It’s the weirdest thing, how we get a sense about our couples. There must be subtle signals they’re putting out. So far I’ve been right on every couple I thought wasn’t going to make it.”
“Me, too.”
“So we’re psychic. That makes us special. How’s your mom?”
The change in subject, not to mention the recent mention of being psychic freaked out Renee just a little bit.
“She’s fine.”
“I saw her jogging through town on my way to work,” Pallas admitted. “I so need to get back into exercising. What does she do?”
“My mom?”
Pallas tilted her head. “I asked the question casually, but now I’m really curious. Is everything okay?”
“It’s fine. Completely. She’s great. As for what she does...” Renee held in a groan. She wasn’t handling the situation well at all. “She, ah, used to be hairdresser.”
“She seems young to have retired. Did she hit the lotto? Because that would be so fun.”
“No, not the lotto.” Renee knew there was no point in not telling her boss the truth. “She’s going to get her own show on Animal Planet.”
“What? Really? Her own TV show? That is so cool! What’s it about?”
“My mom knows what animals are thinking. So she can figure out if something’s wrong.”
She spoke as casually as she could, all the while bracing herself for derisive laughter or shrieking and pointing.
“She talks to animals?” Pallas asked.
“No, they talk. She just listens. It’s not a two-way thing.”
“I’ve never heard of that. It could be a really useful skill. Remember when we had the zebras at the black-and-white wedding? We could have used someone to intercede with them for sure.”
“I wasn’t here then,” Renee murmured. “But I heard about it.” The zebras had escaped and had to be rounded up.
“It would have been nice for someone to give them a stern talking-to.” She rose. “A show on Animal Planet. Your mom’s going to be a celebrity and I can say I knew her before it all happened. Cool.”
With that she walked out, as if nothing had happened. They were just talking—sharing idle conversation. First Jasper and now Pallas. While the acceptance was nice, it was very unexpected. In the past, people finding out the truth had been a disaster. She’d lost so much, including her own father. But maybe things were different this time. Or maybe the disaster was lurking right around the corner.
* * *
AS ALWAYS, WHEN the writing started to be a lot more work than usual, Jasper headed for town. Now that the summer heat had eased into slightly more reasonable fall temperatures, the tourists were back, so there was always something interesting going on. Maybe when it got closer to dinner, he would text Renee and see if she was available. With her mom in town, they might have plans. Still, she could invite him along.
He parked in one of the big public lots and headed for the river. Walkways lined both sides of Rio de los Suenos, as did stores and restaurants. The Boardroom was on the southeast side of the river, along with Chapel on the Green—competition for Renee’s Weddings Out of the Box. On the northwest side were lots of shops, including the Willow Gallery.
He paused to watch a stretch limo cross the river, no doubt taking a wedding party to their hotel before the festivities began in a couple of days.
He paused outside Starbucks, not sure he wanted coffee this late, then headed down the block to get a slice of pie. He’d just taken a couple of steps when he heard someone calling his name. He turned and saw Verity walking toward him.
“I thought that was you,” she said, waving at him. “You’re in town.”
“I am. Taking a break from the writing.”
“I’m exploring. Happily Inc is a wonderful little town. So charming. Did you see that huge limo that just went by?”
“It’s nearly the weekend. We’re all about weddings here. It’s big business.”
“Renee has mentioned that but I had no idea it was so all encompassing.”
He motioned to the 1950s-style soda shop up ahead. “I was going to get a piece of pie. Want to join me?”
Verity smiled at him. “I’m not much into pie but I would love a milkshake.”
“You’re on. Any flavor you want.”
She laughed and let him guide her into the brightly lit café.
“Brace yourself,” he said as they entered. “They take their time warp very seriously.”
There was a long counter at one end and big, red vinyl booths in front of the window. A working jukebox sat against the far