CHAPTER 31
Joe
Twenty minutes after Berry left my apartment, Cate knocked on my door.
I opened it, forced a smile, and said, “Did you lose your key?”
She held it up and said, “No. It’s right here…. I wasn’t sure if I should use it—”
I smiled again and said, “I’m just glad you’re here. Come on in.”
She took two steps into my apartment, then stopped like she’d never been there before. I contemplated giving her a quick hug but decided against it. Instead, I turned and motioned her toward the kitchen. She followed me, and when we got there, she put the key down on the island. It was a bad sign, and my stomach dropped.
“You’re giving it back?”
She nodded, staring down at it.
“Okay, then,” I said. “I see where this is headed.”
She lifted her chin, which started to tremble, then said, “I’m sorry, Joe. For everything—”
“Oh my God, Cate. Are you really breaking up with me?”
“I just don’t think we’re right together—”
I cut her off and said, “Stop with the vague bullshit. Just give it to me straight. Is it over?”
She nodded, her eyes filling with tears.
“Fuck,” I said, my head spinning and my heart racing. “Is it someone else? Arlo?”
“No,” she said. She looked sufficiently horrified to put my mind at ease on that one point.
“Okay, then. What’s changed? Did I do something wrong?”
“No, Joe. It’s nothing like that. You didn’t do anything.”
“Then why? There’s got to be a reason.”
“It’s not just one thing….”
“C’mon, Cate,” I said. “Please don’t give me that ‘it’s complicated’ bullshit. I need a reason.”
“I just don’t think we’re compatible long-term.”
“How are we not compatible? We get along so well! We never fight,” I said.
“We just aren’t.”
I let out a frustrated sigh, then said, “So is this one of those ‘you like the thermostat up and I like it down’ type things? Or more like: you don’t want kids and are afraid to tell me?”
“It’s neither of those things…. It’s a lot of things….”
“Name one.”
“Well,” she said, crossing her arms. “You’re a Kingsley…and I’m…far from that.”
“Well, that’s a good thing, dummy,” I said, attempting a smile. “Because if you were a Kingsley, then that would be a problem.”
She forced a smile in return, then looked down at the counter again.
“Seriously, Cate. I’m going to need you to be a little more specific here,” I said. “I need a reason.”
“Reasons,” she said.
“Name them.”
She sighed, then said, “I didn’t even finish high school….”
“You’re fixing that. What else?”
“My mom and Chip—”
“Wait,” I said. “Did something happen?”
“Not that I’m aware of,” she said with a shrug. “But what if it does? It could hurt your career.”
“No, it couldn’t.”
“Yes, it could, Joe. Don’t be naïve. Chip could find a way. Besides, it’s just so embarrassing…. My background doesn’t go with yours. You belong with someone more like you—”
I suddenly felt squeamish, remembering what Berry had just confessed to me and wondering if Cate had some kind of women’s intuition. If that was the case, maybe she felt guilty—like she was in Berry’s way. It also occurred to me that maybe Berry or my mother had said something to Cate. Maybe one of them had actually told her that she needed to do this.
Feeling dizzy, I said, “Is this about Berry? Or my mother? Did one of them say something to you?”
She shook her head. “This is my decision, Joe. Not theirs.”
I let out a weary sigh, rubbed my eyes with my hands, and said, “Can we go to counseling? Would that help?”
“No,” she said. “I don’t think so.”
I nodded, unwilling to give up, but knowing that I probably didn’t have a choice. Cate knew her own mind; it was one of the things I loved about her.
I stared at her, overwhelmed by heartbreak, as she took a deep breath and said, “I did want to ask you something…and I’m sure you’ll think it’s a bad idea…. But if you want, I can still go to the wedding with you?”
“Really? You’d still come with me?” I asked. Relief washed over me, not only because I wanted her to be there, but because I still had an opening. A chance to change her mind.
She nodded and said, “Yeah. If you want me to.”
“Of course I do.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m positive.”
She nodded, then said, “What do we tell people? If they ask about the fight in the park?”
“Nobody will ask,” I said. “It’s none of their business, and we don’t owe anyone an explanation.”
“Okay,” she said, nodding.
“Will you wear my ring?” I asked.
She froze up, then said, “I don’t know, Joe.”
“Please?”
“Okay,” she said with a sigh.
Before she could change her mind again, I turned and went to my bedroom, fished the ring out of my top dresser drawer, and ran back to the kitchen.
“Here,” I said, handing it to her.
She gave me the saddest look, then took it and slipped it onto her right hand. I would have preferred the left, but it was better than nothing. I was back in the game, and I felt a dash of hope that I could win her back over the course of the weekend. For now, less was more, and I would focus on logistics. Take charge.
That’s when I got the idea to take my plane. Fly her down. Cate wasn’t a girl who got caught up in luxury, but I figured it couldn’t hurt.
“So, listen,” I said as casually as I could. “I think I’m gonna fly myself down to Annapolis…. Do you want a lift?”
Cate looked surprised. “In your plane?”
“Yeah.”
“But we already booked flights—”
“I know. But I thought this would be more fun. Plus, we can avoid the crowds and paparazzi,” I said, keeping my voice breezy.
“Have you ever flown that far?” she asked, chewing on her lower lip, looking worried.
“It’s not far at all. It’s a quick, easy flight. And Peter said the weather is looking beautiful this weekend,” I added. “Honestly, it’s a piece of cake.”
“Won’t your mother and Berry be worried?”
“Probably. But tough,” I said, making a point, just in case the two of them had anything to do with Cate’s change of heart.
“Okay,” she said, nodding. “What time would we go?”
“It’s obviously flexible. But I’m thinking we could leave the city around two or three. Get to the airport by four. Take off shortly after that. That way we’ll be landing right at sunset. It will be beautiful.”
She hesitated a few more seconds, looking down at her ring, as she twisted it twice around her finger. Then she looked back up at me, gave me a slight smile, and nodded. “Okay,” she said. “That sounds nice. Thank you, Joe.”