Kathleen turned her head to the window, watching the city buildings roll by. After a few minutes, Veronica glanced over. “Are you okay?”
Kathleen nodded, then said quietly: “I will be.”
The car rumbled along Lexington, and turned north. They didn’t say much more. The silence between them was comfortable for the first time in days.
When they reached the apartment, Veronica parked and got out with Kathleen.
They rode the elevator together, and Veronica stood patiently at her door while she found her keys. It felt strange, returning to normal things like unlocking a door, flicking on a light, setting her bag down in the hallway.
Kathleen poured a glass of water in the kitchen, drank it in two long gulps, and then turned to find Veronica standing inside the living room, her coat still on.
“Are you staying?” Kathleen asked, with a flash of déjà vu.
“I am.”
Veronica shed her coat and walked toward her. They sat, side by side, on the edge of the couch.
Kathleen stared at her own hands for a while. “You know, when I told you to get out at the party, it wasn’t because of what you did.”
Veronica looked at her.
“It was because I knew you were going to Darlene’s. And I couldn’t bear it.”
Veronica nodded once, slowly. “I know.”
There was a long pause. Then Kathleen said, “You came back anyway.”
“Of course I did.”
Kathleen let out a tired chuckle. “You haven’t been through anything yet.”
Veronica raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
With a sly smile, Kathleen leaned back into the couch cushions. “Tomorrow, we are going to see my mother and I’ll leave you to explain to her why I’m in a relationship with a woman she thinks is a high-end escort.”
Veronica stretched out beside her, arms folded behind her head. “You want me to wear something sensible and not talk?”
Kathleen cracked one eye open. “Definitely don’t talk.”
They both smiled and Veronica leaned in for a kiss.
CHAPTER FORTY
Marise sat in the passenger seat of Kathleen's car, watching the neat streets of Forest Hills roll by.
A month ago, the city meant a different world to her. She had come to New York for a job, nothing more. The city wasn’t a dream or a destination, it was a means to an end. She hadn’t come to admire the skyline or reinvent herself; she came because the city was her hunting ground to fulfil her contract.
Now it was simply the road to lunch. A family gathering to meet the parents, something that was way out of her comfort zone.
She rested her arm on the door, fingers idly tracing the edge of the window, and tried to imagine what she might have been doing today if her life hadn’t taken this detour. She would have already filed the report, collected her payment, and deleted all traces of Kathleen Knowles from her database. She wouldn’t have known the feel of Kathleen’s hair under her fingers, or how her voice changed when she got excited about her weird plants.
"You’re quiet," Kathleen said, glancing sideways.
Marise lifted a shoulder. "Just thinking."
Kathleen slowed the car at a roundabout. "You can still back out. We can say you got sick."
Marise gave a low laugh. "And miss the pleasure of parental interrogation? Not a chance."
