The Decent Proposal (32 page)

She saw Elizabeth in her brand-new partner's office in Beverly Hills, hosting a crowded little cocktail party foisted upon her by her coworkers, during which Richard made a point of introducing himself to everyone as quickly and loudly as possible, since Elizabeth still knew hardly anyone's name. And in one corner she saw Elizabeth's parents, shy yet proud—and behind them, shyer and a little prouder too, she saw Orpheus Washington, taking it all in.

She saw Mike walk down a red carpet of her own, arm-in-arm not with Richard but with Keith, who became a frequent collaborator and real friend in Richard's absence—an absence that was limited to the professional sphere only, because she also saw Richard and Mike arm-in-arm on another carpet, which was white and ran the length of a church in Koreatown, at an event for which Mike's father was absent without qualification, despite the best medicine and rehabilitative efforts several hundred thousand dollars could buy. And she watched as Richard walked Mike slowly down the aisle, toward the man waiting so eagerly for her at the end of it.

Many years later she saw Hugo Santiago make a home for himself in Glendale upon his release. And though he spoke regularly to his parents and sister, and even, incredibly, to the brother-in-law who played a role in putting him away, she saw that he kept mainly to himself. He was, however, unable to
deny the combined chorus of his three nieces whenever they demanded he make the trek to Venice for a family dinner, which they did from time to time.

She saw Richard and Mike at countless restaurants all over the city, though the frequency of these mealtime dates ebbed and flowed with the times, and the lulls in between weren't punctuated by nearly as much talking, or texting, or digital chatter as during what Richard insisted on referring to as his “salad daze,” that period of his life before he threw in the towel on his Hollywood career and reverted to being an aficionado and much later, after his girls were grown, a professor of film.

She was almost ready to look away now, but first, she forced herself to focus on a hospital complex in Santa Monica, in a tiny room where Orpheus Washington lay gasping amid the blips and bleeps of monitors, reaching out across a spider's web of tubes and wires for the hand of his oldest goddaughter, Lily, who by now was practically middle-aged herself, and who held on to him as long as she possibly could because she was more his than anyone else in the world—even her own parents admitted this indisputable fact, often and freely. And Bev saw his eyes glaze over and turn toward the sky, and it was as if he was looking directly at her.

And now she was so far away, she could see the entire city at once: indescribable, unquantifiable, contrarian L.A., an improbable pastiche made up of untamed wilderness, cultivated parks, gleaming celebrity mansions, crumbling housing projects, business towers reaching for the sky, strip clubs that barely got off the ground, pristine beaches broken up strategically by acres of shiny metal pipes (what the hell were they?
desalination plants
, came the answer with unexpected readiness), luxury automobiles, industrial ships, brightly colored buses, a surprisingly elaborate grid of subway lines, and people—so many different kinds of people—thrown together in a mishmash of neighborhoods
with no heart because its heart was everywhere: a sum greater than its parts. How could she have missed this before? How strange the idea of missing anything was already becoming. She could see . . .
everything
now, and though she'd never seen it before, it looked oddly familiar—recognizable even, because it looked like something she'd been seeking her entire life.

It looked like the one.

FIRST, THE FRIENDS:
Mariam Al-Foudery, Abby Ex, Dayna and Ember Frank, Paul Fruchbom, Barbara Graves-Poller, MacKenzie Huynh, Tia Maggini, Alex Mircheff, Dantram Nguyen, Radhi Thayu, and Julie Wie. Thank you for reading various drafts of this novel, many of you when it was still in its larval and pupal stages. An additional thanks to a handful of the above for inspiring various elements of this story. You know who you are (or at least I hope you do . . .), and you are family.

Next, the guys at Circle of Confusion: Lawrence Mattis, for forcing me to move to Los Angeles in the first place, the Davids, Alpert and Engel, for giving me my first home when I got here, and Bryan Millard, for being an ideal workmate all decade long.

Bring on the professionals: my indomitable agent Alexandra Machinist, who stood by this manuscript for a protracted and uncertain period like the fierce and loyal advocate she is, till finding the perfect home for it at HarperCollins, where I have felt supported by the team in general. Thanks in particular to Jonathan Burnham, who was an early advocate of this book, and to my editor, Maya Ziv, the rare soul with a knack for bringing out the best not only in stories but in people, too. Maya, I was so lucky to be able to hitch my wagon to your train of goodwill, dedication, and unflagging enthusiasm. A special thanks to Kathy Schneider, whose enthusiasm has pervaded this process from beginning to end; she has truly been my champion. Thanks also to Dorian Karchmar and Andrea Walker, who both provided vital expertise in some of the more preliminary stages of this tortuous (not to mention torturous) process of bringing a debut novel to fruition.

Now the relations: my sister Taryn, who was always my hero growing up, both for her overall strength of spirit and unfailing loyalty to me; my sister Kelly, whose lifelong commitment to the arts has been an inspiration for as long as I can remember; my brothers-in-law Alex and Josh; my nieces and nephews Séquoia, Siméon, Charlie, and Lilah; the Milches (Nora, Hannah, and Tom); and the Divolls (Vicki and Janet). Do I really have to say it? I love you all.

Time for the ones who lie so close to my heart it's difficult, or at the very least mildly absurd, to acknowledge them so formally (“Nelly, I am Heathcliff!” etc.). Thank you to my parents, Daniel and Maureen Donovan, for showing me what it means to build a life made out of love, and for the courage to say such sentimental things often and aloud. Thank you to my husband, Adam Milch, for choosing to build a life with me made of the same material, and for the steadfast support of a fellow writer and fellow human. You make me better.

And finally, the only one who I can't thank face-to-face, so this will have to do: Margaret Biegen (formerly Kemper, née Burns), who didn't get to read this book, but who prayed every day for its success when she learned I was trying my hand at writing. While I believe in immortality only metaphorically, I happen to believe in metaphors unreservedly, and have no qualms declaring that her loving support of me hasn't abated one bit since her passing. If anything, it's stronger. Thank you, Grandma.

KEMPER DONOVAN
has lived in Los Angeles for a dozen years. He attended Stanford University and Harvard Law School before working at the literary management company Circle of Confusion, representing screenwriters and comic books. His first client wrote the feature film
Hanna
, released by Focus Features. He is also a member of the New York Bar.

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This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

THE DECENT PROPOSAL
. Copyright © 2016 by Point Setter, Inc. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

FIRST EDITION

Palm tree illustration by Dana Rose Mendelson

Donovan, Kemper.

  The decent proposal : a novel / Kemper Donovan.—First edition.

     pages     cm

  ISBN 978-0-06-239162-9 (Hardcover)

  ISBN 978-0-06-249842-7 (International Edition)

  EPub Edition April 2016 ISBN 9780062391605

1. Motion picture producers and directors—Fiction. 2. Women lawyers—Fiction. 3. Los Angeles (Calif.)—Fiction. 4. Love stories.

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