The Bequest
Chapter 53—Abigail

"Hey, Abs?" Amanda's standing in the doorway of her bedroom, which opens onto the hall near the kitchen. "Yeah?"

"You got a second?"

"Sure." I touch Robert's warm hand and squeeze it lightly, then I stand up and head for Amanda's room. After I walk inside, she closes the door. "Whoa, is something wrong?" I've never been invited inside the master before. She bursts into tears.

"Hey, what's going on?"

"I'm such a loser." I can barely make out what she's saying for all the heaving sobs. "It's been one year and you have two guys chasing you, and I have nothing and no one."

I grab her shoulders to try and snap her out of it, but she takes it as some kind of comforting motion and pulls me in for a hug. I don't think we've hugged in all the time we've known each other. The Brooks aren't really an affectionate family, and I'm only affectionate with my own children. I pat her back as non-awkwardly as possible.

"I'm sorry." She hiccups.

"What's going on?"

She sits me down and tells me about Eddy-how much she likes him even though they just met, and how he basically can't get involved with her because his past could wreck her image, which forms the basis for her entire career. "Lololime could even cancel the contract." She wipes her nose on her sleeve. Ick. "I checked. They have a clause for revelation of past infidelity."

I should probably offer to look over it for her... but wait. "You got the deal?" I reach across the bed and pat her knee. "That's amazing! I mean, why aren't you more excited?"

"I don't know!" she wails. "It feels like I can't be happy about anything."

"Was this the first guy since Paul you were really excited about?" I hate prying, but it feels like the only explanation for this kind of reaction.

She freezes. "You think I was excited about Paul?"

"You weren't?"

She laughs. "He was rich. He was tall. He was good-looking. He liked me."

"That's why you married him?" Please say no. Please don't let that be the reason.

She shrugs. "My family had no money, and I was the first child who was attractive. None of us were well educated."

Don't pity her. She'll see that on your face. I open my mouth, but I have no idea what to say.

"I knew it," she mutters. "I knew you and Nate really were happy."

"I think most couples are happy."

She rolls her eyes and groans. "You only think that because you were. It's pretty rare, I think."

I don't point out that her own logic could be applied to prove the reverse assumption. "Is Eddy going to the barbecue tonight?"

"He'll probably have a date who has a real job who makes something, or does something. It's not like it's hard for him-women take one look at his face="

"He is handsome. Those dimples."

She widens her eyes. "Are you kidding me? You already have two guys."

I laugh. "I have zero interest in Eddy, I can assure you."

"How did you and Nate stay happy?" she asks. "Was it all the hard work people are always talking about?"

I've never really understood all that claptrap. Life with anyone requires a lot of work. I like work. But things between me and Nate were never hard. They were the best part of my life. "I think it helps when you like them at the beginning. Truly like them, I mean."

It was apparently the wrong thing to say. She bursts out crying again.

"I'm so sorry," I say. "But for what it's worth, your biggest problem right now seems to be that you don't know how amazing you are. Eddy would be lucky to date you. You're gorgeous, you're talented-I've seen you run that business. It's not all pretty pictures and clever filters. You're also kind, and you're creative. Don't undervalue yourself."

"Says the Harvard lawyer with the perfect children."

"You mean the one who'll be going to community college this fall? Or do you mean the second grader who kept eating dried glue?"

"What?"

"After Nate died, Gabe started secretly pouring glue into the cubby on his desk, waiting for it to dry, and then eating it. I had no idea how to stop him-we took the glue away, but he'd find more. It was like trying to get rid of all the spinning wheels in Sleeping Beauty-it was a plan doomed to failure."

That, inexplicably, was the right thing to say. "So you're not one hundred percent perfect."

"Not even close," I say. "What should I do?"

"You should get dressed," I say. "Look like dynamite. Go to the barbecue, sit by Robert, and flirt outrageously if Eddy comes anywhere near. He may not want to be photographed for your account, but he's a red-blooded male. I bet he'll rise to the occasion if he sees someone else pursuing you."

"Do you really think so?"

"Let's see if Robert will help."

I pitch it perfectly, appealing to Robert's pride by describing him accurately as the hotshot big city lawyer with the pretty face, and giving him something to do while I'm on my date-flirt with another beautiful and age-appropriate woman. "Okay," he says. "I'll do it."

I knew he would. Sometimes dealing with men is like stealing candy from an inattentive grocery checker. Taking from babies was never a good analogy in my book. First, they eat their candy too fast. And second, there's too much guilt if you take something from them.

Steve and I agreed we'd meet at the barbecue, since his truck won't fit all my kids comfortably. So we all pile in to the van and minivan, and we head out. Luckily, parking isn't hard. Steve's waiting in front of the city building in faded jeans and a polo shirt.

He looks so different from the Rodeo Steve I saw earlier. This looks more like doctor Steve.

"What?" Robert asks. "No horse?"

Steve frowns.

Robert holds out his hand. "I'm Robert Marwell. I've worked with Abby for a long time. I saw you earlier, but we didn't really meet."

"Is this where you threaten to take me out back and shoot me if I break her heart?" Steve asks.

To my utter shock, Robert actually laughs. "I'm not sure I could shoot you before you punched me. I'm not the most violent person alive, but if I survived whatever you did, I'd be sure to slap a vicious restraining order on you afterward." Steve laughs too, and I hope that the rest of the night will be just as friendly. "Alright," I say.

The kids disappear faster than a box of name brand cereal in a house with six children.

"Amanda, allow me." Robert opens the door, and she walks in beside him, smiling. "What's going on there?" Steve asks.

If you're loving the book, nel5s.com is where the adventure continues. Join us for the complete experience-all for free. The next chapter is eagerly waiting for you!

I shrug. "They seem to have hit it off."

Two birds? Welcome to this one stone. It's called Abby the Brilliant. Sic Robert on poor sad Amanda and solve your problems and hopefully hers as well. "What kind of barbecue do you like best?" Steve asks.

I scrunch my nose. "Is this where I have to confess that I hardly eat meat at all?"

"Excuse me?"

I shrug. "It grosses me out unless it's hidden in stuff. Like, a little meat in a spaghetti sauce is fine as long as it's been simmered long enough so it's tender."

He takes my bowl of potato salad. "I'll try not to take it personally when you don't eat any of my brisket, then."

"You made it?"

"I also brought chili," he says. "It's kind of a tradition at this point."

As we walk inside, every single person we pass smiles and greets Steve, and all of them ask who I am. It's a little...embarrassing. It feels like I'm being weighed and judged and found wanting. "You look absolutely miserable," he whispers. "What's wrong?"

"Is it that obvious?"

"Only to me," he says.

"I don't know any of these people."

Kevin walks by, chatting with a cute brunette, and he stops. "Abby, so glad you came. This is my friend, Rachel."

I feel a little better once I'm acknowledged by someone, even if it's one of only four people here I know. "Food," I say. "I think I need food."