Intentional Fallacy (Book 5)

Chapter 14

Matt's apartment was warm and inviting. His life was all together different than my middle class suburban one. Matt's apartment was small. I remembered that when we were together that he had been waiting to change his living arrangements. He had planned to move into my house so during the years we were together he spent many nights at my house and he kept the apartment near his theater because it was practical. Or that's what we had said. Of course, I never agreed to go farther than engagement. I wondered if I had been more committed to him whether he would have let go of his studio apartment?

It had been a long time since Matt and I had broken up. He had been married briefly, just a few years. He and his wife lived in his small, writer's apartment. Sometimes I had daydreamed that I could have lived that sort of life. Maybe not once I was a mother, but sometimes I wished that I'd know there were opportunities like that. I wished I'd been given those choices.

It was heavenly. I loved being there. I always had. It was like the set of a play with its small kitchen in the center of the space. He had a futon bed off to the side in a dormer alcove. It abutted a small living room area where he had a couch, a couple of leather club chairs and floor lamps. Very often over the years we'd sat in the living room reading scripts either with other actors or just us. I would sit with him and often I'd be the first person to read the lines of his new play.

I carried my things into the apartment. "It looks like I'm moving in, I know." I laughed.

He shrugged and walked over to me and kissed me on the cheek. "Are you all right?"

"I am. I realized coming over here that I'd already had a couple of scotches. I don't know how much wine I should drink given that I have to get up and go to work."

"We don't have to drink any. Come in." he said. I saw several take out boxes of Chinese food on the counter. Chopsticks.

I took off my coat and then sat on the couch.

"Are you hungry yet?" he was in the kitchen pouring himself a glass of wine. "What do you want to drink?"

"Ok." I smiled. "I'll have wine."

He came and sat next to me. He gave me my glass of wine. He held up his "to mad first wives."

I smiled. "Shh." I said "she'll hear you."

He laughed. "you haven't summonsed a ghost have you?"

"I don't need to summons her. I brought her with me."

"Have you? Where is she?"

"That's why I called you." I was still whispering. He was looking at me with affection and amusement. "I'm not kidding you. She is addressing the entries to me."

He furrowed his brow for a moment. "Jesus. Eve. That's weird. I wouldn't want to be home alone either." He took a sip and shook his head. "They're real, aren't they? Jeff didn't plant them there?"

"No. I'm certain they're real. I've found other things of hers before. Letters. Diaries."

"Yeah, I guess it sounded too crazy even for Jeff. Well we'll read them after we eat. I'll be your medium."

"You're scaring me."

"You don't believe me but I have a reputation for talking with the dead."

I hit him on the arm. "Don't say that! I won't be able to sleep."

"You know something?"