“A friend referred me. Sam Kaplan.”

Kevin looked surprised. “Sam's a friend of yours?”

“Sort of. I only met him a few weeks ago. But he got me this job and a free apartment, so he's definitely on my good guy list.”

Kevin Porter smiled. “Biggest shark in L.A.”

“You're kidding.”

“My father adores him. The only guy in town who's tougher than he is.”

“Really?” She filed that piece of information away. Interesting.

There was a pause, then Kevin said, “Are you a runner, by any chance?”

“I am,” Kathleen said. “How did you know?”

“You just looked like you might be.” They both knew it meant he had been looking at her legs. And they were both okay with that.

“How about you?” she said. “Do you run?”

“I like to. But only if I have company. I get bored running alone.”

“Ah,” she said. “That's where the iPod comes in.”

“Music?” he said. “Not enough of a distraction-I still know I’m running.”

“Well,” she said. “If you ever need a partner-”

“Let me buy you a drink,” he said immediately.

“I think you already did,” she said, putting her empty wineglass down on the edge of the railing. But she let him walk her back into the party.

That night in bed, after spending the whole evening talking and dancing with Kevin, she pictured a future in which she would be the one buying the cars for her mother and sisters.

Maybe she'd even get them all a beach house. She had liked looking at the ocean that evening, and the twins didn't own a beach house yet. She could lead the way.

One day, Christa and Kelly wouldn't be cute anymore, and their earning potential would just shut down, but if she married Kevin Porter, Kathleen would always be rich. And then they would come to her, begging her for money. And she'd give it to them. She would be very generous when she was rich.

When Kathleen got bored with picturing herself as the bulwark of her family, she wrote herself an even better scenario. One day, she decided, she would stroll into Sam Kaplan's place and let him know that the moment her apartment was cleared of all legal hurdles, she was prepared to buy it. With cash. “You see?” she would say to him, “I did figure out my future after all.” He would, for once, be speechless.

And that thought was so delicious, she kept running the scene through her head until she fell asleep, a smile on her face.

VI

You've got to wake up,” Lucy said.

James just burrowed more deeply into the pillows. Lucy pounded on his back. “I mean it,” she said.“Why?” he said, half opening one eye to squint up at her. “It's Sunday morning, isn't it? I get to sleep late.”

“I told you last night. The girls are coming over to knit at ten. It's already nine-thirty. You need to shower and go.”

“Oh, yeah.” He rolled onto his back and rested his arm over his forehead. “You really serious about this knitting shit?”

“Why wouldn't I be?”

“I don't know. Knitting. It sounds like something old ladies would do.”

“It's fun. We sit and knit and talk and eat and it's fun.”

“Bet you don't eat. You never eat.”

“Get up, James.”

He reached an arm out to the side and nabbed her around the legs. She was wearing a big T-shirt and not much else. His hand slid up her thigh. “Why can't I stay and watch? Is it so you and the girls can talk about me?”

“Maybe. Hey, watch that hand, mister.”

“Why? Don't you like it?”

“I like it,” Lucy said and let him pull her down on the bed next to him. He rolled on top of her, pinned her with his arms and then rolled again onto his back so she was lying on top of him. The sheet was between them, but she could feel him hard against her pelvis through the fabric. He held her tight like that for a moment, his eyes shut, his breath so regular it sounded like he was going back to sleep. “You want me to do all the work, don't you?” she said then.

“I’m still a little sleepy.” He was pretty cute in the morning, his long hair rumpled, his face all round and smooth and childlike.

She set to work unpeeling the sheet from his body.

“Ah-ha,” she said when he was unwrapped. And then made another similar-but-different sound when she straddled him.

It was, she thought, a nice way to start the morning. So long as he was gone by the time the girls came.

“Who wants more coffee?” Lucy said, entering with a fresh pot.

“Why do we always ask that?” Sari said, looking up from her knitting. “Has any one of us ever once said no to coffee?”

“It's like asking Kathleen if she wants an alcoholic beverage,” Lucy said.

“Very funny,” Kathleen said. “You offering?” She sat down next to Sari and pulled out her work. She was sewing together the finished pieces of the tank top. “What are you working on, Sari? It looks new.”

“Yeah.” She held it up so they could see. “I just started this. It's a blanket for Ellen's granddaughter-her son's wife is due next month.”

“Oh, it's so soft,” Kathleen said, reaching out to touch it. “I like the color, too. Usually baby stuff is so friggin pastel-y.”

“I know,” Sari said. “That's why I went for midnight blue.”

“You rebel.”

“Isn't Sari breaking your only-knit-for-yourself rule?” Lucy asked Kathleen as she refilled her coffee cup. “Don't you have a problem with that?”

“Babies are different,” Kathleen said. She put her knitting pieces in her lap and poured half the pitcher of cream into her coffee. “They'll wear anything you make them and they rarely have girlfriends who rip things apart.” She reached for the sugar bowl.

“Speaking of girlfriends and boyfriends,” Sari said, “what did James think of us, Luce?”

“He liked you guys.” What he had actually said was, “Man, that Kathleen's a total babe,” and Lucy had said, “You want me to set you up with her?” and he had grinned and said, “She's hot but she looks like trouble. I’ll stick with what I’ve got.” “And what did you think of Sari?” Lucy had asked. “Very cute and likable, even if she's wasting her time on a pointless career,” was James's summation.

“I’m sorry he said all that stuff about the clinic, Sari,” Lucy said. “He's just been in a bad mood lately because of these animal rights lunatics. They've been stalking him, leaving him notes and messing up his car and stuff. It's driving him nuts.”

“That's terrible,” Sari said. “Why?”

“Everyone knows he uses a lot of animals in his research. He talks about it openly. Most people are more circumspect about that stuff.” She set the coffeepot on a trivet and sat down. “Anyway, the point is that James isn't usually that annoying.”

“He sure is purty, though,” Kathleen said.

“Isn't he?” Lucy said. “Makes it hard for me to stay mad at him.”

“Why do we care?” Sari asked, her needles clicking emphatically against each other. “About looks, I mean? Wouldn't it be better if we didn't?”

“It's not a question of what's better” Kathleen said. “It's just the way it is. Some guys are more appealing to us than others, that's all.”

“Yeah. But remember that guy I went out with last year? Jeff Fleekstra?”

“Yeah, I remember him,” Kathleen said. “Yuck.”

“Hey,” Sari said.

“Sorry. But you know what I mean.”

“He was a good guy,” Sari said. “He was doing some really interesting autism research and-”

“He was gross,” Kathleen said.

“Don't be obnoxious,” Lucy said. She picked up her knitting.“Sari went out with the guy for months. You'll make her feel bad if you point out how incredibly revolting he was.”

“You're right,” Kathleen said. “I’ll try not to bring up the fact that Jeff was an unpleasant little troll.”

“Good,” Lucy said. “And, whatever you do, don't remind Sari about how he used to spit when he talked and food would come out of his mouth when he laughed.”

“I’d have called it more of a giggle than a laugh,” Kathleen said.