“Does he want to get back together?”
“Yes. His father is dying. He’s retiring from polo and will be taking over the family empire. His mother called me the other day and told me I should take him back. I told her no. I didn’t expect him to show up at my door.”
“Did he forget the whole part about him cheating on you? And what about the model?”
“She dumped him for someone younger.”
“Ha! Serves him right! What did Bam have to say about Dawson being there?”
“Yeah, that’s where things went downhill. I introduced Dawson to Bam as someone I work with. He looked hurt when I said it. Then he left.”
“Ouch. Why did you do that?”
“Because I didn’t want to have to explain it to Bam. You know how he is. If he thought Dawson was his competition, it would just make him try harder to win me.”
“And what do you want?”
“That’s the million dollar question,” she says.
“More like the billion dollar question,” I say with a laugh.
“After Dawson left, Bam asked for a bottle of wine. The wine that he told me never to open.”
“The one he wanted in the divorce so badly?”
“Yes, I wouldn’t give it to him because I figured he’d waste it on the bimbo. Anyway, we opened it, drank it, he told me he’s changed. That he still loves me. That he will be faithful. Then he got down on his knee and told me he’s loved me since he learned how to love. Then he proposed. Had a huge diamond ring to seal the deal.”
“Seal the deal? Did you say yes?!”
“He’s still waiting for my reply to that question.”
“Why?”
“Because, Keatyn, you don’t know what it’s like to have someone you love devastate you like that. You don’t know what it’s like to dream they will change their mind after they left you and come back and tell you what a mistake they made. And there’s something that touches your heart when you finally hear those words.”
“But you love Dawson.”
“Will you please tell me about his wife?”
I shake my head. “It’s not my place. That’s something he needs to share with you if and when he’s ready.”
“Fine. Will you at least tell me about the first time she tried to commit suicide?”
“You saw how she outed me at winter formal in the movie, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, in the movie, we said that she didn’t come back after winter break, but in real life she did. She sat alone at the lunch table, and I should have gone to sit with her, but Brooklyn had been kidnapped, and I had other things to worry about. That night we heard sirens, and I was afraid Vincent had broken in. The school was put on lockdown. But it was because Whitney had tried to kill herself. Peyton found her, was pretty hysterical, and felt responsible. I went to the hospital with her. Whitney’s mom was a total bitch. Still is, actually. She was sitting in the waiting room calling everyone she knew and moaning about how what had happened was affecting her! I yelled at her. Found out the man I thought was her father was really her stepfather. Peyton and I contacted her dad, and he came to see her. Her family was messed up. Supposedly, she was going to kill herself another time before but Dawson stopped her.”
“How?”
“I don’t think he even knows this, but he knew she was upset over his brother, and he told her he hoped they could be friends anyway. He gave her a hug, and she cried all over his shoulder. I guess that’s when she decided not to do it. And what got her and Dawson started.”
“It’s going to be hard to compete with a dead wife. Even if she was imperfect in life, she won’t be that way in death.”
“That’s true. But then again, life is messy—it’s supposed to be that way.”
“That’s a Brooklyn quote. I’m sorry I was so mean to you about him in high school. He was a good man and a good friend”—she stops and laughs—“Oh gosh. I just did it too.”
“Did what too?”
“In real life, I thought he could be hypocritical and selfish. But now that he’s gone—”
“You forget that. B was what he was—highly driven. And in the drive to succeed, he didn’t want a relationship or kids. He acted like all that mattered in life were the waves and chillness, but he enjoyed his money. I loved and adored him as a friend, but I’m very glad—”
“That you met Aiden.”
“Yeah.”
“You hit the jackpot with that one.”
“Vanessa, you just kicked your jackpot out of your house.”
“Bam? I don’t want a man who’s an asshole. Just because he has money he thinks . . .”
“I wasn’t referring to Bam.”
She stops and looks at me. “Dawson? You think Dawson is my jackpot?”