_OceanofPDF

2
L O G A N
SIX MONTHS LATER
The Loft Club bar was on the sixth floor of a recently renovated
Downtown warehouse. The designers had kept the graffiti from the years
the brick structure had been abandoned, cut into the walls to add windows,
and covered the bright colors with framed original art.
Mandy Bettencourt sat across from me at a corner table, diamonds in
her ears. Light brown, curly hair pinned up in a precise mess to show off the
highlights. Yellow sweater with pearls. Red lipstick.
“I’ve treated him like a full partner, and what does he do? Runs behind
my back, changes the route of a major pipeline to run through a scenic
valley. The engineers are scrambling and don’t get me started on the
permitting.”
“Mm-hm.” She smiled, glancing around the room for someone who
didn’t talk about work.
“I have to get him out of my hair.”
“How old is their baby? Five months? Six? I bet he’s so cute.”
“I have to get married.”
She was the only one who knew about my father’s ultimatum, and when
I mentioned it, she always shook her head at what an intractable problem it
was… until I took a little velvet box from my pocket and put it in front of
her.