Cherry finally took Andrea’s call.
Andrea was going to get Tom everything: An executive producer credit. A piece of the backend. First run at the screenplay.
Tom quit his job, and it was the firstrealthing that happened because of his success—and the first unalloyed good thing. He got to walk away. (And Cherry didn’t have to be a party to firing him.)
They went out to dinner to celebrate. They called it their sixth anniversary celebration, too, because Tom was going to miss the actual date of their anniversary—his publisher was sending him to a librarians’ conference in Cincinnati. Rachel, the publicist, said that librarians loved him.
There were so many conferences. And award ceremonies. And book festivals.
The production company wanted Tom to come out to Los Angeles to collaborate with an experienced screenwriter on the movie script.And then they wanted him to come back to L.A. to meet with the director.
Tom’s suitcase sat in the foyer when he was home. He never unpacked it; he did laundry on the road. “Hotels will wash your pants for fifteen dollars,” he told Cherry, “and your underwear for seven.”
His first big royalty check hit their bank account with a thunderclap. Tom wasn’t home enough for them to talk about how to spend it. When he was home, his head was somewhere else. He was always on deadline. He was struggling to keep up with posting new comic strips. He actuallymissedtwoThursdays in a row, for the first time ever.The Washington Postran a story about it.
Rachel booked his first TV appearance.
The Cutran a column about how he was “your new grumpy Midwestern crush.”
The second royalty check landed with a sonic boom. Tom was huge in France and the Philippines. Tom went to a book festival in Brazil.
Cherry had to come home for lunch every day to walk Stevie Nicks.
Tom sent her photos of high-speed train cabins and room-service cheese plates. His publicist took photos of him for theThursdayInstagram account. Cherry followed the account because Tom never sent her selfies.
Cherry went along on one promotional trip with him, fairly early on—to Japan. They were going to go to Tokyo Disney when he was done with his book events. They were going to fly first class. Her nephew came to stay with Stevie.
The flight was long, and Rachel kept coming up from coach to go over business stuff with Tom. She was in her mid-twenties with messy red hair, and she was very, very sharp. She reminded Cherry of Natasha Lyonne.
When they got to Tokyo, Cherry was exhausted and perpetually in the way. She went to a giant bookstore signing—it was the first time she’d gone to one of Tom’s events—and one of his readers called her “Baby” and asked for a photo.
She skipped the rest of Tom’s Japanese appearances. She had so much work, and she was fourteen hours ahead of the Western Alliance team in Omaha. (Or ten hours behind.)
Tokyo Disney was wonderful. A rare charmed day with Tom. Followed by a rare charmed night in his arms. Both of them still jet-lagged. Cherry only mostly sure she wasn’t ovulating.
Tom was going on to Sydney after that.
He tried to talk Cherry into going with him, but she had to get back to work. And to the dog. And what would she do in Sydney, anyway—sit in Tom’s expensive hotel room and feel unnecessary?
She was melancholy and upside down. She cried on the plane on the way home.
She just wanted to get back to Nebraska.
Chapter 32
Today 8:10 PM
Faith
Cherry, Mom says you’re bringing your new boyfriend to Thanksgiving.
Cherry
I don’t know what she’s talking about.
Joy
Why aren’t you bringing him??? I thought you really liked him!!
