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Henny barks.
Dru-Ann says, “You know what was so funny? Henriettadefinitelyhad beef with Gigi.”
“I don’t understand why, though,” Brooke says. “Gigi wasjustso great. And you didn’t even really know her, Hollis. She could have been some wacko.”
This is met with a beat of silence.
Then Tatum hears Caroline join the fun. “I booked the earlier flight. I can’t wait to get back to New York and edit the footage; I think it’s going to be really good, and the interviews are the best part.”
“Am I going to see these interviews at some point?” Hollis asks.
This, too, is met with silence.
“I’ll send it to all of you once I finish,” Caroline eventually says. “Is anyone headed to the airport?”
“Me,” Dru-Ann says. “My driver is here. Get your things, sugar.”
Tatum checks her phone; it’s ten minutes to eight. She has a text from Kyle:Should I wait at home so I can be here when you call the doctor?
No,Tatum says.I’ll call when I know. And I’ll see you after work.
But you are calling, right?
Yes, babe.
I love you, Mrs. McKenzie,he texts.
Tatum hears footsteps and the thumping of luggage on the front porch. There’s the sound of car doors closing, a trunk, the crunch of tires over the shells of Hollis’s driveway. Goodbye to Caroline and Dru-Ann. Tatum closes her eyes and tries to achieve some kind of Zen, but her mental clock is ticking. In a few minutes she’ll know.
Tatum hears Brooke say, “I never gave you your hostess gift. It’s a scented candle from the Christmas Tree Shop. I think my gift is going to be not giving it to you.”
Hollis laughs and Tatum thinks,Good move.Irina gave all her employees off-brand scented candles for the holidays last year, and Tatum’s powder room still smells like coconut tanning oil.
Brooke says, “There’s something else I want to tell you, Hollis.”
“Please don’t worry about what happened with Electra,” Hollis says. “She was just seeking attention, as usual.”
“It’s not that,” Brooke says. “I wanted you to know that I’ve realized…” She laughs, nervous. “I mean, this is going to come as a huge shock, but yeah, I’ve realized… that I’m gay.”
Whoa!Tatum thinks. This weekend has had no shortage of zingers. Brooke is gay!
Hollis stammers for a second. “W-wow, okay,notwhat I was expecting… but Brooke, you know I have only ever wanted you to find happiness.”
There’s some more conversation. Brooke is a little weepy; she’s going to tell her husband and kids when she gets home. Tatum is tempted to go out to the kitchen to give Brooke a hug herself; this is a major thing to come to terms with at their age, good for her, she should leave the jerky husband, find some hot new chick, and start over.
Brooke has a ferry to catch, her Lyft is pulling in; she and Hollis say goodbye and then the house is quiet. Tatum hears Hollis ask the dog if she wants to go for a walk.
Tatum gets out of bed, creeps to the window, and watches Hollis and Henrietta head down the hydrangea-lined driveway.
It’s now three minutes past eight.
Tatum sits on the edge of the bed. Her stomach makes a squelching noise. Should she try to use the bathroom?No, just call already,she thinks.
The call is picked up on the first ring. “This is Dr. Constable.”
“Good morning, this is Tatum McKenzie?” Tatum clears her throat. “You left a message on Thursday morning saying my biopsy results were in?”
“Oh, hello, Tatum, yes, sorry I missed you.”
