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“They’d think I was an idiot, and they’d be right.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m Abigail Ellison: Man Eater, remember? I’m not interested in monogamy or marriage or babies.” I tossed my head and recited my mantra. “A man is for now, not forever.”
The click of a pen floated through the phone before Adam asked, “And that’s what makes you happy?”
“I’m happy knowing my heart’s safe,” I retorted.
“Abbie—”
“It’s getting late, and I’ve got to get back to the loft.” I got to my feet and brushed the dust from the back of my legs. Adam knew all about the rumours I’d faced in high school. He understood why it was important that I write the rules for my own sex life, and there wasn’t any point rehashing it now. “Will needs my help with the baby again tonight.”
Adam sighed but let me change the subject. “And what did the insurance company say about your apartment? How long until you can move back in?”
My fingers strayed to the card tucked into the waist of my yoga pants, the assessor’s name and number printed on one side. He’d said to call him late the following day to confirm that my place would be habitable again. It would take more time to repair the yoga studio, but my apartment wasn’t too badly damaged, and I could be sleeping in my own bed again in as little as forty-eight hours.
“Seven days, at least,” I replied, hating myself for lying to one of the few people in the world who always got the truth from me.
But the damage to my place was the perfect cover story. This way, I could stay at Will’s loft while he prepared for Birdie’s event. He’d never come right out and ask for my help, and if I was homeless, he’d go on believing he was the one supporting me.
I couldn’t admit, even to my brother, that as much as I wanted to be there for Will while he learned how to be a dad, more than anything else, I just wanted to bethere.
14
Abbie
I went to seeMama on the way back to the loft. The front door to the house was open, and people swarmed in and out with boxes and bags of stuff to sort through for the charity sale. That should have set off alarm bells, but it wasn’t until I ran into Dawn Linley in the hallway that I realised my rookie error.
“Abigail!”
Dawn stalled in the middle of the tight hallway, blocking traffic behind her. Her blonde hair was loose around her shoulders, a few of her trademark plaits peeking out here and there, and she was in linen overalls today. I leaned into one wall to give the grumbling old man behind her space to squeeze past with a bulky old ice-cream churner in his arms, but Dawn beamed up at me, oblivious.
“Hey, Dawn.” I gave her a genuine but quick hug. I adored Dawn most days… and in small doses. “I wish I could stop and chat, but I need to talk to Mama—”
“Nancy’s out back in the dining room. She runs a tight ship, your mother.”
I smiled at Dawn’s roundabout complaint. “She definitely likes things to be organised.”
Dawn sidled up closer and dropped her chin as well as her voice, and I was forced to duck my head to hear her. She had a gleam in her eyes I knew all too well. The gleam of a bird who got the worm and wants the whole world to know about it. I gave her a blank look like I didn’t know what was coming. I’d learned that playing dumb with Dawn was the fastest way to wrap up a conversation.
“Lori called me late last night,” she murmured. “Told me all about you moving in with Will and the baby.”
“I’m not moving in exactly. I’m staying at his place while my apartment and studio are out of action.”
“Of course, of course.” Dawn tilted her head to one side and gave me a speculative look. “It’s just fortuitous, don’t you think? The baby and the flooding happening on the same day.”
I spared a smile for Burt the Third, who lurched past us, dragging three bulky striped plastic bags. He returned it with a nod and kept on moving.
I looked at Dawn blankly. “Sorry. What?”
“You know I don’t like to gossip,” Dawn went on, “but Nancy tells me things are starting to get serious, and if you ask me, it’s about time. I mean, we all know Will has a history of, ah, playing the field—”
“You don’t believe everything you hear, do you, Dawn?”
I widened my eyes innocently as Dawn blinked uncertainly, then bit my lip to stop a chuckle.
“Of course not. No. But you know how much I dislike a mystery.”
