“But the truck’s gonna take four or five days to get to Seattle. Is there anything here you want to have with you the first night in your new house—you know, something to make it feel like home on your first night there?”
I’m exasperated. A house is just a house, for fuck’s sake—there’s no such thing as a home. But, fine. Anything to make Theresa happy. I peek inside the box and half-heartedly rummage through its contents for half a second. “Nope. Nothing I care—” I shut my mouth. Oh. Yep. There’s one thing I care about. A whole lot, in fact. I pull it out reverently. “Just this,” I say. I run my fingertip over the three smiling faces gazing back at me from the framed photo. “Don’t let them load this onto the truck—I’ll take it with me in my bag.”
Theresa nods. “I’ll put it into your carry-on—inside pocket. Don’t forget it’s there, okay? You don’t want it to break.”
“Thanks.”
“Of course.”
I turn toward the front door again. “Hey, T-Rod,” I say, turning back around to face her. Why don’t you give yourself a raise? Maybe, I dunno, twenty-five percent?”
Theresa smiles. “Thank you. Very generous of you.”
“And, hey, can you do something for me?”
“It’s my reason for living, Josh.”
“Arrange a romantic dinner-for-two at my new place in Seattle for Thursday night. Seven o’clock. I’m talking a top-rated chef, a waiter in a tux, flowers everywhere, candles all over the place—the whole nine yards. You know, a five-star-dining experience, but right in my own dining room.”
“No problem. But the truck won’t be there with your furniture until Saturday. I’ll have to rent some furniture for the night—at least a table and chairs.”
“Great. And as long as you’re renting stuff, would you rent me a pool table for a couple nights? I might wanna play pool before my table arrives—it always helps me relax.”
“Sure.”
“Oh, and rent me a really comfortable bed for Thursday night—areallynice one. Pillow-top mattress. Silk sheets. You know, the whole nine yards.”
“Josh, just a little tip: you never need to say the phrase ‘the whole nine yards’ to me. I know when it comes to you there are only two gears in everything you do: zero and ‘the whole nine yards.’”
I laugh.
“Speaking of which, what do you think about a violinist to play during dinner?”
“Ooh. I like that. Do it.”
“I’ll set it up,” Theresa says.
“Just do whatever you have to do to make me look really good, T.”
“Don’t I always, Josh? Speaking of which, I just bought you three new Anthony Franco suits from his new collection, already tailored to fit you to a tee. Do you want them loaded onto the truck or sent in a garment bag with you on the plane?”
“Is one of them blue, by any chance?”
She grins. “Of course. Sapphire blue to match your eyes.”
“Garment bag for the blue one, truck for the others. I’ll wear the blue one Thursday night.” I wink. “Gotta look sharp for my big night.”
“Oh, it’s a big night?”
“It sure is. I’m finally gonna talk about my fucking feelings—to agirl.”
“To agirl? Ooooh. Wow. Thatisbig.” She beams a huge smile at me. “Lucky girl.”
“That’s what I told her.”
Theresa laughs.
“I’m not kidding, unfortunately. That’s exactly what I told her.”
