“I have this fantasy of flying him out to L.A., bringing him into my Hollywood lifestyle—my house in the Bird Streets, with its infinity pool overlooking the Strip, introducing him to my celebrity neighbors.” She blinked hard and came back, pausing to gather her thoughts. “It’s silly, I know, but that’s why I moved to L.A. I wanted to give my dreams a chance.”

Luke nodded, recalling his younger, unbroken self, with a backpack over his shoulder and a one-way ticket in his hand.

“And that’s why I took the canary,” Kitty said. She shrugged, as if there’d been no alternative. “I needed the edge.”

Luke said, “There are people in Hollywood who’ve done a lot worse to get ahead.”

Another vehicle passed—a sporty Mazda, blaring Aerosmith at a distorted volume. On Ramón’s ranch, the dogs had stopped circling their cages and were sprawled on their sides, still and dark, possibly sleeping. The shadow of the transmission tower had grown longer.

“It’s all I think about—or all I used to think about, before Johan: seeing my son again, and being a part of his life. And the feeling that rushes through me. The hope, the anxiety, the all-consuming love.” Kitty put her sunglasses back on, looking directly at the setting sun. “He’s my baby, you know?”

Luke drank his water. Some splashed onto his chin and trickled down his throat. It felt cool and good, unlike the emotion that had risen through his chest: a sudden pang of melancholy. He and Lisa had discussed starting a family on numerous occasions, but the time had never been right. Their careers always came first—this movie or that North American tour. He imagined, now, the child they would have made, holding him or her forever close, watching them flower, an achievement that no script or melody could come close to.

Kitty continued, “When the day comes that Levi wants to meet me, if it comes, I won’t attempt to impose myself or replace his new family. I just want to hang out, get to know him.”

“Yeah,” Luke grunted around the lump in his throat.

“I want to see him as the child he is, not the child he might have been.” Kitty’s voice cracked again. Her shoulders hitched as she inhaled. “And I want him to see a woman he can be proud of.”

“Are you kidding me?” Luke said. “Listen, I’ve only known you a few months, but that’s long enough to know that you’re kind and strong, and that any kid would be lucky to have a mom like you.”

Kitty wiped more tears away. “You don’t know how much I needed to hear that.”

“Just telling it like it is.”

She threw her arms around him—a brief, slightly awkward hug, but quite the loveliest he’d had in some time. He smiled over her shoulder.