWEEN US
A SUMMER AFFAIR
HOME BEFORE DARK
ENCHANTED AFTEROON
PASSING THROUGH PARADISE
HALFWAY TO HEAVEN
THE YOU I NEVER KNEW
JUST BREATHE
The Chicago Fire trilogy
THE FIREBRAND
THE MISTRESS
THE HOSTAGE
THE HORSEMASTER’S DAUGHTER
THE CHARM SCHOOL
THE DRIFTER
THE LIGHTKEEPER
Susan Wiggs
Table for Five
To Jay
Contents
part one
chapter 1
chapter 2
chapter 3
chapter 4
chapter 5
part two
chapter 6
chapter 7
chapter 8
chapter 9
chapter 10
chapter 11
chapter 12
chapter 13
chapter 14
chapter 15
chapter 16
chapter 17
chapter 18
chapter 19
part three
chapter 20
chapter 21
chapter 22
chapter 23
chapter 24
part four
chapter 25
chapter 26
chapter 27
chapter 28
chapter 29
chapter 30
chapter 31
chapter 32
chapter 33
chapter 34
chapter 35
chapter 36
part five
chapter 37
chapter 38
chapter 39
chapter 40
chapter 41
chapter 42
chapter 43
chapter 44
chapter 45
chapter 46
chapter 47
chapter 48
chapter 49
chapter 50
chapter 51
Acknowledgments
part one
Some things are so unexpected that no one is prepared for them.
—Leo Rosten
chapter 1
Friday
2:45 p.m.
“Hey, Miss Robinson, want to know how to figure out your porn-star name?” asked Russell Clark, bouncing on the balls of his feet toward the school bus.
“I think I’ll make it through the day without that.” Lily Robinson put a hand on the boy’s shoulder to keep him from bouncing off the covered sidewalk and into the driving rain.
“Aw, come on, it’s easy. You just say the name of your street and—”
“No, thank you, Russell,” Lily said in her “enough’s enough” tone. She hoped he didn’t really know what a porn star was. “That’s inappropriate, and you’re supposed to be line leader this afternoon.”
“Oops.” Reminded of the privilege, Russell stiffened his spine and marched in a straight line, dutifully leading twenty-three third-graders to the area under the awning by the parking lot. “I’m going to Echo Ridge today,” he said, heading for Bus Number Four. “I have a golf lesson.”
“In this rain?”
“It’ll clear up, I bet. See you, Miss Robinson.” Russell went bounding toward the bus, hopscotching around puddles in the parking lot.
Lily doled out goodbyes and have-a-good-days to the rest of her students, watching them scatter like a flock of startled ducklings to buses and carpools. Charlie Holloway and her best friend, Lindsey Davenport, were last in line, holding hands and chattering together while they waited for Mrs. Davenport’s car to pull forward.
When Charlie caught Lily’s eye, she ducked her head and looked away. Lily felt a beat of sympathy for the little girl, who was painfully aware that her parents were coming in for a conference after school. The child looked small and fragile, trying to disappear into her yellow rain slicker. Lily wanted to reassure her, to tell her not to worry.
Charlie didn’t give her a chance. “There’s your mom,” she said,