Rich People Problems-Kwan 2017 (WWT)

CHAPTER TWELVE
THE HELENA MAY, HONG KONG
Astrid walked into the dining room at the Helena May, Hong Kong’s historic private
ladies’ club, and Isabel Wu waved to her from her table by the window. She strolled
toward Charlie’s ex-wife a little trepidatiously. It was only the third time they were
meeting, and the last time in Singapore hadn’t gone so well.
“Astrid. Thank you so much for agreeing to meet with me for lunch. I know it’s your
last day in Hong Kong, and you must be so busy,” Isabel said, getting up from her chair
and giving Astrid a peck on the cheek.
“Thank you for inviting me. I love coming here.”
“Yes, it’s such a special place, isn’t it? There are very few places like this anymore.”
Astrid took a moment to look around at the other smartly dressed ladies having lunch
together. The dining room with its Queen Anne furniture and botanical prints covering
the walls was a throwback to another era, when Hong Kong was a British Crown Colony
and this was the exclusive bastion for all the wives of high-ranking officials and
expatriates. It was all so civilized.
Astrid was relieved by such a warm welcome from Charlie’s ex-wife, and glad to see
Isabel looking so well, and so chic in white jeans, a rose-colored cashmere sweater with a
quilted vest thrown over it. She looked the epitome of Hong Kong old money.
“What have you been doing since you got here?”
Astrid hesitated for a moment. She didn’t think it would be a good idea to tell Isabel
that she’d spent most of the week planning her upcoming Hong Kong wedding, and
yesterday, Charlie had taken her to see the breathtaking new house he had built for them
in Shek O. “Not much really, I’ve just been decompressing. It’s good to be away from
Singapore, you know?”
“Yes, the past few weeks must have been very hard on you. I’m so sorry about your
grandmother’s passing. She was a great lady, from everything I know.”
“Thank you.”
“As I told you in my note, I was very close to my Ah Ma. In fact, she used to bring me
here for afternoon tea once a month. So this place holds many memories for me.”