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"Love's supposed to be." Laura smiled. "When it's not hell."
"You're the only one of the three of us who's been there." Margo glanced at Kate for confirmation.
"Affirmative."
"If it doesn't bother you, would you mind telling me how you came out the other side. I mean how did you fall out?"
It did bother her. It scraped her raw inside and left her a failure. But she would never admit it. "It was gradual, like water against rock gradually wears it down. It wasn't a flash, like waking up one morning and realizing I wasn't in love with my husband. It was a slow, nasty process, a kind of calcifying of emotions. In the end, I felt nothing for him at all."
A terrifying thought, Margo decided. Not to feel anything for Josh. She was sure she'd rather hate him than feel nothing for him. Or worse, much worse, she realized, to have him feel nothing for her. "Could you have stopped it?"
"No. We might have been able to stop it, but I couldn't. Not alone. He never loved me." And oh, that stung. "That makes it entirely different than you and Josh."
"I'm sorry, Laura."
"Don't be." Easier, Laura leaned against Margo's supporting arm. "I have two beautiful daughters. That's a pretty good deal all around. And you have a chance for something special, and uniquely yours."
"I might take that chance." She plucked another pebble, tossed it.
"Well, if you're looking to start a love nest, an account I have is unloading a property about half a mile south of here." Getting into the spirit, Kate scooped up pebbles herself. "A beauty, too. California Spanish."
"We're perfectly happy in the suite." Safe in the suite, a small voice whispered in her head. In limbo.
"Whatever works for you," Kate shrugged. She believed strongly in the investment value of real estate. A home was one thing—it couldn't be measured in terms of short- or long-term capital gains. But property, well chosen, was a necessary addition to any well-rounded portfolio. "But it's got a killer view."
"How would you know?"
"I delivered some forms there once." She caught Margo's smirk. "Gutter mind. The client is female. She got the house in the divorce settlement and wants to sell it and buy something smaller, lower-maintenance."
"Is that Lily Farmer's house?" Laura asked.
"One and the same."
"Oh, it's beautiful. Two stories. Stucco and tile. They had it completely restored about two years ago."
"Yep. Finished it up just in time to say 'adios.' He got the boat, the BMW, the Labrador retriever, and the coin collection. She got the house, the Land Rover, and the Siamese cat." Kate grinned. "There are no secrets from your CPA."
"That's just the sort of thing I'm talking about, and why I don't want a house, a four-wheel-drive, or a dog." The very idea made Margo's stomach hurt. "I've simplified my life. Streamlined it, anyway, and I'll be damned if I'm going to fuck it up again." She had a handful of stones now and was shooting them over the edge like bullets. "What was it my mother always said? Begin as you mean to go on? Well, that's just what I'm doing. Begin simple, keep it simple. Josh doesn't want all those responsibilities any more than I do. We'll leave it—"
"Wait!" Laura grabbed her wrist before she could heave the next stone. "What is that? It's not a rock."
Frowning, Margo began to rub it with her thumb. "Someone must have dropped some change. I didn't notice. It's just a… Oh, my Jesus."
As she brushed off the dirt and sand, it gleamed at her, a small disk nestled in the palm of her hand.
"It's gold." Kate closed her hand over Laura's, and the three of them were linked. "It's a doubloon. Holy God, it's a gold doubloon."
"No, no." Breathless, Margo shook her head. "It's got to be one of those fake tokens they give away at the arcade in town." But it had weight. And such a fine gleam. "Doesn't it?"
"Look at the date," Laura managed. "1845."
"Seraphina." Margo pressed a hand to her head as it revolved like a carousel. "Seraphina's dowry. Could it be?"
"It has to be," Kate insisted.
"But it was just lying there. We've walked along here hundreds of times. We even searched here when we were kids. We never found anything."
"I guess we never looked in the right place." Kate's eyes danced with excitement as she leaned up to give Margo a hard, smacking kiss. "Let's look now."
