Leo pats the empty seat on the other side of him. “Cara, wouldn’t you be more comfortable over here?”
Cara shakes her head. “I’m fine. The heat is wonderful. In fact, Lily, don’t you want to sit by me?”
Lily fans herself with a section of newspaper. “No, I’m fine. I hate to sweat.”
Cara leans forward, elbows on her thighs. “I like it. Reminds me of Lava Hot Springs. Say, are the pools still open? I’d like to go down there.”
“They probably are tomorrow,” Persis says. “We could drive down for a soak after dinner.” Everyone murmurs excitedly at the plan.
“Wonderfully hot!”
“After dark’s the best time.”
“Good for sore muscles after skiing.”
“Steam’s so thick you can’t see three feet in front of you.”
“I haven’t been for years and years,” Cara says. She nods at Leo. “Last time was with you, I think.”
“That time the ambulance came.”
Edward looks up. “Ambulance? What happened?”
“Well,” Cara explains, “we’d just gotten the room filled up--”
“Room?” Edward looks a question.
“Oh, Cara, you don’t know!” interjects Lily. “They tore down the rooms and built a new pool, out in the open.”
“You’re kidding.”
“No. In fact, it couldn’t have been long after you left. Because Leo and I--” Lily pauses for a heartbeat. “I mean, the first couple of times I went there, they still had the rooms, but then one day we went, and they were just gone.”
“What rooms?” Edward pleads.
Cara turns to him. “There used to be this row of little rooms. Off the main hallway by the office. You could rent your own private room. Each one had a shower--like in a bath house--and a dressing room just inside the door. Then there was this cement ramp you walked down, and you could turn on the valve, and the lower part of the room filled up with hot mineral water. You could sit in there and.....” She breaks off, remembering.
Leo and Lily pick up her sentence. “You could take food--”
“And a bottle of wine--”
“Or some pot--”
“Of course, bathing suits were optional.”
“I don’t think I ever even took a suit with me,” says Cara. She looks down at her bulk. “Probably wouldn’t want to do that now.”
Leo jumps to his feet. “Are you kidding?” He raises Cara from the hearth and waltzes her gently in front of the fire. “You’re just as beautiful as ever, Darling.”
“I never liked those disgusting little rooms,” says Lily. “Who knows what kind of germs you could pick up. Like sitting in old soup.”
“Sounds wonderful to me,” Persis says. “Wish I could have been there.”
Cara disengages herself from Leo’s arms and plops back down on the hearth. “Well, it was---” she breathes heavily, “a very sensual experience.”
“So what about this ambulance?” Edward asks again.
“Well,” says Cara, “one time we were in there, and we heard a lot of commotion. Out in the hall. At first, we just thought somebody was drunk--”
“That happened a lot,” says Leo.
“But when we looked out, there were the paramedics, hauling this man out on a stretcher.”
“Remember how huge he was?”
“Oh, god, yes. This giant, naked stomach. Just as round and bright red as a beach ball. Actually that’s about all I do remember about the poor man.”
“What’d he have? A heart attack?”
“I guess. Never found out. Wouldn’t be surprised. It was hot enough in there.” She looks at Leo standing in front of the fire. “Those were some good times, though. I’m sorry it’s torn down.”
“Yeah,” says Leo. “Now, if you want a private room with a tub, you have to settle for the Home Hotel.”
“The Home Hotel?”
“Yeah. That old one on Main Street. They put hot tubs in each room. Big enough for two people. Pretty nice.” Leo rocks a little on his heels, his back to the fire.
No one says anything for a moment or two, and Cara becomes aware of an uneasiness hanging in the warm air. She glances at Leo, but he’s looking at the ceiling. Probably thinking about putting in a skylight or painting something up there, Cara thinks. Lily is rearranging her bracelets, and Edward and the guitarist are staring into the fire. The chess player appears to have fallen asleep with his head on the same pillow as the baby.
Only Persis and Heather are alert. Heather’s chin is propped on her long arm, which is stretched along the back of the sofa. Heather’s posture is relaxed, but Cara can see that her eyes are intent on Persis’s profile. Persis is sitting up and looking straight at Leo.
