The Tennis Party Read Online Free PDF Page B

carried on, ‘and I’m never quite sure what to wear.’ She abruptly stopped speaking, and Stephen found himself quite floored for an answer.
    * * *
    Annie couldn’t believe how attractive she felt wearing Caroline’s apricot-coloured polo shirt and pleated skirt. She stared at her reflection in the mirror, and smelt the deliriously flowery scent that Caroline had insisted she try.
    ‘And you must have a go with this moisturizer,’ said Caroline. ‘It stops wrinkles and helps you go brown quicker.’ She brandished a silver pot at Annie. ‘Put it on all over.’
    ‘I should say no,’ said Annie. ‘That looks extremely expensive.’
    ‘Forty quid,’ said Caroline. ‘But it’s worth it. And Patrick earns enough.’
    ‘He must be doing really well,’ said Annie, temporarily closing off her conscience in order to smear forty-pound cream all over her legs.
    ‘I think they all are at his company,’ said Caroline. ‘People are buying investment plans like there’s no tomorrow. God knows how they can afford them. Especially at the moment. But his bonuses have been incredible.’
    ‘What does he get bonuses for?’ said Annie. ‘Sorry, I’m incredibly ignorant.’
    ‘They give him a target and if he reaches it he gets a sodding great bonus. All of this’ – Caroline gestured vaguely out of the window – ‘is from bonuses.’ Annie began to apply the cream to her face.
    ‘It’s not fair!’ she said. ‘They should give teachers bonuses for getting kids through exams! Or give Stephen a bonus for finishing his thesis.’
    ‘They should bloody well give me a bonus for putting up with Patrick’s moods,’ retorted Caroline. ‘If he thinks he’s going to miss a target he gets really edgy. Drives me crackers.’ She sighed, and picked up a tennis skirt still in its embossed cellophane wrapper. It was pale blue and white striped, with a gold logo in the corner.
    ‘I’d forgotten all about this one,’ she said, in surprise. ‘I must wear it some time.’
    When Annie and Caroline got outside again, they found Patrick anxiously looking at his watch.
    ‘I wanted to kick off at eleven,’ he complained, ‘but the Mobyns aren’t here yet.’
    ‘So what?’ said Caroline. ‘You only need two couples at a time. We can easily start now.’
    ‘But Charles and Cressida are supposed to be on first,’ said Patrick. ‘And besides, I wanted to explain the chart to everyone first.’
    ‘For Christ’s sake!’ exclaimed Caroline. She picked up the chart and surveyed it. ‘Here we are,’ she said. ‘Second match: us against Don and Valerie.’ She rolled her eyes at Annie, who giggled. Patrick was staring at the chart.
    ‘I suppose that would work,’ he said grudgingly.
    ‘Come on then!’ said Don. ‘Chop, chop, Valerie.’ Valerie scrambled to her feet, grabbed for her racquet, and in doing so knocked over the open bottle of Pimm’s.
    ‘Ooh!’ she shrieked. ‘I’m so clumsy! Caroline, I’m so sorry. Oh, I’ve cut my hand! What a stupid thing to do!’
    When the Pimm’s had been mopped up and Valerie had disappeared upstairs with Caroline for a plaster, Stephen sidled over to Annie, who was surreptitiously admiring her reflection in the glass terrace doors.
    ‘You look great!’ he said. ‘That’s a wonderful colour on you.’ Annie looked down to savour her new shiny self. Even her socks were little pieces of luxury – fluffy white towelling with apricot-coloured pompoms bobbing gaily over the backs of her plimsolls.
    ‘It’s quite nice, isn’t it?’ she said, trying unsuccessfully to affect nonchalance.
    ‘You should ask Caroline where she buys that kind of thing,’ said Stephen. ‘Perhaps you could get some new tennis clothes for yourself.’
    ‘At these prices? I don’t think so!’ Annie’s eyes crinkled with amusement. ‘If you only knew what this little crocodile costs!’
    ‘Even so,’ said Stephen robustly. ‘You deserve a few nice things.’
    ‘I’ve got plenty of