black T-shirt with the signs of the Zodiac on it, but it was tired-looking, and she threw it back in the drawer.
“There must be some kind of legal issue here,” Seth said. “Maybe she’s incapable of signing anything, and her brother has to sign for her.”
“Get ahold of yourself,” Dahlia said. “I mention a big deal to Louie, and the next thing you know he’ll get greedy ideas and try to call Marty Melman. He could blow the whole thing right out of the water. I’d forge her signature before I’d do business with Louie.”
She stopped folding an olive green T-shirt she liked to wear with her camouflage jeans and looked at Seth. “Believe me, I thought about putting two signatures on the thing, telling Marty that Sunny signed it, andthat’s it. The problem is, that little monster Louie not only remembers the song, he remembers it better than I do. He sang every word of it to me using a hose nozzle as a microphone. He’s not going to hear that song in the movie and say, ‘Isn’t that nice?’ He’s going to say, ‘Where’s my sister’s piece of the action?’ And the only way his sister is going to get her share is if she signs the contract. So I’m going to San Diego to get her to do it.”
Dahlia placed the T-shirt on top of the camouflage pants and stood gazing absently into the suitcase. “I can’t believe I’m standing here wondering what I’m going to wear. If Louie’s description of Sunny was accurate, she’s probably not going to notice my outfit.”
“Dahl,” Seth said, sitting on the bed, “this has fiasco written all over it. Let’s talk it through for a minute. Okay?””
Oh, no. Here we go, she thought. Her face flushed, and she tried not to flare. He’s going to try to talk me out of this. Either by making me feel guilty for doing something bad to my “poor crazy cousin” or by starting in again about how it’s only money and he doesn’t care about money. This is what happens when you’re with a man who has no ambition. He was satisfied doing what he was doing and earning his meager salary doing it. She was someone who worked all day and night standing over people’s bodies, kneading their flesh with aching hands and arms, only half listening to their stories, wanting to say to them, “Could you just go to sleep? I don’t care about your dog’s asthma or your sister’s diabetes,” and this little talk Seth wanted to have was going to be designed to make herthink that the way her life was now should be good enough for her forever. What was that quote he always ran by her? “Stop living the life you planned and live the life you were given.”
“Tell you what,” she said, closing the suitcase. “I’ll just go down there and feel it out. I’ll leave you at the hotel pool and go over there by myself. Worst case? The whole thing inspires a song or two.”
“But maybe she’s in such bad shape that it’s a real bad idea?” he tried.
“Or maybe it’s the best idea anyone ever had,” she said.
“My Jeep’s got a real bad leak, and I can’t drive it that far. Think the junk heap can make it?” Seth asked, putting an arm around her. It was his way of telling her he wouldn’t fight her. He’d go with her even if it was a fool’s errand. Dahlia nuzzled her face into his hair.
“Guess it’ll have to,” she answered. He smelled so good, and she loved him in her bed, but she wasn’t going to give up this sliver of a possibility that she could have the life she’d planned, not this floundering-around life she’d been given.
In the morning it was still dark, four-something on the blue digital numbers on the clock, when she woke up with Seth wrapped around her and the possibility that something good was about to happen filling her. I might have a song in a movie, was her first thought. I might be able to dig myself out and write songs again. Slowly she extracted herself from Seth’s arms, padded into the living room, and sat at the
“There must be some kind of legal issue here,” Seth said. “Maybe she’s incapable of signing anything, and her brother has to sign for her.”
“Get ahold of yourself,” Dahlia said. “I mention a big deal to Louie, and the next thing you know he’ll get greedy ideas and try to call Marty Melman. He could blow the whole thing right out of the water. I’d forge her signature before I’d do business with Louie.”
She stopped folding an olive green T-shirt she liked to wear with her camouflage jeans and looked at Seth. “Believe me, I thought about putting two signatures on the thing, telling Marty that Sunny signed it, andthat’s it. The problem is, that little monster Louie not only remembers the song, he remembers it better than I do. He sang every word of it to me using a hose nozzle as a microphone. He’s not going to hear that song in the movie and say, ‘Isn’t that nice?’ He’s going to say, ‘Where’s my sister’s piece of the action?’ And the only way his sister is going to get her share is if she signs the contract. So I’m going to San Diego to get her to do it.”
Dahlia placed the T-shirt on top of the camouflage pants and stood gazing absently into the suitcase. “I can’t believe I’m standing here wondering what I’m going to wear. If Louie’s description of Sunny was accurate, she’s probably not going to notice my outfit.”
“Dahl,” Seth said, sitting on the bed, “this has fiasco written all over it. Let’s talk it through for a minute. Okay?””
Oh, no. Here we go, she thought. Her face flushed, and she tried not to flare. He’s going to try to talk me out of this. Either by making me feel guilty for doing something bad to my “poor crazy cousin” or by starting in again about how it’s only money and he doesn’t care about money. This is what happens when you’re with a man who has no ambition. He was satisfied doing what he was doing and earning his meager salary doing it. She was someone who worked all day and night standing over people’s bodies, kneading their flesh with aching hands and arms, only half listening to their stories, wanting to say to them, “Could you just go to sleep? I don’t care about your dog’s asthma or your sister’s diabetes,” and this little talk Seth wanted to have was going to be designed to make herthink that the way her life was now should be good enough for her forever. What was that quote he always ran by her? “Stop living the life you planned and live the life you were given.”
“Tell you what,” she said, closing the suitcase. “I’ll just go down there and feel it out. I’ll leave you at the hotel pool and go over there by myself. Worst case? The whole thing inspires a song or two.”
“But maybe she’s in such bad shape that it’s a real bad idea?” he tried.
“Or maybe it’s the best idea anyone ever had,” she said.
“My Jeep’s got a real bad leak, and I can’t drive it that far. Think the junk heap can make it?” Seth asked, putting an arm around her. It was his way of telling her he wouldn’t fight her. He’d go with her even if it was a fool’s errand. Dahlia nuzzled her face into his hair.
“Guess it’ll have to,” she answered. He smelled so good, and she loved him in her bed, but she wasn’t going to give up this sliver of a possibility that she could have the life she’d planned, not this floundering-around life she’d been given.
In the morning it was still dark, four-something on the blue digital numbers on the clock, when she woke up with Seth wrapped around her and the possibility that something good was about to happen filling her. I might have a song in a movie, was her first thought. I might be able to dig myself out and write songs again. Slowly she extracted herself from Seth’s arms, padded into the living room, and sat at the
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