The Soulmate: A Novel

Eighteen months ago, Pippa confessed to Gabe that she had been sexually unfaithful with Max. Now she is shocked to find out that Amanda knew as well. Amanda told Gabe that she’d found a video on Max’s laptop of an assignation between Max and Pippa. Pippa is shocked that Max recorded this, as it seems very unlike him. Gabe tells Pippa that Amanda came to The Drop to see her that night. Amanda had footage of the assignation on a USB stick, but since it cut off in the middle, Amanda wanted to know if Max and Pippa had actually had sex. Gabe told her that they did, and Pippa realizes that Amanda’s death was her fault. Gabe says that he didn’t tell her because he didn’t want her to feel responsible.

It surprises Amanda that Pippa told Gabe about her and Max. It causes her to reconsider them. She knows that they see loyalty as the most important thing, but she is reminded that sometimes loyalty is not “warranted.”

When Max proposes to Amanda, she isn’t surprised—she has understood from the beginning that Max is looking for someone to fill all the roles of a partner and “attend to his physical, mental, and sexual needs” (86). She isn’t expecting, and doesn’t want, love. He tells her that he doesn’t want children: This is his stipulation. Amanda quickly adjusts to this idea and agrees to marry him. Their marriage is society news. Many articles gossip about the lack of children in their relationship, and all of them blame it on Amanda.

Pippa and Gabe walk Freya and Asha home from school. They look like the perfect family, and Pippa wonders if anyone can guess what their lives are actually like. Pippa blames herself for Amanda’s death. Gabe’s protection of her feels strange, as usually she is the one doing the protecting. They see their neighbors Mr. and Mrs. Hegarty, and Mrs. Hegarty asks them how they are doing after the woman’s death. When Gabe tells her that it was because the woman’s husband was unfaithful, Mrs. Hegarty is unsympathetic to this hypothetical husband.

After two years of marriage, Pippa is pregnant with Freya. When she tells Gabe, she points out that now he will have to come home after work more often. He decides to stop drinking entirely and turns his attention toward being a father.

When Freya is born, Gabe falls in love with her immediately. Pippa has a more difficult time connecting with the baby. She acts the part but feels nothing. The fact that Gabe is so engaged only makes her feel worse. One day, Pippa begins to cry and tells Gabe how she’s been feeling. He takes her to the doctor, who diagnoses her with postpartum depression and prescribes antidepressants.

A few weeks later, Gabe takes Pippa surfing. She is miserable but keeps trying in order to make him happy. After a full day, she eventually stands up and rides a wave in. She feels free and light and reflects that, for all his faults, only Gabe can make her feel like that.

When Pippa and her family arrive home, her parents are waiting on the front porch. Pippa admits that she isn’t feeling well, and her mother puts her to bed. Pippa is exhausted but can’t sleep. She realizes that Max will find out about Gabe’s involvement in Amanda’s death. Gabe could be implicated if the police find out that Max and Pippa were involved with each other.

No matter how long she is married to Max, Amanda never gets used to their wealth. She enjoys her partnership with Max but still doesn’t consider herself in love with him. At a dinner party one night, Max’s friend Steve comments that “poor” people should “pull themselves up by their bootstraps” (109). Amanda speaks up, pointing out how reductive his assessment is, especially since Steve inherited his business and wealth. When Steve snaps back at her, Max speaks up, siding with Amanda and pressuring Steve. Amanda realizes that she loves Max.

Gabe wants to tell the police about knowing Amanda and Max, but Pippa is against it. Pippa points out that if he’d told the police right away, it wouldn’t seem so strange. After hours of discussion, they decide that he has to tell the police now. If they find out from Max, it will look even worse.

Pippa remains disconnected from Freya for the first six months. Finally, one day, her love for Freya clicks, and Pippa feels as if she’s waking up. However, Gabe begins to lose energy. He sleeps all the time but is always exhausted. One day, Pippa suggests that he see a psychologist, but he refuses. Soon, he is staying home from work because it is too bright and loud, and noise sensitivity starts becoming a problem for him.

The next morning, Gabe says that he is rethinking their plan: He could just tell the police that he hadn’t recognized Amanda since they had only met a few times. After discussing it, Pippa and Gabe decide not to tell anyone about the connection.

Pippa is worried about Gabe. His energy has returned but seems to be destructive. He’s not sleeping, he’s drinking again, and he often comes home in the early hours. She decides that she doesn’t want to live like this anymore. As she is leaving for work, Gabe comes home. He smells like whiskey, his clothes are disheveled, and he is missing a sock. Pippa realizes that he has slept with someone else. He swears that it won’t happen again and tells her that he’ll see a psychologist. She forgives him and makes an appointment for him with a psychologist.

Amanda wonders where she is after death. She feels like she is floating between life and death and wonders if she always will be. Max hasn’t gone to work all week, which is very unusual for him since work is the place where he feels most himself.

When the police visit Max, they give him Amanda’s belongings, including her keychain. He notices that her USB is missing. In her bedside table, he finds an article about Gabe saving people at The Drop; he wonders why she kept it.

Amanda hates the fact that she fell in love with Max. It makes her feel vulnerable and threatens their arrangement. She wonders whether he is really working such long hours and starts snooping through his email and phone. One night, she finds him working on a laptop that she doesn’t recognize. He keeps it in their safe. Amanda decides to look for an opportunity to find out what is on it.

Amanda realizes that she wants a “real marriage,” instead of their arrangement. One night, she cooks a special dinner for Max, but when he comes home, she can tell that he didn’t remember their date. When he tells her that he is going back to work, she throws the dinner at the wall, surprising both of them. She is reminded, in that moment, of the dangers of being in love.

When Amanda is 41, her period is a few days late. She takes a pregnancy test, and when it is negative, Max looks relieved. After he leaves, Amanda cries.

After Gabe takes the girls to school, Pippa settles into work for the morning, but Kat and Mei surprise her with a visit. The three of them go to the Pantry, a new café nearby. The owner, Dev, says hello. Kat and Mei announce that they are expecting a baby, and Kat leaves the table with morning sickness. While she is gone, Mei tells Pippa that she knows it was Amanda Cameron on the cliff. Pippa had forgotten that Mei worked for Max’s company. Mei asks if the police know about Amanda and Gabe’s connection. When Pippa says that they didn’t tell the police, Mei isn’t surprised. Pippa realizes that Mei is suspicious of Gabe.

Pippa goes with Gabe to his appointment with his psychologist, who diagnoses Gabe with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and prescribes medication and treatment. Gabe immerses himself in the new diagnosis and stops drinking again. He gets promoted, and he and Pippa begin thinking about buying a bigger house and renovating it. They never talk about his infidelity. Pippa convinces herself that it was a good thing because it forced Gabe to get help. She feels like this is the end of their troubles.

Max calls the police and finds out that Gabe was at The Drop with Amanda before she died. He doesn’t tell the police about their personal connection. Amanda realizes that Max is going to handle the situation himself, and this worries her. Although he seems mild-mannered, Max can be ruthless.

After finding out that she’s not pregnant, Amanda focuses on what she is grateful for. At night, when Max gets home from work, they talk about the day. Max values this time together and begins to open up about his business problems. He is having trouble finding new investors for the online business. The only people left to ask are shady, but Amanda points out that maybe the means are less important than the ends. The next day, Max accepts an investment from one of these disreputable connections, Arthur Spriggs.

The online business becomes successful, and Max and Amanda are increasingly wealthy. Amanda continues to spy on Max. One night, she overhears him on the phone, ending a relationship with an investor. She can tell from the exchange that it is Arthur.

Pippa and Gabe take the girls to the Pantry for dinner. Pippa tells Gabe that Mei knows about Amanda but doesn’t tell him how suspicious Mei is of him. The owner, Dev, wants to hire Pippa’s legal services, and they arrange a time to meet. While they are waiting for their food, Asha asks what happened to Amanda. Gabe tells her that it was an accident. Asha asks if the woman is in heaven with Asha’s mother, and Gabe says yes.