“Just a minute,” Cate says, looking hard at the bowl of fruit Claude has set down in the middle of the table. “I think Sailor needs to go out. He just passed a smoke signal. I got him a burger at the rest stop.” A lie, but who will call her on it? She should be able to sit through this lunch and then have some fruit and a cup of Claude’s Marco Polo tea afterward, ask him about life in the ashram, listen with Joe to some of the Basinski album she brought, but she can’t.

“Back in a sec,” she says, then heads for her car. Sailor follows without question. Not questioning sudden changes in plans is one of the best features of dogs.

Neale doesn’t call Cate on her drive home. She won’t be happy about Cate’s escape, but she will get it.

They drive back on roads instead of highways, Sailor with his head out the window. When they are at a stop sign and Sailor sees three horses in a fenced-in field, he tries to climb out the window.

“If you want, we can go see them,” Cate tells him. “See what’s up.”

She waits with him by the fence until one of the horses, heather gray, dappled with deep brown spots, comes over and dips his head so he and Sailor can make each other’s acquaintance by twitching noses in the delicate air between their faces. Watching this, something pleated fans open inside her. The happiness of animals in a green field on a fine day, of course. But also a glimpse of the amount of information that can be given and received just by approaching without an already composed story, then holding still and paying absolute attention.

acknowledgments

Thanks to:

My excellent editor, Trish Todd.

My extremely able copy editor, Polly Watson.

Jane Hamilton, Mary Kay Kammer, Sara Levine, Steve McCauley, Julie Wlach, and Barbara Mulvanny for their sharp readings and excellent criticism

Michael Paulson, Daniel Ostling, Alex Fraser, Erin Gioia Albrecht, and Elvia Moreno for helping to fill in my many blanks about the art and business of theater and set design.

My partner, Jessie Ewing, for always showing me larger possibilities than I would have come up with on my own.

Reading Group Guide

Right after the Weather

Carol Anshaw

This reading group guide for Right after the Weather includes an introduction, discussion questions, ideas for enhancing your book club, and a Q&A with author Carol Anshaw. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book.

Introduction