She turned and looked straight into his eyes for the first time in what seemed like weeks. ‘Danny, seriously, are you OK?’ she asked softly, her tone serious. ‘This conversation feels… strange. What’s going on with you lately?’
Danny cast his gaze directly on Brinkley, avoiding Beth’s eyes. ‘What? Nothing is going on with me. Everything is fine.’ He swallowed hard, and this wasn’t lost on her. However, she felt that if she pressed him on the subject, it was possible they may in fact end up having a ‘big talk’. That would be too much to face when she was having such conflicting thoughts about their relationship, and her growing feelings for Ryan. Never mind the mystery of the treasure hunt.
She turned her attention toward the screen and pressed play. ‘I suppose it is a Marilyn sort of day, and no, I’m not trying to tell you anything,’ she laughed nervously, finally answering his question.
‘Do you mind if I watch it with you?’ he asked, and Beth felt immediately sad that he was asking her for permission.
When did that start happening? When did they start tiptoeing around each other? She turned to him and gave him a small smile, wondering if Danny too felt the strangeness hanging in the air between them. And she considered the distance between them on the couch. She was at one end, he was at the other. There was a big gaping divide between them.
Again, when did that happen?
‘Of course you’re welcome to watch it with me. That would be nice,’ she said, meaning every word. Still concerned about the distance (metaphorical or otherwise) between them on the couch, and looking for a way to close it without being awkward, she jumped up. ‘I think I’m going to have some wine. Would you like a glass?’
He nodded. ‘Sure. That would be good.’
She made her way to the kitchen and selected a cabernet from their wine rack. Opening the bottle and pouring two generous glasses, she came back, handed Danny his glass and curled up next to him, her thoughts in a muddle.
While she felt happy that she had been able to casually close that space – at least the physical one – she still wasn’t sure what to do about the non-tangible void that existed in their relationship.
They settled into watching the movie and Beth felt somewhat comforted when Danny began playing with an errant lock of her hair. They hadn’t relaxed together like this, in a physical sense, in a long time.
She tried her hardest to push away the thought that by watching the movie with Danny she was inadvertently making him party to this treasure hunt of hers – an adventure likely started by another man. But who? Ryan? Billy, even? Beth felt a bit taken aback, not to mention uncomfortable, at having possiblytwoother men competing for her affections.
Like Bridie always said, ‘feast or famine’…
‘Did you know that Marilyn Monroe was quite well read?’ Danny commented idly. ‘She actually took literature classes at UCLA. People always assumed that she was just this vapid sex symbol. I’m sure that drove her crazy.’
Beth nodded as she tried to tune back in to the dialogue of the movie. ‘I did know that. It must have been hard. I mean, she was beautiful and sexy and adored by men and women alike, but misunderstood too. You can’t help but feel bad for her, especially since it ultimately led to her dying so young.’
‘Yes, and she was unlucky in love, to boot,’ he said.
Beth thought about the Yankees hat, and the information about Marilyn’s marriage to DiMaggio that Trevor had provided earlier. ‘Did you know her marriage to Joe DiMaggio only lasted nine months?’
‘I did know that. He apparently had a bad temper,’ Danny replied. ‘And he was incredibly jealous too. Not the best combo if you are married to a world-renowned sex symbol, I’d imagine.’
Beth sat up straighter and looked at him. ‘Since when do you know so much about Marilyn Monroe?’ she asked with a smile on her face, though it was no surprise. He had always been a fount of knowledge about this kind of stuff, and was a dab hand at pop quizzes, she thought fondly.
‘Well, I’m with you, aren’t I?’ Danny chuckled. ‘I’m obliged to know a thing or two about movie trivia.’
She laughed and settled back down next to him. There was something very comfortable about this at the moment. When she was like this – close to Danny, feeling normal – Beth could almost forget about the feelings that had lately been developing for Ryan.
‘And did you know that DiMaggio and Marilyn divorced practically right after this movie was made?’
Beth’s ears perked up. No, she hadn’t known that. She hadn’t even known that the couple had been married at the time of this movie. So perhaps things were starting to make sense…
‘Did they really?’ she asked in an easy tone, wondering if this connected to the clue somehow, yet at the same time feeling guilty for allowing the hunt to intrude on the cosy intimacy they were now enjoying. She focused her eyes on the TV, waiting for Danny to respond, but he remained quiet. Apparently he too was focused on what was happening on the screen.
Marilyn was wearing the famous white dress – possibly the most recognisable dress in all of film history. As ‘The Girl’ she meandered over to the subway grate, just as a subway train passed underneath, blowing her dress up around her thighs.
‘Do you feel the breeze from the subway? Isn’t it delicious?’ she asked Richard Sherman, played by Tom Ewell.
‘It sort of cools the ankles, doesn’t it?’ he replied, appreciating the view.
Beth sucked her breath in and tensed. There it was – the words she had been waiting to hear, the very words that had been sewn in to the scarf addressed to her.
And it was right in this most famous scene fromTheSeven Year Itch. She turned to Danny.
‘Why did DiMaggio and Marilyn divorce after this movie?’ she asked again, hoping he would know the reason. Ithadto connect to this clue.
