Forbearance: In the morning, she went for her power walk, waving to the same people, petting the same dogs. When she got home, the rest of the house was still asleep, so she set about squeezing oranges for juice, frying bacon, and making blueberry pancakes.
She was at the stove when Miranda came downstairs with her suitcase packed.
“I’d really like you to stay,” Dabney said. She hoped that the smells of the kitchen would indicate a return to normalcy. “Emotions were running high last night and we’d all had a lot of wine. I know Box wants you to stay.”
A shadow crossed Miranda’s face. It looked for a second like she might cry, and Dabney thought, I will then be in a position to comfort the woman about her unrequited love for my husband. She thought, How do I get myself into these predicaments? She thought, My matchmaking is going haywire. Agnes is still going to marry CJ, Clen went on a date with Elizabeth Jennings, and I have managed to make a grand debacle of Box and Miranda.
“Please stay,” Dabney said.
Miranda sighed. “I can’t,” she said. “I just can’t.”