Chapters (39)
- Cover
- Title
- Author’s Note
- Glossary
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Acknowledgments
“Probably because I called him on it when we were kids.”
“Called him on what?”
“His low self-esteem. And the way he tries to disguise it by being a bully.”
Geoffrey huffed. “Derek has low self-esteem? Are we talking about the same person? Derek Mackenzie?”
“Why do you think he always has to have the last word? Be the centre of attention?”
“Seriously? Why would he have low self-esteem?”
“Hmm. I’m not sure. It’s not something we’ve ever really discussed. I don’t think he’d acknowledge it. Perhaps it’s because he felt he never measured up to his father’s expectations. His mother doted on him but his father dismissed him as a failure. I think it affected him greatly—even if he doesn’t realise it. But I’m guessing, really.”
“His father? I didn’t know. But you said you ‘called him on it.’ What did you say?”
“Geoffrey! Why the interrogation? I don’t remember. It was ages ago. We were kids.”
They’d arrived home and he hadn’t pursued the subject. Michelle’s answers made sense; Derek didn’t bait Michelle because she never rose to it and perhaps because he felt she knew him best and saw parts of him others didn’t. Her theory that he had low self-esteem was consistent with what Geoffrey knew about bullying behaviour: those who don’t value themselves put others down in order to feel better about themselves.
For a while, after his conversation with Michelle, Geoffrey pitied Derek. He felt, although they had moved in the same circles since university, he should make an effort to get to know him better. He invited Derek to meet him for drinks after work twice, and once to join him for a round of golf. Derek declined all invitations and Geoffrey realised getting to know each other better wasn’t something the other man wanted. He was Michelle’s friend and Geoffrey was an extension of her. So be it, thought Geoffrey, and so their association continued as before. It was no surprise, then, that the men hadn’t connected during their day together, away from the others, in the Tsitsikamma. Geoffrey had however, imagined Derek might somehow express appreciation at his willingness to stay with him. He hadn’t.