She paused.
We waited.
“It’s been a hard few years for us. For all of us. And I’d like some good time with you before you go.”
Jack nodded. “I’d like that, too.”
“So here it is,” she went on. “I don’t know how much more time I have left on this earth. Getting cancer really clears a few things up in your head, and after much soul-searching, I’ve decided there is one thing, only one thing, that I truly want right now, and I need you all to make it happen.”
“This sounds like a big ask,” Hank said.
“What is it, sweetheart?” Dr. Stapleton asked, leaning in.
That’s when Connie gave us the most irresistible, there’s literally no way you can possibly refuse me smile and said, “I want Jack—and his cute new girlfriend—to come stay with us out at the ranch until Thanksgiving.”
Eleven
“FOUR WEEKS!” WAS all I could say on the drive back to Jack’s house. “There are four weeks until Thanksgiving!”
“Technically,” Jack pointed out, “it’s three and a half.”
I ignored him. “I can’t spend four weeks doing things I like to do, much less pretending to be your girlfriend.”
“Thanks for that.”
“You know what I mean.”
“It’s her dying wish,” Jack pointed out.
“She’s not dying,” I said.
“She’s probably not dying.”
“We’re all probably not dying. You could get hit by a bus tomorrow.”
“I’m not thrilled about this, either. But it kind of simplifies things. It gives us a clear end point. Four weeks, and we’re done. I go back to North Dakota, you go … wherever it is you go.”
“Korea, thank you.” Even just at the idea of it, I felt a flash of relief. The timing was good, actually. The Seoul assignment started up in early December.
“This could have lingered on and on. This is objectively better. It’s like ripping off the bandage.”
“Ripping off the bandage,” I corrected, “for four weeks.”
“Three and a half. Let’s talk to your boss.”
“I already know what Glenn’s going to say. He’s going to say I can’t deny her this request. That it’s not that big of a deal. That the remote teams can handle everything—especially if we’re in an isolated location like the ranch. He’s going to call it ‘practically a paid vacation’ and demand to know why, exactly, it’s unacceptable to have to lounge around at the country residence of a world-famous movie star. He’ll say there are worse fates than being trapped in a remote location with a beautiful man.”
If Jack noticed me calling him “beautiful,” he played it cool. “And what will you say?”
I closed my eyes. “I don’t know.”
“He’s not wrong, you know. The ranch is great. There’s an orchard, and a hammock, and a wilderness area near the oxbow lake. We can hunt fossils on the banks of the Brazos, and ride the retired circus horse, and go fishing. It would be like a paid vacation.”
“I don’t like vacations,” I said.
“It really wouldn’t be like work, is what I mean.”
“I like work. I prefer work.”
“You could relax.”
“I never relax.”
“I just mean there are worse things than being trapped there with me.”
“I’m sure you’re delightful, it’s just—”
“That sounded sarcastic.”
“Look—”
“I know it’s a strange ask.”
“It’s not strange, it’s impossible.”
“You saw her back there. That’s my mom, Hannah.”
It was so strange to hear my name come out of Jack Stapleton’s mouth, it threw me off for a second. I tried to regroup. He clearly thought if he asked sweetly enough, I’d just do this for him. Or maybe if he paid me enough money. This was a guy who probably got everything he wanted. If he didn’t understand why this couldn’t happen, I didn’t know how to explain it. I finally settled on, “I don’t know you.”
“I’m not so bad.”
“I just can’t.”
“Are you saying no?”
Did anyone ever say no to Jack Stapleton? “Yes. I’m saying no.”
Jack frowned at that, like it was a really novel concept.
He looked so bewildered, in fact, that as I studied his profile, I questioned myself.