“Isn’t it pretty?” said Nicole. “Where are you from?”

  “L.A.,” Caddie answered.

  “Then this probably seems like practically the country to you,” Nicole remarked. “I grew up here, so I don’t know anywhere else, really.”

  Nick said nothing, wiping the counter needlessly with a towel while Caddie tried to decide in which direction to take the conversation. Before she could make up her mind, Nicole said, “Are you getting anything? I was just about to have some lunch.”

  Caddie didn’t even have to look at Nick to feel him begging her to say no. “That would be great,” she said.

  A few minutes later, seated at a table while Nick watched them anxiously from the kitchen, Caddie continued her conversation with his girlfriend. She found herself fascinated by Nicole’s apparent inability to sense the tension in the room. Or maybe she just doesn’t want to know, she thought. She could understand that.

  “How long have you and Nick been together?” she asked between bites of pizza.

  “God,” replied Nicole. “Forever. Since seventh or eighth grade.”

  “You’re kidding,” Caddie said.

  Nicole shook her head. “We broke up a few times. You know, like you do when you’re a kid. But we’ve pretty much been together for seven years now.”

  “Unbelievable,” said Caddie. “I didn’t think anybody still did that.” She thought about it. Seven years. That was about how long her parents had been married. Nick and Nicole (how way too cute was that?) had already bested them.

  “Want to know something else?” said Nicole, smiling. She leaned closer to Caddie. “We’re the only ones each other have done it with.”

  Caddie found herself embarrassed for the other girl, not just because she knew that in Nick’s case this was a lie, but because Nicole seemed to think this was something to be proud of. “You’ve never slept with another guy?” she said.

  Nicole shook her head. “Just Nick,” she said. “What about you?”

  For a moment Caddie thought Nicole was asking her if she’d slept with Nick. Then she realized she was just asking about the presence of any kind of boyfriend in her life. “No,” she said. “I don’t have a boyfriend. Not right now, anyway.”

  “Nick has a brother,” Nicole said. “Joey. Really sweet. Maybe we could all go out sometime.”

  Caddie was having a hard time hating this girl, although she badly wanted to. She was stupid, or at least way too naive for her own good. Nick, Caddie thought, was probably sleeping with every girl in town. Meanwhile, Nicole was undoubtedly planning their wedding. She deserved to know what her boyfriend was really like.

  “Nicole,” Caddie said. “Don’t you ever wonder what it would be like to date different guys?”

  “Why?” said Nicole. “Nick’s perfect for me. He understands me.”

  But do you understand him? Caddie thought. Clearly, she didn’t. Which was kind of surprising, given that guys were pretty simple. They wanted to sleep with everyone and they didn’t want you to care that they did it.

  “Yeah, but do you ever think about what else is out there?” Caddie couldn’t help pushing the issue a little more.

  “I’m happy,” Nicole said. “That’s really all that matters, right?”

  “Maybe it is,” said Caddie. “I wouldn’t know. I guess I’ve never been happy.”

  “That’s sad,” Nicole said, and when Caddie looked at her, she saw pity in the girl’s eyes. Seeing it made her feel queasy. She didn’t want pity from anyone, least of all a girl who thought Monterey was Wonderland and that her cheating boyfriend was Prince Charming.

  “That came out wrong,” Caddie said quickly. “I mean, I’ve been happy. Just not with any one guy.”

  “You’re still young,” Nicole said sagely. “It will happen.”

  Caddie almost laughed at her. She sounded so old. But what was she, maybe nineteen? She talked as if her whole life were already set in stone. Which, Caddie guessed, it more or less was. She would probably marry Nick, have a couple of kids, and live in Monterey until she died. But she’ll be happy, she told herself. And she probably would be. Even if she did realize that Nick was an asshole, she’d probably continue to love him just the same. She was that kind of girl, the kind who made her life what she wanted it to be, no matter how much pretending it took.

  “I’m so glad we met,” Nicole was saying, bringing Caddie’s attention back to the conversation. “I don’t know why, but I feel like we’re going to be friends. Besides, if Nick likes you, I like you. He has good taste.”

  She laughed at her own joke. Caddie wiped her lips with her napkin, pretending she had too much food in her mouth to respond. She didn’t want to be Nicole’s friend. In fact, she hoped she never had to see the girl again, although she doubted she’d be able to avoid her forever. Johnny’s was pretty much on her way no matter where she walked in Monterey. She was bound to run into Nicole—and Nick—one of these days.

  To her dismay, Nicole was waving Nick over to the table. He came and sat down, noticeably moving his chair away from Caddie and closer to his girlfriend. He put his arm around the back of Nicole’s chair. “So, what are you two talking about?” he asked.

  “You,” said Nicole, laying her hand on his knee. “Caddie was telling me how gorgeous she thinks you are, and I was telling her she better keep her hands off you.” She looked at Caddie and winked, while Nick paled and scratched his ear nervously.

  “Nicole says I should meet your brother,” Caddie said.

  “Right,” Nicole agreed. “Don’t you think Joey would like her?”

  Nick nodded. “Sure,” he said. “I guess.”

  Nicole slapped his knee. “What’s the matter with you?” she asked. “You’re acting all weird.”

  Nick shrugged. “Dad’s on my ass,” he said. “You know how it is.”

  “I don’t think she does,” Caddie remarked under her breath, watching his eyes shift away from her.

  Nicole, not hearing her, continued talking. “Well, I think Joey would love her. What are you doing tonight?” she asked Caddie.

  “Tonight?” Caddie thought quickly. “Tonight my dad is making dinner for me. Sorry.”

  Nicole frowned. “Okay, but we’re definitely going out sometime this week. Give me your number.”

  “Actually, I don’t even know what it is,” Caddie said truthfully. “I didn’t bring my cell with me, and I always use speed dial if I have to call my father.”

  “Well, here’s mine,” Nicole said, producing a pen from her bag and scribbling on a napkin. She handed it to Caddie. “Now you promise you’ll call me.”

  “Sure,” Caddie said, folding the napkin and tucking it into her pocket.

  “Excuse me,” Nicole said, getting up. “I need to visit the little girls’ room.”

  She left Caddie alone with Nick. As soon as she was out of earshot Caddie said, “You’re an asshole.”

  Nick put his hands up. “I know,” he said. “I know.”

  Caddie waited for him to continue, but he didn’t. “That’s it?” she said. “You know? How about ‘I’m sorry’?”

  “I’m sorry,” Nick said obediently.

  “No, you’re not!” Caddie snapped. “You’re just horny. And stupid. She’s a nice girl. She thinks you love her.”

  “I do love her,” said Nick defensively.

  Caddie snorted. “She thinks she’s the only girl you’ve been with.”

  Nick leaned back in his chair. “What do you want me to say?” he asked her. “We’ve been together six years.”

  “Seven,” said Caddie.

  “Seven years,” said Nick. “That’s a long time with one girl.”

  “So break up with her,” Caddie suggested. “Don’t lie to her.”

  Nick shook his head. “I can’t,” he said. “It would break her heart.”

  Caddie stared at him. “You’re something else,” she said. “You think you’re so wonderful that she wouldn’t be able to live without you? Here’s a news flash—she’s in love with being in love, not with you. And you’d better pray she never figures that out, because then you really will be sorry.”

  “Thank you, Dr. Phil,” Nick cracked. “I was good enough for you, wasn’t I?”

  “That’s the sad thing,” Caddie said.

  Nick smiled. “Come on,” he said. “You liked it as much as I did.” He put his elbows on the table and leaned toward her. “And I bet you wouldn’t mind doing it again either.”

  No, I wouldn’t, Caddie thought to herself. And that’s even sadder. But to Nick she said, “You weren’t that good. Maybe I should give your brother a try, like Nicole said.”

  “Hey, I can set it up,” said Nick. “Maybe you’d like a Pirelli brothers sandwich.”

  Nicole, returning from the bathroom, took her seat. “You two planning what we’re going to do this week?” she asked.

  “I suggested a couple of things,” Nick said.

  “Anything sound good?” Nicole asked Caddie.

  Caddie looked at Nick. “Not so far,” she said.

  “Well, we’ll come up with something,” said Nicole. She looked at her watch. “But I’ve got to get back to work. I’m five minutes late.”

  She gave Nick a kiss. “Bye, honey,” she said. “I’ll see you tonight. And I’ll see you later,” she added to Caddie. “Don’t forget—call me.”

  After Nicole left, Caddie started to get up and leave as well. But Nick stopped her by grabbing her wrist. “I’m not a bad guy,” he said. “I may be an asshole, but I’m not a bad guy.”

  “Why should I care?” Caddie asked him.

  “I guess you shouldn’t,” said Nick, letting go of her arm. “But please, don’t tell Nicole.”

  Caddie let him sweat it out for a long moment. “I won’t,” she said. “But only because I like her. I still think you’re a piece of shit.”

  She dropped her trash in the garbage and left. Outside, she looked left up the hill toward her father’s house and found that she didn’t want to go there. She wanted to do something. Finding out that Nick had lied to her was annoying, not because she cared about him but because she’d wanted to be the one who used him. Somehow that hadn’t seemed wrong. Now, though, she wondered if it was. Was she any better than he was? She’d had no intention of falling in love with him; she’d just wanted some sex and some more pot. But now she couldn’t do it, not because she had any respect for Nick, but because she wanted Nicole to be able to keep living in her fantasy world. Someone might as well be happy, she thought.

  She found herself walking back toward downtown. The early afternoon sun seemed to have intensified, and she wished she’d applied sunscreen. She was going to burn, and she hated peeling. It made her feel like a leper, and she could never resist picking at the stray pieces of skin. But maybe that’s what I need, she told herself. Maybe I need to get out of this skin. Maybe there’s a better me underneath this one.

  She crossed the street, moving out of what little shade there was and stepping into the full sun. It caressed her bare shoulders greedily. Go ahead, she thought. Get it over with.

  CHAPTER 12

  As Ben walked back toward Hopkins, the rush he’d gotten from cursing at the fisherman faded into mild embarrassment. Yes, it had felt good to vent his frustration, but ultimately it was an adolescent response to the situation. Still, he had to admit that he’d enjoyed himself. After all, he reasoned stubbornly, stupid people required stupid measures. They seldom understood reason.

  Oh, who are you kidding, he argued with himself. You’re just making excuses.

  Along with the decrease in satisfaction came the return of the thoughts that had driven him from the office in the first place. He still had no better idea of how to deal with Caddie than he’d had an hour ago. She wasn’t stupid; if she were, he would just give up and tolerate her until it was time for her to leave. But she was smart. Too smart, he suspected. That made it all the more difficult. He couldn’t fool her with platitudes, or even bribery. He had to try to actually understand her.

  He was so deep into his thoughts that he didn’t even notice the man standing on the sidewalk until he’d bumped into him. The collision of their bodies, slight as it was, came as a shock. Instinctively, he froze for a moment while his brain ran through the list of possible responses. Perhaps atoning for his earlier rudeness, he opted to apologize. “Pardon me,” he said.

  “It’s okay,” the man said. “No harm done. And I shouldn’t just be standing here. I was just trying to get a better look.”

  Ben, not understanding, followed the man’s gaze to a plywood wall. “Ricketts’s lab,” he said, recognizing the place instantly.

  “Yes,” said the man, sounding pleased. “You know it?”

  “Doesn’t everybody in Monterey?” Ben replied.

  The man laughed. “Not if my experience is typical,” he said. “And if they do know what it is, that’s all they know. No one can tell me anything about it.”

  “I guess there’s not much to tell,” said Ben. “The official name was Pacific Biological Laboratories. Ricketts started it in Pacific Grove in 1923. Moved it here in, I think it was 1928. This was Ocean Avenue then; didn’t become Cannery Row until 1958, although everyone called it that anyway. The place burned down in ’36 from a fire that started next door at the Del Mar Cannery. He rebuilt and worked here ’til 1948.”

  “When he died,” the man said.

  Ben nodded. “Three days before his fifty-first birthday.”

  “You know a lot about the guy,” the man said. “You should give tours.”

  “You live here long enough, you pick things up,” said Ben.

  They stood in silence, looking at the wall. Then the man sighed. “I wish I could get inside and take a look,” he said. “Do you know why it’s boarded up?”

  “To keep people out,” Ben answered. “It’s privately owned now. They only give tours a couple of times a year, usually as part of the Steinbeck hoopla. Actually, the wall isn’t usually here. I think they’re doing some repair work.”

  “It’s too bad,” said the man. “About it being hard to get into, I mean,” he clarified. “It seems like all the places from that time are gone.”

  Ben turned and nodded across the street. “That coffeehouse there, Kalisa’s, that’s where La Ida Café was,” he said. “And the Lone Star brothel, what Steinbeck called the Bear Flag, that was where Mackerel Jack’s is now.”

  The man contemplated the two sites. “Not quite the same, is it?” he remarked.

  “Well, Kalisa tries,” said Ben. “But I think old Flora Woods would turn over in her grave if she saw her fun house selling T-shirts and plastic otters.”

  The man laughed. “You’re a Steinbeck fan,” he said.

  “In a roundabout way,” said Ben. “I was an Ed Ricketts fan first. Ever since I read Between Pacific Tides in school. That led me to the Sea of Cortez stuff, and then I thought I better check out Steinbeck and see what all the fuss was about.”

  “Usually it’s the other way around,” said the man. “People want to know about Ricketts because they read about Doc in the novels.”

  “Well,” said Ben, “I guess writers are more appealing than marine biologists. So what’s your interest in the lab?”

  “It’s not so much the lab as it is the man,” the man answered. He looked at Ben. “I’m one of those people who finds himself curious about the real Doc. He was quite an influence on Steinbeck.”

  “Best friends,” Ben said. He looked at the run-down building sitting behind the fence. “Those two needed one another.”

  “Why do you say that?” asked the man.

  “I don’t know,” Ben answered, finding himself surprised at having made the comment. “That just popped out. But now that I’ve said it, it’s true. I don’t think either one would have been the man he was without the other one coming into his life.”

  The man looked at him. “You’re an interesting fellow,” he said. “It’s been good talking to you, Mister ...”

  “Ransome,” Ben said. “Ben Ransome.”

  “Hudson Jones,” the man said, offering his hand. “I appreciate the information. I guess I’m lucky that I bumped into you.”

  “If I recall,” Ben said, “I was the one who did the bumping.”

  “Well, you’ve more than made up for it,” Hudson told him. “How can I repay you? Maybe a cup of coffee?”

  Ben started to protest. Then he thought about returning to his office. He knew he would just sit there and brood. Maybe, he thought, it would do him some good to sit and talk to a complete stranger about something they had in common. If nothing else, it would allow him to put off thinking about Caddie for a little while.

  “All right,” he said. “I wouldn’t mind some coffee. Shall we go to Kalisa’s in honor of old Flora?”

  “By all means,” Hudson agreed.

  A minute later they were seated at a small table, their coffee in front of them. Ben took a sip, then methodically added two and a half packets of sugar to it, followed by two-thirds of one small container of creamer.

  “Is that the magic formula?” Hudson asked him, watching the procedure.

  Ben, stirring the coffee, wasn’t sure how to respond. Was the man teasing him? Normally he would think so. But nothing he’d seen about Hudson so far led him to believe the man was one to make fun. Rather than retreat into silence, as he might otherwise do, he found himself making a joke. “I discovered it right after I figured out how to turn lead into gold,” he said dryly.

  Hudson grinned. “I hope you don’t think I was making fun,” he said. “It’s just that it’s so exact.”

  “Occupational hazard, I guess,” Ben said. He noticed that Hudson was waiting for further explanation. “I’m a scientist,” he said.

  “Oh,” said Hudson. “That explains the Ed Ricketts thing too, then. I was wondering about that.”

  Why didn’t you just ask? Ben thought, bemused. “I’m a marine biologist,” he told Hudson, saving the man from having to ask any more questions about the subject. “At Hopkins Marine Station.”

  Hudson nodded, and Ben understood that the man had no idea what Hopkins was. It didn’t matter. They weren’t there to talk about him anyway.