Katherine leaned over to Toni. “She’s even pretty when she’s crying and angry.”
“I know. I’ve never really seen that before. I thought it only happened in movies.”
“I can hear you two.” Megan walked out of the closet holding a massive armful of lace and straps. “I am throwing all of this away. That’s the first thing I’m doing. I need all new underwear.” She looked pained. “Maybe not all of… No. I don’t want anything he’s had his hands on to even touch my body. I am getting all new underwear.”
It wasn’t what Katherine would have focused on, but then she couldn’t even imagine Baxter cheating on her, so she had no idea how she’d react.
“Oh God.” Megan reached her hand out. “Do either of you have your phone?”
“Yes.” Toni handed her a mobile. “Let me…” She unlocked it. “Here. I have a national plan, so if you need to call back east…”
Megan punched in numbers and nodded while the phone was ringing. “Hi, this is Megan Carpenter. Sorry, Megan Alston Carpenter, and I had a reservation for me and my friends at one and we’re just not going to make that because I drove home and found my husband cheating on me.”
“Oh my God, she’s calling the restaurant,” Toni said. “I thought she was calling her mom.”
“And she’s telling them about Rodney.” That was definitely a level of candor that Katherine would have avoided with unsuspecting restaurant staff.
Megan continued with a wavering voice. “Well, thank you for your sentiments, Laura; I really do appreciate that. And you’re absolutely right; your mother is a wise woman. I just wanted to call and let you know about the table so you’re not waiting on us. There’s no excuse for rudeness.”
Katherine had helped friends through divorce. Sadly two of her best friends from college had gone through the heartbreak. But she had a sneaking suspicion that helping Megan Alston Carpenter through a divorce was going to be in an entirely different experience.
Chapter 23
Toni and Katherine were sitting on the back deck, watching the tide come in that evening. Katherine had her leg elevated and was watching the surfers bob in the fading sunlight and catch a few last waves before they retired for the night.
“I feel kind of bad leaving her alone,” Katherine said.
“I feel the same way, but we don’t really know her children at all. I’m sure it would be strange for them to have two random women hanging around their house while their mom explains to them that their dad is a lying cheater.” Toni tapped the edge of her wineglass. “That is so fucked up.”
“I don’t understand men,” Katherine said. “Megan is one of the most positive and socially attractive people I’ve ever met. Not to mention she’s objectively beautiful and clearly very loyal.”
“You don’t understand men because you’re married to Baxter, who’s a male unicorn.”
Katherine almost snorted wine through her nose. “Sorry, what?”
Toni smiled. “A male unicorn. Your husband is smart and cute, has a great accent, and he completely adores you. He loves his work and he’s completely laid-back and confident. To most of us, he’s a mythical creature. Hence, a male unicorn.”
“A mythical creature? What about Henry?”
The faint hint of a blush appeared on Toni’s freckled cheeks. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Whoever was in the background on the phone the other day laughed when you called him a friend, so I’m guessing there’s a lot more to that story.”
Toni’s smile was carefully composed. “Henry is helping me with my house, and we were fighting about how to do the floors, so that’s probably why he laughed.”
“If he’s just a friend, why does he have a say in how you finish your floors?”
“Because he’s opinionated. Can we keep talking about how awful men are? Except for Baxter the male unicorn, of course.”
Katherine decided to let it drop until Megan could back her up. “I’m going to tell him you’re calling him that.”
“He’ll probably think it’s funny and charming, which is yet another thing that makes him a male unicorn.” Toni smiled. “If there’s one thing that Megan and I have in common, it’s thinking Baxter is the bee’s knees.”
“The bee’s knees!” Katherine laughed. “I love that saying. My grandmother used to say it.”
“So did mine. I’ve been missing her lately, so I’ve been trying to use more of her grandma-isms.” Toni narrowed her eyes. “The real question is, how much do we want to destroy Rodney?”
“Can you really destroy him?”
Toni snorted. “Oh yeah. Some of this shit is going to leak out no matter what. It’s Moonstone Cove. The town is not that big.”
“True.” Katherine remembered when one of the animal science professors at Central Coast had a semipublic affair with the chair of the botany department. The university had been consumed by the drama for months, and it had eventually touched nearly every department. “I think you need to wait and talk to Megan. Let her calm down and find out what she wants. You and I need to keep trying to figure out what’s going on with the students.”
“Without her?”
Katherine tried to imagine her nieces and nephews finding out that one of their parents had betrayed the other. Even though they were all in their teens now, she couldn’t imagine how gutted they’d be. “Her kids are going to need her. Teenagers may seem independent, but they’re really children, and their world just got rocked.”
“I wonder if her kids had any idea? Sometimes they’re more alert to rumors than adults are.”
“Either way, she’s going to have a lot on her plate.” Katherine
