want to have dinner tomorrow night?” he asked her.
“Sure, I’d love that.”
“Great. I’ll pick you up at seven.”
She told Gemma about it the next day, and she teased her about it.
“Going back to old boyfriends, are we?”
“I’m married and he has a million kids,” Caroline said with a quelling look at her sister. The truth was that she had no idea how married she was at the moment. She and Peter had spoken on the phone now, but their conversations had been awkward and didn’t touch on the significant issues. But at least he’d called, and it seemed wiser not to broach the big issues until she got back to the city and saw him. She’d know more when she could see his face, and read what she saw in his eyes. She realized that there was a strong possibility that they were headed for divorce. She wasn’t sure if she had done the right thing kicking him out of the house. She had the feeling that she had thrown him right into Veronica Ashton’s arms. But letting him stay with her wouldn’t have changed that, if that was the case.
When Tom showed up that night at seven, he was driving his captain’s car. He said he had just come from work, but she had the feeling he was trying to impress her. It was fun getting in with him, and he showed her how the siren worked. He let her put on the flashing lights on the way to dinner. And they went to the same diner they used to go to as kids. It was still there, and so were two of the old waitresses, who recognized her. It was like a time warp. And Tom said he still ate there regularly.
“So what have you been up to for the past twenty years?” he asked her. She’d run into him once but hadn’t really talked to him. He’d been carrying the twins, his wife had a toddler by the hand and she was pregnant. Caroline had felt sorry for her. It was exactly the life she had wanted to escape when she left for San Francisco.
“Not much, being married, two kids.” She answered his question, and she told him about her young adult books, which he said sounded interesting. He asked what her husband did and she said he was in venture capital.
“A big guy, huh?”
“Not really. To be honest, I think we’re separated at the moment.” She tried to sound nonchalant about it.
“But you’re not sure?” He looked puzzled. “When my wife told me she wanted a divorce, believe me, I was sure. She threw a frying pan at me.” He laughed at the memory.
“Did you cheat on her?” Caroline asked, curious.
“No, I used to take three-day shifts at the firehouse to get away from the kids, and play poker with the guys. I lost a lot of money and she was pissed. I’m a good boy now. I can’t afford to play poker anymore. The kids need the money. She married my captain. He retired and runs a security alarm business, and does pretty well.” It was a small life with people struggling for money. Just hearing about those lives used to make her feel trapped, terrified that she’d become one of them. They didn’t scare her anymore, but they sounded sad to her. None of them had had a chance to live and get out of the Valley. Tom had been a bright boy. He had wanted to get a football scholarship to college, but got his girlfriend pregnant and got married instead.
“This must all seem very small town to you now,” he said, as though reading her mind. “I remember how desperately you wanted to get out of here. Are you glad you did?”
“I was until a month ago, now I’m not so sure. Things work out in either place, or don’t work out. I like living in San Francisco, but my marriage is a mess. We’re probably going to get divorced,” she said with a sigh.
“You’ll survive it, Caro. You’re a winner. You always were. If he’s not the right one, you’ll find a better guy than the one you have. If he’s making you unhappy, it’s not worth it. Ellen and I were never right for each other. She wanted a lot of kids, and she got them, two more after me. But as soon as we had them, she lost interest in me. She’s ambitious in a funny way,