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“Right,” Sonia said unsteadily. “We have.”
Adrienne coughed delicately, giving Sonia a significant look.
“He even called me today to make sure I’d reach out to you,” Mary went on. Sonia’s stomach flipped. “Anyway, he thinks you’re brilliant, and I completely agree. In addition to offering support, I’d also like to talk about commissioning a dance.”
“Oh.” Sonia’s mouth fell open. She snapped it shut. “That’s great. What guidelines do you have in mind? Because I have to warn you, I don’t work well with creative constraints—”
Adrienne was shaking her head vigorously, but Mary laughed.
“He said you’d say that. Since you value freedom so highly, let’s have the dance be about that. The rest is up to you.”
“Thank you,” Sonia blurted. “I can’t tell you how much this means to me. I really look forward to meeting you.”
Her head spun as they arranged a date and ended the conversation. When she set the phone on her nightstand, her grandmother was watching her with a wry smile.
“So he’s unreliable, hmm? Dishonest? Making it all up?”
“Just stop.”
“What favor do you think he’ll try to collect?” Adrienne asked innocently. “Will you attempt to ‘rearrange his face’ if he comes to watch your commissioned piece on freedom? Which he essentially recommended?”
“Grandma.”
“Are you going to give him a chance?”
“You just want to see him again, don’t you? Preferably in his boxers.”
“Darling, he’s doing everything he can to be there for you while leaving you alone. He’s clearly head over heels in love with you. I don’t know what secret he kept from you; it’s none of my business. I just want to make sure that whatever you’re passing judgment on, it’s for his actions alone and not for anyone else’s. And that you’re giving him a fair trial.”
Sonia buried her face in her hands. “I’m scared,” she whispered. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone. If I care, he can hurt me.”
“That’s the story of life,” Adrienne said drily. “You have to decide if it’s worth it.”
37
Tuesday
10:10 p.m.
Ahundred lights illuminated the reflecting pool on the National Mall.
The spire of the Washington Monument rose at one end, and the Lincoln Memorial stood majestically at the other. Beneath the trees that lined the reflecting pool, Sonia paced along the path.
After her conversation with Mary, she’d texted two words to Brendan, because she didn’t trust herself to stay strong if she heard his voice.
Let’s talk.
His response came so quickly, it startled her.Name the time and place.
Scanning the sidewalk in front of the pool, Sonia plucked at her gray T-shirt and jeans. She hadn’t primped for the meeting, but she’d at least showered.
She’d suggested meeting in a public place on neutral ground. But seeing the Mall reminded her that it was anything but neutral. It held her memories of the past and Brendan’s dreams of the future. It held the two of them rolled up together in a picnic blanket, cocooned from the world, suspended in time.
Squaring her shoulders, Sonia waited at the edge of the pool.
Five minutes later, she heard pounding feet. Brendan was running toward her, dressed in a suit and tie, holding a bouquet of stargazer lilies that shook in the breeze.
Apology flowers.Sonia shook her head. How manipulative could you get?
