“I’ll put some gas in the Millennium Falcon.”
“I knew you’d come around. Okay, here’s the deal. Are you ready?”
“Hard to say.”
“Well, hold on to your pantaloons, because our girl Libby sent me a story.”
Jefferson’s throat went dry. A month of distance had done absolutely nothing if the thought of someone else getting anemailfrom Libby kicked his pulse into the red zone.
“She did?” There. That sounded calm. If you overlooked the epic pause.
“More or less. We got there eventually. Technically our verbal agreement still applies, which obviously gives me first dibs.”
“In your expert legal opinion as an employment attorney?”
“Sarcasm is not becoming in a person of your age, JJ. Now pay attention. She wrote something I want, and I need the visuals to go with. Which—if you’re playing along at home—is where you come in. With your camera.”
He paused to let the dust of that speech settle. “Is this another elaborate scheme?”
“What?” Hildy made a series of theatrical splutters and huffs. “You’ve gotten paranoid living out there in the woods alone. Why would you say that?”
“Because there are other photographers, and I’m guessing this alleged assignment is not in Wyoming. Am I getting warmer?”
“You would be. If you knew what was good for you.”
Jefferson recognized that resistance was futile. Not that he’d been trying very hard to escape Hildy’s machinations. “What’s the story?”
“I take it you haven’t been keeping up with her posts?”
“She’s still doing that?” He wasn’t sure why the thought bothered him; it was none of his business how Libby chose to represent herself online. Maybe he wanted to think her whole life had been turned upside down, the same as his, instead of going back to the status quo with barely a ripple.
“Just check it out, JJ. It’s calledSincerely, Libbynow. Unless you don’t want the gig?”
“I want it.” The words flew out before he had a chance to second-guess the decision.
“You mean you wanther,” Hildy translated. “I have to say, you might think it would get old, always being two steps ahead, but no. I’m still enjoying the ride. If you had a phone capable of FaceTiming, you’d be able to see me patting myself on the back right now.”
“My loss.” Though it would be nice to see her face. “You’re not mad anymore?”
“I’m trying to mature into a more forgiving human being. Except with a very small subset of people who will be my sworn enemies until death, but there’s only one person on that list so far. I’m willing to give Libby another chance, for your sake. And because the story is fantastic, which totally validates my initial instinct about her. Go, me.”
“You’re patting yourself on the back again, aren’t you?”
“Hair toss, actually. Listen, between you and me, Lillibet was a teensy bit annoying. Trying to hit that love-to-hate, beautiful-monster niche is always a gamble, so this is a much safer bet, branding-wise. All the warmth, none of the smugness.”
The Libby he knewwaswarm, with all the drowsy heat of a summer day, and just as golden. He’d doubted her at first, or at least his understanding of who she was, but it hadn’t taken long for the fog to clear. Whatever story she’d been selling, the Libby he’d met that first day on the beach had stayed the same person all along.
“How soon can you fly out?” The clacking of a keyboard underscored her words. “I’ll have my people make the arrangements.”
“I’ll buy my own ticket, Hildy.” He wondered if she could hear the smile starting to break free. “But thanks.”
Chapter 31
lovelillibetThere’s no way for any of us to know what we look like to other people. We might be out there stressing about our clothes or the weird thing our hair is doing and then someone passes us on the street and the only thing they notice is our earlobes.
I think the takeaway here is, why bother? You can’t control it, so we might as well let it ride. Think of all the time I’ve saved over the course of my life by not brushing my hair.
Sincerely, Libby
