Claire's Prayer by Yvonne Cloete Read Free Book Online

juxtaposed against the beauty of Georgian architecture. She also spoke of the modern Dublin in which she’d grown up, with its fashionable shops, the vibrant nightlife of its welcoming pubs, famous for their creamy pints of Guinness, and no shortage of ‘craic’ – which, Claire explained, was Irish slang for ‘good times’. She also spoke fondly of family holidays in the west of Ireland, famous for its unique coastlines and rugged, beautiful countryside, and of the rare occasions its beaches had remained sunny for their visits.
    Claire spoke tenderly of her parents, Aunt Ellen and Kacey, painting a picture in Seth’s mind of a happy life, and a love-filled home: a Christian home, and a faith Claire spoke about both naturally and joyfully. Seth listened with a skepticism tinged with fascination. He had heard his share of Bible fanatics, but Claire spoke about God as if he were a personal friend of hers. He found that words like ‘prayer’ came easily from her lips. Each to their own , he thought.
    As the sun rose high in the azure sky, Seth slowed down the car and pulled up under the most enormous tree Claire had ever seen.
    “What a strange tree, Seth! What’s it called?” Claire asked in curiosity. Opening the car’s rear door, Seth extracted a picnic basket, rug and thermos before answering her.
    “This grand old upside-down tree is called a baobab – there are quite a lot of them around here.”
    Leaving her to spread out the rug and unpack the cold lunch he’d had the hotel prepare that morning, Seth wandered off. He returned shortly with a green, oval, hairy-looking seedpod, about the size of an avocado. Grinning at Claire, he suddenly cracked the fruit with a rock, giving her a fright. The broken shell revealed white particles, compacted together and separated by what looked like orange netting. Popping a section into his mouth, Seth offered the fruit to her. Aware that Seth was watching her closely, Claire took a small segment and put the tip of her tongue to it. Finding first impressions inoffensive, she popped the – fruit, was it? – into her mouth.
    For a few too many seconds Seth was speechless. Unwillingly, he had been fascinated by her mouth, exploring and probing this foreign body, and savouring its taste. “Don’t chew it, just suck it,” Seth finally instructed, croakily. “There’s a pip inside, which you have to spit out.” So saying, he catapulted a pip from his own mouth.
    Claire was still preoccupied by the new sensation she was experiencing. It was so rare, she thought abstractedly, ever to taste something you could barely have imagined before. The fruit was tart, but not too sour… Then it was gone. Claire removed the pip from her mouth thoughtfully. She decided, upon reflection, that she would prefer some cold chicken and salad.
    “So what did you think of the taste of natural cream of tartar?” Seth asked, helping her to open the lunch containers.
    “So that’s why it tasted familiar!” Claire sighed, laughing at herself. “For a minute there, I thought I was tasting some old herbal cure-all or something. Can we eat now? I’m starving.”
    Suppressing a grin, Seth passed her a paper plate. “Starving again, are you? It’s a pity we couldn’t have been doing something more interesting than driving to work up your appetite!”
    Claire opened her mouth to speak, but quickly looked away again, flushed.
    Seth blushed, too. “More of a nature hike, I mean,” he added quickly.
    Seeing Seth’s embarrassment, Claire recovered herself and, smiling quickly at him, tucked in. Half an hour later, enjoying a second mug of tea, Claire was asking again about Impunzi.
    “So, how many other guests will be staying?” she enquired.
    “We don’t have any guests at the moment,” Seth responded quickly. “We close for maintenance during the coldest months.”
    Claire frowned in confusion. “But… how come I’m on my way to Impunzi if it’s closed for maintenance?” She