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"twins ," poppy reproved them ." we haven't quite finished ."
"leave them ," said their indulgent father .
" but you mustn't let them be spoiled ." poppy laid a hand on her father's shoulder ." not even a teen bit ." she shook her head and the crystal necklace glinted very satisfactorily indeed ." you mustn't spoil them , dad ."
"they are not spoiled ." i said crossly ." far from it ."
for a second or two conversation was suspended . richard threw in a diversionary tactic . "are you going on holiday this year ?" he managed to sound so interested that the tension was broken .
grateful to him . i sipped the remainder of my wine and assessed the room . to her credit , poppy had gotten it right . a striped wallpaper in old rose and gold , comfortable chairs , flowers .. the effect was simple and muted and i set to wondering if i had overdone the decor in the dining room at lakery street . was the effect too crowded ? had i tried too hard ? i decided that the chinese figurines should go .
later , i went up the freshly painted and carpeted staircase to the bathroom and passed a shelf of photographs , all framed in the same way . and there was rose . of course . dressed in shorts and thin-strapped sandals , she was sitting at a cafe table in what seeemed to be a mediterranean port . the sun was shining , and the scene exuded a shimmering iridescence . leaning back in the chair , she was inclining her face to the camera , a  trustful pose , and a smile played on her lips . one hand held a coffee cup , the other rested lap . there was tenderness evident in the composition of the photograph by the unseen eye . from the bottom of my heart . i envied rose her ease , and the sensation of bright , hot sun on her arms and legs .

54 wivesbehavingbadly

so mad , sometimes . i have to help with the packing ." poppy sketched an imaginary box with herhands ." i like that . i like physically handling something , and the colors and scents of some of the candles are exquisite ." she added ." as a culture , we are not hands-on- enough . we don't like to get dirty ."
richard had been conscripted into telling the tqwins a story . lucas was snorting with laughter , but felix was puzzled . i knew that look . it meant that he was questioning what he was hearing ." the big brown bear ." said richard , crooking his fingers and placing them on either side of hiss head , " gobbled up the wizard ."
" wizards don't get gobbled ," felix flaxtly , and i rejoiced in hi9s capacity not to be taken in .
richard lowered his hands ." i can't make you believe me ."
lucas shouted . " i believe you , i believe you , don't i mummy ?"
i was about to reply ." of corse you do ," when i encountered felix 's anxious gaze , and realized that he was terrified of being shown up . nathan sent me the tiniest shake of his head . " you can believe what you wish , both of you ." i said .
"of course you can ," said richard , all good humor but with the slight uneasiness of someone who was not truly at home with children .
felix slid down from his chair and flung himself against me . i ran my fingers through his hair , relishing the texture of his tufty curls . his breath was scented with garlic , his body pressing against mine . whether i liked it or not , the connection between him and me flowed up  thriugh my fingers .
after a few seconds , lucas climbed down from his chair and leaned against nathan in imitation of his brother .

53 wivesbehavingbadly

richard appeared unconscious of his wife . he had settled in to enjoy himself - which he showed every indication of doing . he and nathan had moved on to a detailed discussion of hedge fund the twins were concentrating on thier ice cream , and i was behaving myself .
poppy seemed restless and had disappeared more than once into the kitchen . she jumped up to refill my water glass . " daddy and richard are boring for england ." her eyes rested indulgently on them as she cast around for some point of contact between us ." how are your friend , minty ?"
"my friends ? oh , paige is fine . about to have her third baby ."
poppy replaced the jug on the mat and wiped away a minute spot of water from the table ." she gave up her very high powered job , didn't she , to look after the children ?"
"she made the sacrifice ." i spoke lightly .
poppy 's long eyelashes beat down over her eyes ." women just don't know which way to go ."
"isn't that just sloppy thinking ? all we have to do is to choose ."
"but t's so complicated ."
true , but i was reluctant to yield a point to poppy . furthermore , she was spoiling for a confronttation . nathan was watching me . please , he begged silently . no arguments . why poppy should escape censure for some of her sillier staements , i would never fathom , but i did the right thing and , conversationlly , ducked ." how are things at work ?"
poppy used to work in pulishing but recently had astonished her family by taking a job in a firm that imported exotic candles from china and sold them through up-market shops ." fine , fine , fine . the mad christmas push is still going on .

52 wivesbehavingbadly

nathan put his arm around his daughter and glowed " hallo , minty ." poppy said at last . her gaze veered past my shoulder . she broke into a huge smile , and flung wide her arms ." twins , i have been counting the minutes ." and she swooped down and drew them close .
"i've got red socks ." lucas informed his big half sister .
"and i've got blue ones ." felix brought up the rear .
"i'm wearing socks too ," poppy hoicked up her trouser leg ." they've got spots on them . now boys , i have an important question to ask you ."
felix knew exactly what was comming ." no ." he said ." i haven't ."
poppy held them tight and pushed her head between theirs ." how naughty have you been ? tell me everything ."
there was much whispering and muttering , and poppy giggled and said ." felix , you're tickling my ear ." eventually , she  pronounced ." is that all ? " then she said gravely , " i can be much naughter than that ."
lunch was a gigot og lamb cooked with flageoler beans and garlic .nb   : flageolet beans are a useful , sophisticated vegetable .  halfway through , i glanced at nathan . he was talking about oil prices , but htere was an abstraction about him , a suggestion of discomfort for , every so often  his eyes squeezed shut .
did poppy notice ? while she talked , she fiddled with her expersive crystal necklace - the leather thongs , feathers , and beads she loved to wear when i first met her had been long bandished . it was beautiful and caressed it with reverence . when she thought no one was watching , her gaze rested on her husband and there was no doubt of her adoration .

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poppy's heart might have been made of the best - tempered steel , but she was often wrong . for instance , it had been unkind to wear black at our weddig , and to persis in making her feelings about me so clear after seven years was dicisive . when bnathan left rose for me . poppy spat defiance at her father ." i never want to see you ....or that women , again . ever ." floating on a tide of moral  certainty , she had reduced him to shivering and weeping ." she called me an old goat ." he confessed to me ." an old goat ."
poppy and richard had made the tarnsition from flat to large house in a disgustingly short period of time . richard had made a lot of money in " strategy " and poppy spent it .the house was edwardian  , spacious , and newly refurbished . the windowa and paintwork were pristine . the ront garden had been designed by a professional . it featured box and carefully graded gray stone . an olive tree in a blue ceramic pot stood in the center .
the door was flung open and there was poppy ." dad ," she cried , interposing herself between anthan and me ." how lovely ."
father and daughter were very alike . they  had the same coloring , and facial structure . naturally , poppy was modeled more delicately - her waist was tiny and i found myself pulling my link cardigan edged with ribbon down over my lips . underneath , i wore a lacy half - cup bra that was digging into my flesh . before the twins , a half cup bra fit like  a second skin but these days . i was bothered by its secret chafe . no longer the student , poppy was groomed and highlighted and , unlike when i first met her , she never wore glasses , only contact lenses . yet she had not lost her shortsighted habit of peering at you , nor her quickness , nor her tendency to outbursts . she grabbed her father 's hand and carried it to her cheek ." it's been ages . i've missed you , dad ."

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 work began om her in the fifteen century ,and legend has it that she was based on a nun from thre concent of caterina who died after experiencing visions of mary , the mother of christ . each year , the community celebrates the staue's reputation for protecting mothers with an underground candlelit procession , and women , who are not normally allowe inside the mine , come with their babies to be bless ...."
she gestured with her right hand , and the large gold ring she wore slipped down her finger ." the madonna of the salt may be out of sight but she is very much a presence in the town . she is referred to as the hidden mother . incidentally , the phrase " hidden mother " is also used for brides . for obvious reasons , no one is permitted to touch the madona , but as i stand here in front of her , i 'm finding it difficult not to reach out as she is so very lifelike ...."
that was enough , more than enough  . i reached for the remote and switched rose off .
that poppy had never acceptd me and , doubtless , never would bothered me not a jot . well , not much . that poppy had only to put her red lips and nathan went running did concern me ." she 's good girl ." he made a point of telling me ( more han one )her heart is abolutely right ."
nathan did not tolerate criticism of his children . not one word - howerver tactful i went about it , which i considered misguided . we all could do with a little , especially children , but when it came to poppy and sam , nathan retreated to a locked and soundprooded chamber , and no amount of knocking would make him open the door .

40 wivesbehavingbadly

this unicorn is fourteenth - century . " rose said in a voice-over ." and this is a bas-relief of a church and was probably done as a record during a period when churches were being destroyed . in making these carvings , the miners found relief from boredom and fear . they also gave themselves something beautiful to look at ." she went on to describe that the carving were made by lamplight and with  the crudest of tooths . apparently , the rock crystal possessed special molecular qualities that helped preserve the images , and each carving had accrued its own set of stories and myths . obediently , the camera settle on a figure in a long coat and hood . " this is butcher of kransk .who lured maidens into his shop ." the focus switched to a figure on a horse ." this is the knight who reputedly haunts the local forest and whose is heard on summer nights ."
rose always preferred fiction to nonfiction ." novels contam the real truths ." she once argued in the calm way that used to annoy me because it was so settled . i could never budge her from that position - and now ? now . i never will . for myself , i stick to those self-help and makeover manuals ( which , when i first met him , nathan said was so touching ) . nathan couldn't be bothered with fiction either . i don't think nathan had read a novel for , oh , fifteen years or so .
i pushed the tray aside , slipped off my shoes , and tucked my feet up on the sofa .
the camera panned onto rose's face now cast into shadow . but she still looked wonderful ." the real treasure of the salt mine , the one i have come for , lies farther down this corridor ....." i followed her progress down the passage and into a vault whose walls reflected pinpricks of light " here " - her excitement about her wonder infected even me -" is the madona of the salt .