The Matchmaker's Gift(25)
“Michael did not betray me!” Evelyn stood and then froze in place. She closed her eyes and let out a heavy rush of air. For several long moments, she stood that way, breathing in and out, eyes closed, fists curled.
Abby could see that if Diane pushed any further, Evelyn would leave the conference room. Diane was used to aggressive lawyering, but right now, Evelyn needed something else. A line from the one Michael Gilbert poem Abby knew suddenly lit up in her brain.
“The flower forgives the sun its thirst, the fruit forgives the drought.”
Evelyn opened her eyes and stared at Abby. “That’s from Michael’s first book.”
Abby nodded. “I read it in college. I always thought it was a beautiful image. I’ve been racking my brain, but I can’t remember the next line.”
A trace of a smile formed on Evelyn’s lips. “The moon forgives his banishment when morning snuffs him out.” Slowly, she eased herself back into her chair. Abby refilled her glass of water and spoke with Evelyn for a bit about the other poets she had studied. Diane didn’t interrupt.
Before Evelyn left, she donned a pair of enormous dark sunglasses. “I want no ugliness with this divorce,” she reminded them. “I want it handled as sensitively as possible.” She shook Abby’s hand a beat too long. “Thank you for reminding me of that poem. I can only hope Michael will be as forgiving with me.”
* * *
After the meeting, Diane was unsettled. She motioned for Abby to come to her office, where she paced back and forth in front of the window. “I’ve never seen Evelyn like that before. With her other divorces, she was an absolute machine. Assertive, controlled. But today? She didn’t even look like herself. Those clothes, that makeup, crying over a poem? It’s like she’s turned into a completely different person! Whatever she did to that husband of hers, she certainly feels guilty enough about it.”
“Why do you think she did something to him?”
Diane shrugged. “Experience mostly. People don’t change. Evelyn cheated on her other husbands. Of course, to be fair, all of them cheated on her first.”
“I didn’t get that sense from the meeting, but you’d know better. I only just met her.”
“She liked you though. That was obvious.” Diane stopped pacing and tapped her fingers on her desk. She stared at Abby as if she’d never seen her before. “Why don’t you try taking the lead on this? It really couldn’t be more straightforward. I’ll talk to Evelyn, but I think she’ll agree. For some reason, she wants a gentle approach this time, and she seemed to respond to your … sensitivity.”
“Thank you, Diane.” Abby was grinning in spite of herself.
“It isn’t a compliment,” Diane snapped. “Maybe that romantic crap worked today, but that’s the last time I want you quoting poetry to my clients. People come to us for legal advice, Abby. I’m not paying you to run a goddamned book club.”
* * *
By four o’clock, the office was empty; everyone except for Abby had left early for the holiday. With no one to overhear or interrupt, she decided it would be a good time to call Will back. Like her, he was still in his office.
“Are we the only two losers still working?” she asked. “Sorry—I didn’t mean to call you a loser.” Abby tried to backtrack, but Will didn’t seem to be offended.
“Don’t worry,” he assured her. “I’m a complete loser, actually. Some say it’s part of my charm.”
Abby laughed. “Good to know.”
“I’m glad you called,” he continued. “I was worried I might have scared you off. Jason told me I got in touch too soon. He said I should have waited three days before asking you out again.”
“You should never listen to Jason,” Abby said.
“I don’t know about that. He said you were great. Brilliant and beautiful and—”
“There is no way my cousin used those words to describe me.”
“Okay, fine. I’m embellishing. But he definitely said that you were smart. What did he tell you about me?”
“Well, I first heard your name at my grandmother’s shiva, so, to tell you the truth, I wasn’t all that focused. He said you played poker together, and that you were a lawyer.”
“Your grandmother’s shiva?” Will sounded upset. “Abby, I had no idea. Jason never said a word about—God, I’m such a jerk. I’m so sorry.”
“Please don’t apologize. How could you have known? Anyway. I’m pretty sure Jason said you were nice.”
“Nice?”
“What’s wrong with nice?”
“Nothing, I guess, but calling right after your grandmother’s funeral makes me seem anything but. Honestly, I can’t believe you agreed to meet me.”
Abby wondered how much she should tell him. “I decided that my grandmother would have wanted me to.” As soon as she mentioned Grandma Sara, Abby felt something loosen in the center of her chest. It felt good to remember her grandmother out loud. “She didn’t think grief should get in the way of things. At least, that’s what she wrote in one of her journals. Something like that, anyway.”
“Her journals?”