Hathaway nodded enthusiastically.
“Yes,” he said. “I think you
probably are. He seems harmless to me.”
called Colonial fanding. It was a series of contiguous town houses painted gray with white shutters. Jesse’s had a living room, kitchen with dining area, and a half bath on the first floor, two bedrooms and a full bath on the second. The living room faced the ocean and there were wall-width sliding doors that led out onto a small deck over the water.
The place was new and had an unused quality to it which Jesse felt worked with his circumstances. He stood on the little deck and drank scotch on the rocks and watched the brisk chop of the Atlantic prancing in against the rust-colored stone below him. It had been a month yesterday since he’d leaned on the railing in Santa Monica late at night and watched the black Pacific and said goodbye.
His glass was empty. He went back in to add some ice and splash in some more Black Label when the phone rang.
His short-nosed Smith & Wesson in its black holster lay on the table beside the phone.
“Jesse?”
“Yeah, Jenn.”
“You didn’t give me a number,”
Jennifer said. “I had call information.”
“Here I am,” Jesse said.
“You didn’t say goodbye.”
‘
“No.”
“You don’t sound glad to hear from
me.”
“I guess I don’t.”
Jesse took a drink of scotch.
“You miss me?”
“Less.”
“I don’t know if I like you missing me
less, Jesse.”
“I’m trying not to worry too much about that.”
“Whether I like something?”
“Yeah.”
“You all right?”
“Sooner or later,” Jesse said.
“You like the new place?”
“Too soon to say.”
“You meet anybody?”
“Met a lot of people.”
“No,” Jennifer said, “you fnow
what I mean. You to get out more, Jesse, you ought to date, make You met any nice girls?“
“I think they call them women here, Jenn.”
“Well did you?”
“Day at a time, Jenn.”
“What time is it there?”
“Eight-forty-five in the evening.”
“It’s quarter to six here.”
“That would have been my guess.”
“I got a nice audition tomorrow, new series on Fox. I I’m just fight for the part.“
“I’m sure you are,” Jesse said.
He twirled the small revolver aimlessly as he talked to her, the phone hunched between his left shoulder and his neck. With his right hand he swirled the ice in his glass for a moment, then drank some more scotch.
“You drinking, Jesse?”
“Couple.”
“You need to be careful of that.”
“Sure.”
