That explained why she was always so particular about double-checking the gates. “Is Calabasas a rich area?”
“A bunch of the Kardashians live there.” She paused. “Youdoknow who the Kardashians are?”
“Vaguely.” He knew they were a reality show family and that there were a lot of them. He couldn’t tell them apart, but to be fair, he had never tried.
“They live there, along with assorted billionaires of the more low-key variety. And honestly, upsizing was the right move for us at that point, on paper at least. But I couldn’t let this house go. I loved it. Objectively, but also because it represented what was initially a hard-won freedom from my parents. So I rented it out all these years while we were in the big house.”
“The big house. You make it sound like jail.”
“That was the point. I called it that on purpose, and I was only half kidding. I probably should have bought something else, but I liked the idea of one thing being familiar, given that the rest of my life was in flux.”
“So you evicted your tenant and lived happily ever after.”
“Well, I evicted my tenant, which I felt terrible about.” She rotated her head, pausing in one spot to stretch her neck. “Jury’s still out on happily ever after.” She stretched her neck the other way. “But it is nice to be back.”
“I have to say, I thought you would live in a gated estate.”
“I have a gate.”
“Two of them. But the house, and the property, aren’t that big—for a Hollywood mogul, I mean.”
She smiled. “I grew up on a legit estate, and when I moved to LA, I said never again. There was always the pedestrian gate here, between the front and back yards—because of the pool—but when I moved back, I had to make things more secure. Hence the big gate at the driveway. I can’t have random people coming to my front door.”
“Just random cranky neighbors levitating over your fence.”
“She’s technically a threat, or so my security company says. She also has a fence restricting access from the street, but theoretically, there’s nothing stopping someone from getting from her property to mine—over the hedge in front or the fence in back. The security people installed cameras and sensors that are supposed to trip alarms if anyone comes over. It seemed like enough; I didn’t think she posed much of a threat.”
“Because you didn’t know she could levitate.”
“Ha. She’s cranky, but I think she’s ultimately harmless. I’ve been trying to crack her. She’s Morton Afonso’s widow.” She paused. “I know you don’t do TV, but surely you know legendary director Morton Afonso.”
“I do. They didn’t live here before, when you were here the first time around?”
“No. My real estate agent says she bought when he died, which was five years ago. I thought maybe we could bond over downsizing after the ‘departure’ of a spouse. But nope! Lately, I’ve been trying to tell her what a fan I was of her husband’s work, but it’s like she doesn’t even hear me.”
“Maybeshewasn’t a fan of legendary director Morton Afonso.”
Blair snickered. “Maybe he wasn’t a legendary husband. Anyway, enigmatic neighbors aside, I’ve been wondering if coming back here was a mistake. You know that sayingYou can’t go home again? Do you think that’s true?”
“I thought you were smart enough not to buy into clumsy metaphors. You’re the one who told me being trapped on that plane had no meaning.”
“It didn’t! You’re writing again, right?”
He nodded. He didn’t want to talk about it, though. “I can see why you came back. This is a great house.” The compliment felt clunky in his mouth, but he meant it.
“You think so?”
“It has a lot of character. You have good taste.”
“I must have good taste, though, right, since I likedIn Timeso much?” She leaned forward and stared at him like she was trying to see inside his soul. “You’re doing OK here in LA?” She hitched her head toward the back of the house. “And out there?”
“I’m not sure LA agrees with me. It’s too hot and pastel.” She laughed. “But I have to admit, it’s nice to be on the ground. To be able to just walk out the door and be in nature.” He stopped short of saying something sappy likeThank you for inviting me to this hot pastel place in which I’m actually writing.
“So what I am hearing is you don’t have a front door?”
“I live in a high-rise.”
“You live in a high-rise!”
