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car? And wait, wait a minute, they were now smooching. Did mere colleagues kiss like that? What was going on? This could not be happening.
    No!
    That was my mother. And that definitely was not Dad!
    I sat down, trembling and feeling stupid. What on earth was happening?
    Their laughter drifted up through my window. The car door slammed gently. Mum was coming into the house. I wanted to close my bedroom door, but my energy seemed to have drained. My hands shook. I felt ill.
    â€œHi honey,” Mum greeted me in her sing-song voice.
    â€œMum, that wasn’t Dad!” I blurted out.
    â€œThat was Ettoré.” Mum pronounced both ‘e’s as in “Echo”. She leaned on my door frame, but she wasn’t looking at me. She smiled with dreamy eyes, looking distantly at some very pleasant memory. Ettoré. As if this name explained their kiss. “Your father will always be a good friend of mine. But honey, our relationship has run its course. Time to move on.”
    â€œWhich relationship?” This was so beyond me. My parents were devoted to each other. They had stuck together for years, not contributing to the statistics of Australia’s high divorce rate. When Auntie Kate—Mum’s best friend—separated from her first husband ten years back, my parents continued to be the epitome of a perfect couple. “You have a relationship with that guy Ettoré? What about Dad? He’s your husband!”
    â€œNot anymore,” she announced in a sing-song voice. As if she was not imparting a bombshell. Her face was positively radiant as she pulled away from the door. “Honey, we’ll talk about all this at dinner. Your Dad wants us together when we break the news to you.”
    â€œYou’re joking!” I jumped up and chased her to her door, but she closed it in my face. “Tell me it isn’t true!”
    â€œCalm down honey,” she called from inside. “I’ll see you at dinner.”
    â€œYou can’t do this to Dad! He loves you! Don’t be cruel!”
    Mum relented and opened her door, her smile replaced by a sigh.
    â€œSorry that you saw me and Ettoré, darling. That was insensitive, very lousy of me. We forgot ourselves because we were so happy. Sorry. But your father and I are being kind to each other. He needs to marry his girlfriend. When people are in love, as you’ll be one day, they need to be together.”
    â€œGirlfriend?” I stood in total incomprehension. “ Dad ?”
    She nodded. “Geraldine. That English geologist we met at the conference of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists in Houston. A few years back.”
    â€œBut we were there with him,” I reasoned, bewildered.
    â€œ We were busy enjoying all those tours. And the other spouse activities. They were at the conference.” Her speech was slow as if addressing a simpleton, which I currently was. “He’ll explain to you soon enough. At dinner. Let me ring restaurant delivery.”
    â€œThis can’t be true,” I insisted. “ Dad has a girlfriend?”
    â€œOf course. Harry is only 42, you know. A year younger than me.He’s a very successful man and he’s very handsome.”
    â€œThen why don’t you stay married to him?”
    â€œHoney… We didn’t tell you before, precisely because you’d nag us and try to change our minds. But you should know one more thing, to prepare you for tonight’s conversation.” She took a breath.
    â€œYour dad needs money to start a new family now. Geraldine is young. They want children. So they’re moving overseas to an oil company in Indonesia. A petroleum geophysicist makes way over half a million dollars there as an expat. He plans to be there for a few years.”
    â€œAre you serious?” She couldn’t be talking about Dad. “He’s my best friend!” He couldn’t cast me aside. “That can’t be right.