Abigail sits outside at Starbuck’s near Colony Square in Atlanta, awaiting word from Genevieve, who’s making her first visit to Leah Walker, the woman they’ve ascertained is Genevieve’s biological mother. The previous day, Abigail went by and just missed seeing Leah, who’d left for a meeting shortly before Abigail dropped in. Her phone rings.
“Contact has been made,” Genevieve says when Abigail answers.
“Wonderful. What’s she like?”
“She’s about how we expected she’d be. I met Alyssa, too.”
“Alyssa was there? Did you have the desired effect on them both?”
“Oh yeah. They both looked like Hamlet seeing his father’s ghost.” She abruptly breaks off and says, “hey, watch it!”
Another pause, then Abigail hears Genevieve say in a calmer voice, “Sorry, didn’t mean to get in your way.”
“Genni, is everything all right?”
Genevieve doesn’t reply, but Abigail can hear a man’s voice then Genevieve introduces herself to someone. A few moments pass before she returns to the phone. “Abby, things just got way more interesting.”
“In what way?”
“I’ll fill you in when I get there.”
They conclude the call. Several minutes pass before Genevieve appears with quite a bounce in her step. She plops down across from Abigail in an exceptionally good mood. She leans back and sighs.
“Should I assume the meeting went well?”
“Forget that,” Genevieve says. “I have just met the man I’m going to marry.”
Abigail leans on the table. “Oh really?”
Genevieve stares at the sky. “Count on it.”
“Details, please?”
“Steven Asher. Leah’s attorney. We literally ran into each other as I was leaving.”
“And he proposed?”
Genevieve sits up. “Of course not. But he’s the one. I just know it.”
“Okay, what makes you so sure?”
“You know how you look at someone and just know? That’s the case here.”
“Well, perhaps when we’ve concluded our other business, we can start shopping for wedding gowns. Tell me about Leah and Alyssa. You know, the whole point of us coming here.”
“Oh, yeah. Leah remains largely a cypher, but she did give me her number, so this is just the beginning.”
“What about Alyssa?”
“You’ll be happy to know, she seems every bit as sweet in person as she does on Facebook.”
“Wonderful. Let’s find someplace to eat and you can tell me all about it.”
“Sure.” Genevieve takes out her phone and searches for nearby restaurants. “Lots to choose from.”
“Find somewhere with a patio.”
“Quite a few options South of where we are.”
Abigail rises. “Let’s check them out.”
They walk down nearly to 10th Street without finding anything to their mutual satisfaction. Abigail checks her phone and notes a place nearby.
“What about Galileo’s?”
“The bagel place?”
“No, this looks like a cafe or bistro. They have a patio and it’s just a few blocks from where we are now.”
“That sounds nice.”
