Knitting Under the Influence (26 page)

VII

K
evin ended up staying so late at his parents’ that he went straight home to sleep, but he called Kathleen before she went to bed, and they agreed to meet at ten the next morning at a diner they both liked on Pico.

Kathleen got there first and nabbed a table, and when Kevin walked in the door, her first thought was, “Oh, good, I can order now, I’m starved.” Kevin spotted her, came over, kissed her briefly on the lips, and, as she flashed a smile at him, she wondered if this was what marriage felt like—nothing hot or exciting, just a mild relief that the waiting was over.

Kevin thumped heavily into the seat opposite her. “Hi.” He pulled a menu toward him. “I can't believe it's time to eat again— I’m still full from last night. We ate a huge meal of leftovers before bed. It was good, but I’m feeling it this morning.” He threw the menu down. “I think I’ll just have coffee and a cinnamon roll. You?”

“Pancakes.”

“Ah.” He nodded, like she had said something interesting. Kathleen yawned.

“How was your family's Thanksgiving?” Kevin asked.

“Fine.” She didn't have the energy to describe the Jordan situation. She figured she'd save it to make into a funny story when she felt the need to be entertaining. “What did your dad want?”

“He actually had some really exciting news.” Kevin looked around and lowered his voice. “He's got a bid in on a huge parcel of land in Bel Air. It's up in the hills, very private, with amazing views all the way to the ocean. He's thinking we could build a family complex up there—you know, a main house for him and Mom, and then a separate smaller one for each of the kids. So we could all live near each other, but we'd have our own private homes. Isn't that a great idea?”

Kathleen stared at him. “You're kidding, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“It sounds like a nightmare. All of you on top of each other, no privacy, no freedom—”

“I told you, it's very private.”

“Not if your whole family's there.”

Kevin laughed. “Kathleen, I
like
my family. And my parents aren't getting any younger. I like the idea of being able to keep an eye on them.” The waitress approached their table, and they ordered.

Once she was gone, Kathleen leaned forward. “Kevin, seriously. Think about this. You already work for the family business. You spend all of your holidays and most of your vacations with your family. Do you really want to live with them, too?”

“Honestly? I think it sounds fantastic.” The waitress brought their coffees over and he shook a sugar bag before ripping it open and pouring it in. “I mean, I could see my parents and brothers whenever I felt like seeing them, but still escape to my own house whenever I wanted to be alone. Or, you know… with my wife.” There was a slight pause. “Whoever she might be.”

Kathleen shifted back in her chair, poured some cream in her coffee, took a sip and said, “She'd have to really like spending time with your family.”

“I guess so,” he said. “Or at least be willing to learn to.” There was another pause. Then: “Did I tell you Dad wants to build an enormous pond? It's the coolest part of this whole plan—it would touch on everyone's separate property, so you could actually
swim
from one yard to the other. Or kayak. How much would kids love that? Tons of cousins all growing up together, kayaking around, visiting each other, like a family of otters or something. Doesn't that sound great?”

“Yeah,” she said.

“And you're such a good swimmer …”

She didn't say anything.

“Kathleen,” Kevin said, and she raised her head to look at him. His temples were shiny with sweat. “Kathleen, all this talk last night about building homes and families and all that—it made me realize how much I want to start building my own family.”

“Building?”

“You know what I mean. I’m thirty-four years old. I’m ready to be a dad. It's all I’ve been thinking about lately. How much I want kids and a family.”

“You'd be a nice dad,” she said.

“I’m glad you think so. Because I don't think I’d be feeling that way if I hadn't found someone who I want to have those kids with.”

She took a deep breath. “Me.”

“You.” He reached over and took her hand in his. “I should have a ring to give you,” he said. “I wish I did. But we could go right now and buy one together. Have our breakfast and then go straight to Tiffany's. What do you say?”

She stared at him, wondering if she had heard him right, knowing she had. Kevin Porter—man of millions—was asking her to marry him. This was what she had wanted all along. Wasn't it? Shouldn't she be feeling excited and triumphant? All she really felt was suddenly and overwhelmingly exhausted—too tired to know how to react. “Wow,” she said.

“Will you marry me, Kathleen?”

She opened her mouth to answer but realized she didn't have an answer. So she closed it again. Then she realized she had to say something, so she said, “I think I need a minute. I’m sorry. I just … It's a big surprise.”

“I know,” he said. “I know it's sudden.”

“It's amazing,” she said. “And sweet. But—” She stopped.

“Sudden.”

“Yeah.” She detached her hand from his. “I just need to think. Give me a second, will you? I’ll be right back.” She took her purse off the back of her chair and crossed through the restaurant to the ladies’ room. She glanced back as she closed the door. Kevin was staring at his coffee mug. She locked the door behind her and fished her cell phone out of her purse. She paced around the small, cold room as she dialed.

“Hello?”

“Oh, good, there you are,” Kathleen said. “Kevin proposed to me. Just now, over breakfast. One second we were talking about real estate and the next he was asking me to marry him.”

“Whoa!” Sari said. “You're kidding!”

“I’m really not.”

“So did you say yes?”

“Why?” Kathleen said. “Do you think I should?”

“Don't ask
me
Haven't you answered him yet?”

“I said I needed a minute to think about it.” Kathleen leaned against the locked door. “You have to tell me what to do, Sari. Should I say yes or no? Or maybe? I think I could put him off for a while without completely discouraging him—”

“God, Kathleen, I don't know! I can't decide for you. Do you love him? Do you
want
to marry him?”

“I don't know. How do people know something like that for surer?”

“Why are you asking me?” Sari said. “Me, of all people? I’ve never been proposed to. I don't even have a boyfriend. Ask someone who's married.”

“You're the only person I trust. Come on, Sari, help me out.”

“If you really want my advice, I think you should ask him to wait. Tell him you love him but you're not sure yet whether you're ready to settle down. Buy yourself some time.”

“Okay,” Kathleen said. “That's a good idea. Thanks. How was dinner at your parents’?”

“It was horrible.”

“What happened?”

Sari laughed. “Kathleen, somewhere not far from you there's a man waiting to hear whether the girl of his dreams is going to marry him or not. Do you really want to hear about my miserable Thanksgiving?”

“Yes. I really do.”

“Then call me later. I feel for Kevin, even if you don't.”

When she came back to the table, Kevin was half turned in his chair, watching for her. The waitress had brought their food, but he hadn't taken a bite.

“So?” he said, trying to keep his voice casual. “Any decisions?”

“Not yet.” She slid into her chair and took a deep breath. “Here's the thing … I think I probably do want to marry you. But I’m not ready to say it for sure. Not yet.”

He reached around the plates for her hand and squeezed it. “I know. I sprang this on you pretty suddenly. I mean, I was up all night thinking about it, but for you, it's been all of five minutes.”

“I probably just have to get used to the idea. I’ve been single all my life, you know.”

“Glad to hear it,” he said. There was a pause. Then, “Want to go to Hawaii with me?”

She laughed. “You're full of offers today. When were you thinking?”

“Now. This afternoon. My parents’ house is right on the beach and the walls on the ocean side are all glass so it's just you and the ocean and the waves. We'd be all alone there—no families, no work, nothing but each other and the most beautiful beach in the world. It's a good place to think about things. And make decisions.” He pressed the back of her hand to his lips. “What do you say, Kath? Will you come with me?”

“How could I say no to that?”

“You can't.” He kissed her hand one more time before releasing it. “And do you know what the waiting period is for a marriage license in Hawaii?”

“No. What?”

He grinned. “There isn't one.”

VIII

L
ucy and Sari met at Sari's apartment on Sunday, because ‘Sari refused to go to Lucy's now that she had a cat.

“I can't believe it,” Lucy said, once they were settled with their coffee and knitting. “I just can't believe it. That she's in Hawaii right now with one of the richest bachelors in the country, trying to decide whether or not to marry him.”

“I know,” Sari said. “Only Kathleen.”

“And meanwhile I’m stuck here, trying to figure out what to do with my remaining six skeins of green yarn.”

“That's not enough to make much of anything other than a scarf,” Sari said. “Couldn't you salvage any of the yarn you ripped out?”

“It got all curly and stretched out,” Lucy said.

“I think there's a way to fix that.”

“Plus I threw it down the trash chute.”

“That's a bigger problem.” Sari knit another row while Lucy leafed through a knitting book she had brought with her.

“It's hard to start something else,” Lucy said after looking at a bunch of patterns. “I was so excited about knitting a sweater for James and now look what happened. It was all a big fat waste of time. It's ruined knitting for me forever— Ooo, that's cute!” She showed Sari a knit hat that had bands of different colors and a narrow brim, and they both exclaimed over it.

“Why don't you make that?” Sari said. “It wouldn't take long. You could do it just in that green—no stripes.”

“But I don't wear hats,” Lucy said.

“Maybe you should start. It seems like a good time to try something new.”

“The way things are going, if I try to knit a hat, my head will get cut off.”

“You're fun to be with today,” Sari said.

“I can't help it.” Lucy flung the book aside. “We're stuck here and meanwhile Kathleen's lying on a beach somewhere in Hawaii, drinking pina coladas and probably having her butt massaged or something decadent like that. Why does she always get to be the lucky one?”

“Bet she's engaged by now,” Sari said.

“No way. She would have called us.”

“No, because it's three hours earlier there, right? They probably went out for a late dinner last night, and then Kevin asked her to go for a walk on the beach and then he told her she owed him an answer and maybe even got down on his knees and pulled out a ring and—”

“I still think she'd call.”

“But it would have been like one in the morning there when it all happened,” Sari said. “Four a.m. here. And besides, once she said yes, they had to go back and immediately have sex, right? You've got to figure engagement sex is amazing.”

“You seem sure she said yes.”

“Of course she said yes. You don't say no when someone proposes to you on a moonlit beach in Hawaii, Lucy. Anyway, the point is they probably had sex and fell asleep.” She gestured at the wall clock. “It's still only eight in the morning there. She wouldn't even be waking up until around now. But as soon as she wakes up—”

The phone rang. The girls looked at each other and cracked up. “You can't be that right,” Lucy said. “No one is
that
right.”

“We'll see,” Sari said. She dropped her knitting and ran for the phone. “Hello?” Then: “Oh, wow. I didn't expect it to be
you.
Hi. What's going on there?”

“Who?” Lucy said. She had crept up to Sari's side and was desperately trying to hear what was being said. “Who is it? Who? Is it Kathleen?”

Sari held her off with the palm of her hand. “Wow, that's great!” she said. “I’m so excited for you! Congratulations!”

“What? What's great? What's exciting?” Lucy said.

“When? You're kidding. But—” A long period of time while the other person talked and then Sari said, “Yeah, it would be amazing. I totally want to. It's just … Well, hold on—let me ask Lucy.” She punched the hold button and looked at Lucy. “You won't believe this.”

Lucy groaned. “Will you just tell me?”

“It's
Kevin.
He proposed and Kathleen accepted, just like we thought. But she doesn't know he's calling us—he snuck off to call because he wants to fly us to Hawaii first thing tomorrow as a surprise for her. Because they're going to get married there in two days! Can you believe it?”

Lucy sank into a chair. “Holy shit.”

“He said if he flew her family out, his family might feel hurt, and he doesn't want to get into any of that, but he knows she'd want us to be there with her. There's a nine a.m. flight tomorrow, gets us in at noon, and the wedding would be the next day. We could take the red-eye back that night and only miss two days of work.”

“This is unreal,” Lucy said.

“I know! So what do you say, Luce? Should we do it?” She shook the phone at her. “I have to give him an answer. He's waiting.”

“What are you talking about?” Lucy said. “Of course we're going. We have to go.”

“What about work?”

“Fuck work,” Lucy said.

“Yeah,” Sari said. “Fuck work.” She punched the hold button again. “Kevin?” she said. “We're in.”

After she'd hung up, she looked at Lucy. “Fuck knitting, too,” she said. “Don't we need new clothes for Hawaii?”

“We do,” Lucy said. “We do we do we do.”