Vanni went to the couch and lifted a corner of the throw, snuggling close.
“What’s the matter?” Abby asked. “Couldn’t sleep?”
“No. I’ve been thinking…”
“What’s got you thinking?”
“Math.”
Abby laughed. “Well, I can’t help you there. I was never good at math.”
“You left Nikki and Joe’s wedding reception. We knew you were depressed, we all knew you and Ross were on the skids even though you wouldn’t talk about it. We thought you went to your room to suffer in silence and even talked about trying to draw you out, but in the end decided sometimes a girl wants to be alone, to lick her wounds, think, maybe even cry.”
“Well…”
“And now I’m thinking, what are the chances you met someone that night, in Grants Pass? Someone so nice, so sweet. So sexy and handsome that you were tempted to actually pass some time with him. Someone I know.”
“Vanni…”
“He’s a good man, Abby. A very good man. He’s come to help our town. He courted me a little and when he realized I was in love with Paul, not only did he back away like a gentleman, he helped us—more than once.”
“Vanni, I don’t really know him.”
“Then I suggest you get to know him. Real soon. I could tell by the way you two looked at each other—there’s something happening there. You have his babies inside you, don’t you?” Abby looked down. “Well, if, worst-case scenario, you can’t fall in love with him, at least you can let him be a father to his children. He’s not a slimeball like Ross—he’s decent. And I happen to know—it would mean a lot to him.”
There was a long period of silence. “Do you think everyone knows?”
Vanni was shaking her head. “No one knows you like I do. And remember, I know him, too. Lucky guess. Plus, I was in Grants Pass. Abby, you’re going to have to deal with this. Does he know?”
“It didn’t take him long to guess,” Abby said. “Just exactly what I was hoping to avoid.”
“Well, kiddo, that ship has sailed. How in the world did this happen?”
Abby shrugged. “He was alone in the bar. So was I. We spent a couple of hours, just the two of us, talking. Laughing. And my head was so screwed up, I let myself be coerced upstairs to his room. I never meant that to happen. It was a mistake.”
“I don’t know about that. Sounds like it could have been fate. So, what’s the plan?”
“He doesn’t think it will raise many eyebrows if we become friends, get to know each other a little bit. But, Vanni, you have to understand something— I’m not diving headlong into another relationship with someone I don’t know very well. It’s going to take time and it may not end up being the fairy tale you’d like it to be. We were two disappointed, needy people that night. That’s all. In a practical relationship, I’m not sure we have that much in common.”
“Hmm, I can think of a couple of things.”
When Walt got to Muriel’s house, the dogs rushed to him, but Muriel didn’t. He found her sitting at her kitchen table with a notepad and glass of wine. He hefted his sack. “I brought you meat loaf and garlic mashed from Jack’s.”
She looked at him across the cheerful kitchen and said, “I’m doing it, Walt. I’m going back to L.A. to work.”
When he thought about it, he’d expected this. She was enchanted with the script from the moment she read it. And he knew she wouldn’t sell out, so it must have come together in a way she thought was worth her time and effort. He put the sack on the counter and went to the cupboard and got down a glass and that special bottle of Pinch she reserved for special occasions, pouring himself a drink. Then he sat at the table across from her. “Tell me about it.”
“I probably should have talked to you about it sooner, when it started to look like it was going to work to my advantage. But I try not to get stupidly optimistic about possible deals. For just about the first time, it turned out I was the last holdout. The actress waiting in the wings for the part was Diane Keaton. It’s a good part, Walt. A good opportunity.”
“Why don’t you seem happy?”
She shrugged. “It wasn’t how I thought I’d spend the next six months. It’s going to be a lot of hard work. And later, when the film is out, there will be promotion—that’s also a lot of hard work. And none of it can be done here. I’ll be in L.A. for some of it and on location in Montana in spring and early summer.”