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way.
    “So where are you staying, then?” she asked.
    “Not sure yet.”
    “What?” She was mortified. “Were you going to sleep in the streets? Stay here all night?”
    “No. I don’t know. I don’t think I can sleep tonight. I’m so excited to be here.”
    “Here?”
    “San Francisco. I’ve never been to the coast before.”
    “Where are you from?”
    “Glendale, Idaho.”
    “Well, dang. I’m from Green Hill, Alabama. What do those two towns have to do with each other? Well, nothing, probably, except they both start with G and they’re excellent places to leave.”
    We clinked glasses.
    “Cheers,” I mumbled. My fourth martini—or was it my sixth?—and everything was dandy. I hadn’t known where I’d been going, but something told me I had arrived.
    We left the Side Bar with Veronica kissing and hugging all the girls, while all the men tried to get her attention. She snubbed them all. I guessed after two years the novelty of their fascination had worn off.
    “So, Julie, are you telling me you haven’t even seen the ocean yet?”
    “I haven’t.”
    “Taxi!” She stuck her hand out in the air and put her other arm around me. I felt warm and secure and beside myself with glee. A yellow cab pulled up instantly and Veronica told the driver where to go. Twenty minutes later, we were at a gorgeous lookout point with tons of other cars parked and playing music. She whisked me out of the cab, took my hand and spun me around. Some guys in a Chevy truck up the way saw us, rolled down their window and turned up the radio.
    The ocean air was salty and felt clean. I looked out at the Pacific and felt awe in a way I’d never expected. The sounds of the waves beckoned. I wanted to jump in but we were way too high up for that. We were somewhere near Golden Gate Bridge, but I couldn’t see the landmark and it didn’t matter. This was heaven on Earth.
    “You want to stay here or go back to my place?”
    “No brainer. Your place.” I was too drunk to try to fend for myself now and besides, I would do anything to stay with Veronica.
    “Okay, but first we have to have a dance.” She grabbed my hand and we danced together. The sounds of the guys in the truck totally disappeared into background din. All I saw was Veronica and the endless vast ocean in front of me. I felt more beautiful and more alive than ever.
     

Chapter Three
     
     
     
    Carla’s House
     
    The next morning, I woke up on a foldout couch in a beautiful, character-filled house and the sun was shining in on my aching head. I looked around but found no one. I wasn’t scared at all, just curious. Veronica emerged from the bedroom in an oversized T-shirt, with bed-head and her dark eye makeup streaking down her cheeks.
    “Hey,” she said as she walked past me on her way to the bathroom. I heard the water running in her shower and I just sat on the couch with the blanket tucked around me. I wondered if she was going to ask me to leave, or what. When she came out again, her alabaster skin was clean and she had her hair tucked up in a towel. She walked by me completely naked, as though it was the most natural thing in the world. No one did that where I was from. My God, she was beautiful.
    “Here. Make coffee.” She handed me some filters and a jar. I boiled water, tried to figure out her system. “So, what are we going to do with you?”
    “What do you mean?”
    “Home. Job. You know. Where do you want to be?”
    She was so upfront. She was so candid and open. She was still naked in front of me and I had been cowering, afraid to even tiptoe to the bathroom. There was definitely something about her, because my other companions over the last week hadn’t seen this side of me. I hadn’t even known I had this side. Veronica had had me spellbound from the first moment I’d seen her. I hadn’t believed it possible to be so instantly infatuated with anyone.
    “Well, you’re free to stay here,” she offered. “But I have to check with