The Friendship List(58)

Unity smiled encouragingly. “Did you try out?”

“I did.”

“And you got in?”

He nodded.

She smiled happily. “That’s so great. What was the show?”

He had no idea what she was going to say or do, but knew that she was likely to surprise him.

“I was a stripper.”

  Unity waited for the rest of the sentence. Some addition that would change the meaning. Like “I’m kidding. I worked as a clown.” But Thaddeus only watched her watch him, as if gauging her reaction.

“A stripper?” she asked.

He nodded.

“You took off your clothes.”

“Down to a G-string.”

“I don’t know what that means,” she admitted. “I understand all the words and I know what a stripper does, but you can’t have been one.”

“Why not?”

“Because I know you and it’s just too unexpected.”

Their server returned with their food. Unity immediately reached for a french fry. A stripper. She tried to picture it, wasn’t sure if she wanted to, then realized even if she did, she couldn’t.

“I have no experience with strippers,” she admitted. “I’ve never seen anything like that.”

“Why does that not surprise me?” He picked up his burger. “I did it for about seven years. The money was good, especially after I became a headliner. I put myself through college, bought a house, moved my mom in with me.”

“If you made that much money, you must have a really great body,” she blurted before she could stop herself. “I’m not sure I could earn enough to buy a coffee if I took my clothes off.”

He’d just swallowed and started to choke. Unity watched him anxiously until he motioned that he was fine.

“It’s not about perfection,” he told her. “It’s about making the audience happy.”

“Yeah, I couldn’t do that, either. How did you get into investing?”

“Someone I knew was starting a business and needed cash. I helped him out. The business took off. I invested in a few apartment buildings and they did well. I got a divorce and my mom passed away the same year. That’s when I packed it up and moved to Seattle.”

“To be close to Dagmar?”

“She’s my only family. I tried to get her to move over to Bellevue with me, but she’s a stubborn lady.”

“She loves Silver Pines. She would never leave it.”

“That’s why I make the drive.”

Stripping. She couldn’t imagine. “Was it difficult to do? At the audition?”

“Not really. They tell you to come in with a bathing suit on, so it’s not that big a deal. The guy who told me about the auditions gave me some pointers. I took a few classes.” He watched her as he spoke. “You don’t seem upset.”

“Why would I be upset? You mean morally?” She shook her head. “No. I have no problem with that. It’s more the strangeness of it. Like I just found out you have a llama herd or something.”

“A llama herd?”

“I’ve never known anyone with llamas. It must have been hard working nights. I know people do, but it’s not our bodies’ natural rhythm. I would guess entertainers have a whole different sleep cycle. I get up early—I’m not sure I could adjust.”

Thaddeus’s expression was unreadable, but if she had to guess, she would say he was wondering when she’d grown her second head.

“What?” she demanded.

“That’s your big concern? My sleep cycle?”

“What did you expect? How do most women act?” She ate another fry, then wrinkled her nose. “Oh, no. Do they ask you to strip for them? That could be awkward. I mean if it was organic to the moment, but to have someone you care about expect that sort of thing... It could be demeaning. Or maybe dehumanizing. One of the D words. I absolutely could not handle that.”

She looked at him and grinned. “No offense. I couldn’t handle anyone stripping. Seeing another man naked? I would totally freak out.”

The two-headed look returned. “Why? Guys pretty much all look the same.”

“Yes, but I’ve only ever seen Stuart naked.”

“Now you’re the llama farmer.”

She waved her burger. “Why is that shocking?”

“You’ve only been with one guy?”

“That’s not unusual. I was a virgin when we married.” She smiled. “Well, maybe not technically. But it was really close.”

“How was it close?”

“I felt guilty that we’d had sex.”

Thaddeus laughed. “Guilt counts?”

“Yes. Everybody knows that. Anyway, we started dating young. He was the only guy I dated or kissed or anything.” She took a bite and chewed. “I think it was because I lost my family. I was looking to belong somewhere and Stuart made that possible. We could belong to each other.”

“That’s very insightful.”

And unanticipated, she thought, in surprise. She hadn’t married Stuart to belong—she’d married him because she loved him. There was no other reason.

“So what’s your thing with llamas?” Thaddeus asked.