Part 32 (1/2)
Bo was completely taken aback. ”That's all you have to say?”
”Noathat's just the beginning. That's where I'm starting.”
”What's wrong with Stanley?”
”Nothingajust doesn't seem like a name for an affair.” Larissa took a long sip of her coffee. ”Coffee's good, isn't it?”
”It is, yes. There are names that are more suited for affairs?”
”Well, I'm just saying. Does Stanley have a good voice?”
”What does that mean? Is that also one of the criteria for an affair? A s.e.xy name and a good voice?”
”It doesn't hurt. Is he attractive?”
”He's not, um, conventionally attractive.”
”He's not conventionally attractive?” Larissa paused again. ”Jonny is such a good-looking man,” she said. ”And he has a very good voice.”
”I live with Jonny! I don't need to have an affair with him.”
”You're right. Well, what's this Stanley like?”
”He's riveting, and interesting, and I love to listen to him, he is incredibly smart, and he's in a band. I'm completely taken with him, Lar. I'm not thinking of being with him because I want someone conventionally attractive. Jonny is plenty handsome.”
”This is so true. Hey, would you like some cheese strudel? I bought some at your Chatham Bakery, and it's unbelievable. Come on, share a piece with me.”
Bo began to suspect that Larissa was going to be surprisingly little help. ”What do I do?” She fidgeted with the tips of her fingers.
”Well, I don't know!” Larissa stridently replied. ”How should I know? What do you want to do?”
”I don't know. What do you think I should do?”
”What do I think you should do? Who am I, the Pope? How would I know, Bo? Why are you asking me?”
”Because you're my friend.”
Larissa came around the island and put her arm around Bo. ”I'm sorry. Of course. But, darling, it's not my life, it's your life. What do you want to do? And I thought Jonny got a job?”
”What does that have to do with anything?”
Larissa looked pensive. ”I thought you wanted him to get a job.”
”I did! But again, what does that have to do with anything?”
”Well, I don't know. I thought it made things better.”
”I'm not unhappy with Jonny. I'm just not happy. We're in a rut, stuck in the same place for years, bored, spinning our wheels.”
”Huh.” Bo watched Larissa studying her, chewing her lip. Larissa with her light flawless makeup, so composed and polite, so exquisitely superficial, smiling, pleasant, groomed. Her hair s.h.i.+ny, straight, parted, down, perfect. Bo had never come to Larissa with anything personal before, and maybe this was why. They'd been friendly, but in that adult waya”when you talk about everything but the state of your life. Perhaps she had been wrong to give Larissa her confidence. She tried one more time.
”I think I still have feelings for Jonny, Lar.”
”Of course. That doesn't go away immediately. You've been together so long. You have a family, you built a life, you have childrena”
Bo narrowed her eyes at Larissa. ”What are you talking about, Larissa?” she asked. ”You know we don't have any children. Who are you talking about?”
Larissa blinked. ”Uha”you know what I mean.” She emitted an embarra.s.sed chuckle.
Bo studied Larissa carefully.
”You know what I think, Bo? I think we should get Maggie in on this.”
”You don't think she's too judgmental?”
”No, no. She is very smart. And she is kind. She has excellent ideas. Let's all talk it over. Because you see, I have to run, unfortunately. I've got to pick up Emily from school. She is auditioning for the talent show, and it's almost 4:30. And Asher's got cross country till 5:00. I'mathis is a terrible time for me to give you my undivided attention. I feel a little distracted and that's not fair to you.”
”I've been calling you all day,” Bo said plaintively. ”Where've you been? I even called Pingry, but Ezra said you're not always there on Mondays.”
”This is true.”
”I don't know what to do. I'm bored, I guess. I want to add a little spice to my life.”
”You're bored? Bo, how can you be bored? You go into the city every day. You work at the Met, for goodness' sake. You work on fantastic exhibits, the best in the world, you meet powerful, fascinating people, you travel. You have a cute boyfriend who's smart, and who now also has a job.”
”I know all that. But we are getting stale. We're so familiar with each othera”
”So break up with him, Bo,” Larissa said. ”You're not married. It's easy. You're so lucky. You've got no kids, no commitment. Isn't this why you didn't want to get married? So you could leave your options nice and open?”
”No,” Bo said defensively. ”Larissa, you have it all wrong. I didn't want to get married because both Jonny and I don't believe in marriage.”
”But that's great! That's so convenient! Now you don't want to be together anymore, so break up.”
”Who said?”
”Welladidn't you just saya?”
”I didn't say. I said I didn't know. I'm not even sleeping with Stanley yet.”
”Oh. Yeaha” Larissa trailed off. ”You're making it all needlessly complicated, I think. You know what I mean?”
”Larissa, me and my mother are living in an apartment that was left to Jonny by his mother when she died. I can't just pack up and move out. Besides, I don't even know if Stanley would want me to move in with him. We haven't evena”