Page 99 of Suddenly Dating
“I did. I saw them lying on Birta’s desk and picked them up. I read the part where Sherri is in Home Depot and can’t decide between the chain saw or the machete, and she is price-checking them, then arguing with the cashier about whether or not one of them is on sale.”
“That’s it,” Lola said uncertainly.
“Hilarious!” he said, grinning. “I love a good sense of humor. Do you have a full manuscript?”
Was she breathing? Lola couldn’t tell if she was breathing. “Not yet. But I’m very close.”
“Here you go, doll,” Nolan said, setting three drinks before Mr.Bernstein.
“Thanks,” said Mr.Bernstein. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card, which he handed to Lola. “When you finish the book, send it to me. Remind me that we met at East Beach, and I’ll give it a look.”
“I can’t... I am speechless,” Lola said as he picked up his drinks. “Thank you so much!”
“No promises, you understand, but one never knows.” He smiled and turned around, carrying the drinks back to Birta and Melissa.
Lola’s heart was beating so hard now she could hardly make out his card. She couldn’t believe it! She had Cyrus Bernstein’s card and an invitation to send him the manuscript. This was actuallyhappeningto her!
“Are you going to drink something or just block the bar all night?” Nolan asked.
“Champagne!” she shouted at him. “Three of them!”
Nolan shook his head, but moved to get the champagne. Lola stared at the card in her hand and began to worry she would lose it. Where was Harry with his pockets? She slipped the card into her barely-there bra and adjusted her dress with one hand just as Nolan returned with the champagne.
“Keep your hands out of your dress, love,” he said. “That’s what your luscious boyfriend is for.”
“Speaking of which,” she said gaily, and picked up her champagnes—one for her, one for Mallory, and one for Harry. She couldn’t wait to tell him that she’d done it, she’d actually done it—she hadn’t let fear keep her from pursuing the opportunity.
She turned around and almost bumped into Mallory.
“Where’d you go?” she asked, taking one of the champagnes from her hand. “I waited so long I ended up eating the rest of yours.”
Lola laughed. She laughed too loudly, and too gaily, but she didn’t care. “I met Cyrus Bernstein,” she said. “He wants me to send my book when I finish.”
Mallory’s jaw dropped. “That’s fantastic!”
“Iknow! I did it, Mallory! I can’t believe it—none of this would have happened if I hadn’t come to stay in Zach Miller’s house!”
“We have to tell Harry,” Mallory said.
“I have a glass for him, too,” she said, and looked past Mallory, her face nearly breaking open with her smile.
She spotted Harry at once. He was taller than most, and there he was, standing with Melissa, Birta, and Cyrus, while Lola held a flute of champagne for him. She watched Cyrus gesture toward the barbecue tent. Harry glanced around, as if looking for her, but when he didn’t see her, he turned back to the group. Melissa reached for his arm for an assist in navigating the next few steps down onto the lawn, with Birta and Cyrus following behind.
“Isn’t that Harry?” Mallory asked, following her gaze. “Let’s catch up!”
“Ah...” Lola’s heart was fluttering crazily, on the verge of complete destruction with all the stress of Harry, the excitement about her book. “Let me just... this glass feels warm. I’m going to get Nolan to refill it.”
“I’ll save us a seat,” Mallory chirped and went off in the direction Harry and the others had gone.
Lola turned back to the bar, set both glasses down, and braced her hands against it, sucking in her breath.Okay, get a grip. She wasn’t going to let disappointment win this time. No matter what else, she had Cyrus Bernstein’s card.She had his card.
Lola snapped out of it. She lifted her head... and looked directly into the gaze of the man standing next to her.
“Hello,” he said.
“Hi.”
He looked to be about forty, with a pronounced paunch and thinning hair. He was leaning on one arm against the bar and nibbling from a little plastic skewer of olives. “Dobbs Harvey,” he said.
