This was hearty pleasantry for Mrs. Maker’s benefit.
Eden stepped inside. She closed the door gently.
And then she gingerly sat in the guest chair they’d commuted in together to the sex couch.
In total silence, they regarded each other.
She was pale, and she looked like she hadn’t slept.
Then Gabe looked away, flipping a pen idly. Thump. Thump. Thump. Against his blotter.
“I think Mrs. Maker might be shaking down the PTA moms for cookies in order to get access to you,” she began. Lightly enough.
Her hands were knotted, however. Like that straw wrapper on the table between her and Jasper Townes.
“I’m going to look the other way,” Gabe said. “She doesn’t make all that much money. She has a killer pension, though. All school district employees do.” He said this pleasantly, too.
And yet everything seemed heightened. Sound. Sight. The air of the room almost hurt his skin.
He waited.
“Jasper Townes is Annelise’s father.”
The words basically blanked his mind.
He wasn’t entirely certain how many seconds passed before he spoke.
“Are you...” His voice was sandpaper raw.
“Sure? Yeah. Kidding? No.”
He was happy he had a baseball to squeeze. He wasn’t going to do that in front of her, however. She knew too much about him. He was suddenly furious at this fact.
“Did you want me to soft-pedal that, Gabe? Direct is what we do.” She didn’t sound conciliatory. Her words were all still taut.
Taut as guitar strings. Heh.
He shook his head, as this information sifted down through his awareness like a rain of shrapnel.
“You’re the first person I’ve told,” she continued. “Haven’t told my family. Haven’t even told Annelise yet. We’re telling her tonight.”
He breathed in.
Breathed out.
“We’re...”
“Me and Jasper.”
“Ah. You,” he said slowly. “And Jasper.” He made a sound. A humorless almost-laugh. “Sounds cozy.”
“It’s not even a little bit cozy. Ten years ago he was passing through just as his career was really taking off. He did an acoustic set at the Misty Cat. I was in town on Christmas break from school. I worked the show to help out my parents. We got to talking. One thing led to another. I slept with him.”
“As one does.”
“Yeah. Just once. But you know how that goes. That’s all it ta—”
“Thanks, I took sex ed, too, Eden.”