Chapter 9: Bee Starts to Wonder If She Was Wrong About Levi
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
Bee’s evening takes an unexpected turn when her run through a cemetery ends with her trapped on the wrong side of a locked gate. She calls Levi, who arrives in his truck and calmly orchestrates a rescue. He slides a ladder through the gate, coaches her up the wall, and catches her as she drops into his arms. Despite her mortification, Bee is struck by how competent and gentle he is—and by the fact that he’s the second person she’s called in a crisis, after Rocío didn’t answer.
Levi insists on driving her home, and during the short ride they fall into an easy conversation about running. Bee admits she’s only two weeks into a Couch-to-5K program and has barely managed a third of a mile. Levi reveals he runs half marathons, which makes Bee groan. He also teases her about a comment she made in grad school about exercise being a waste of time. The banter feels natural, and Bee notices she’s not as uncomfortable as she expected.
When they reach her lodging, Bee realizes her keys are missing—she left them in the cemetery when she collapsed on a grave. With her phone nearly dead and Rocío unreachable, Levi offers her a place to stay for the night. Bee hesitates, worried about intruding on his family, but Levi insists. He drives her to his house, and Bee is immediately struck by how perfect it is: a brick home with hummingbird mint in the garden, fireflies in the yard, and a clean, sparse interior that matches her own ideal of stability.
Inside, Bee’s assumptions begin to crumble. She asks where his wife and daughter are, and Levi clarifies that Penny is not his daughter—she’s the child of his friend Lily, whom he sometimes babysits. He lives alone, with only his cat, Schrödinger, for company. Bee is embarrassed by her misreading, but Levi takes it in stride. He lends her clothes (including a pair of flamingo-print boxers he’s never worn), offers her a shower, and starts making dinner.
The kitchen reveals another surprise: Levi is vegan. Bee discovers this when she sees his plant-based ingredients and dairy-free substitutes. She admits she’s vegan too, and they bond over how they each made the switch—Levi after a goat in a cheese commercial, Bee after a chicken she loved. Over vegan tacos and imported beer, Bee feels an unusual sense of ease. She thanks Levi for his hospitality, noting that it can’t be easy to welcome someone he doesn’t particularly like. Levi replies that it’s not easy, but not for the reason she thinks—leaving Bee puzzled as the chapter ends.
Key Events
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Bee gets trapped on a cemetery wall while running and calls Levi for help.
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Levi rescues her with a ladder, catches her when she drops, and drives her home.
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Bee discovers she left her keys in the cemetery and accepts Levi’s offer to stay at his house.
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At Levi’s house, Bee learns he lives alone; Penny is not his daughter, and he is not married.
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Levi lends Bee clothes, including flamingo-print boxers, and she showers.
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They discover they are both vegan and share the stories of how they became vegan.
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Over dinner, Bee thanks Levi for his kindness; he says it’s not easy, but not for the reason she thinks.
Character Development
Bee undergoes a significant shift in this chapter. She begins with her usual defensive, self-deprecating humor, calling herself a “human disaster” and assuming Levi is married with a perfect family. But as the evening progresses, she repeatedly revises her assumptions. She notices how safe she feels around him—something she rarely experiences with men she doesn’t know well. She also recognizes her own tendency to misjudge him, from his marital status to his veganism. By the end, she’s genuinely grateful and curious, though still guarded about her feelings.
Levi reveals more of his true self. He’s patient, attentive, and surprisingly gentle—coaching Bee down from the wall, offering her itch-relief cream, and preparing a vegan meal without being asked. He’s also honest about his past, including his family’s hunting trips and his strained relationship with his parents. His comment that being welcoming to Bee is “not easy, but not for any reason you think” hints at deeper feelings he hasn’t yet articulated.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
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Misperception vs. Reality: The chapter’s title, “Maybe I Was Wrong?” captures Bee’s repeated misreadings of Levi—she assumes he’s married, a father, and a meat-eater, only to discover he’s none of those. The wall she climbs over becomes a metaphor for the barriers she’s built between them.
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Trust and Vulnerability: Bee’s decision to stay at Levi’s house requires trust, and she notes how rare it is for her to feel safe with a man. Levi’s careful handling of her—both physically and emotionally—builds that trust.
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Home as an Ideal: Levi’s house matches Bee’s lifelong dream of a stable, suburban home. Her envy and admiration highlight her longing for security, which she’s abandoned after past betrayals.
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Shared Values: The discovery that they’re both vegan, both love sci-fi, and both have cats (even if Félicette is imaginary) underscores their compatibility and challenges Bee’s belief that they’re fundamentally opposed.
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The Cat Schrödinger: Levi’s cat, named after the physicist, reinforces the theme of uncertainty—Bee can’t quite pin down who Levi is, and the cat’s presence adds a layer of domesticity that surprises her.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter is a turning point in Bee and Levi’s relationship. It moves them from antagonistic colleagues to something more intimate, as Bee spends the night in Levi’s home and sees his private life. The rescue, the shared meal, and the revelations about his family and lifestyle dismantle Bee’s preconceptions and open the door for genuine connection. It also sets up the central tension of the novel: Levi’s cryptic comment about why being kind to Bee is difficult suggests he has feelings he’s not ready to admit. The chapter deepens the romance while keeping the emotional stakes high.
Study Questions and Answers
1. Why does Bee feel safe with Levi, despite her usual wariness around men?
Bee explicitly notes that she often feels a “constant undercurrent of threat” when alone with men she doesn’t know well, but with Levi, that feeling is absent. She attributes this to his behavior—he’s patient, respectful, and attentive to her needs, from coaching her down the wall to offering itch-relief cream. His actions demonstrate that he’s not a threat, which allows her to let her guard down.
2. How does the revelation about Penny change Bee’s perception of Levi?
Bee had assumed Levi was married with a daughter, based on a photo in his office and Guy’s mention of babysitting. When Levi explains that Penny is his friend Lily’s child and that he lives alone, Bee is embarrassed but also relieved. The revelation humanizes Levi and removes the imagined barrier of a “perfect family” that Bee had been envious of. It also makes him more approachable and suggests he’s available for a relationship.
3. What does the shared veganism symbolize in this chapter?
The shared veganism is a concrete example of how much Bee and Levi have in common, despite Bee’s belief that they’re opposites. It symbolizes their compatibility on a deeper level—both are principled, compassionate, and willing to make unconventional choices. The fact that they both became vegan for emotional reasons (a goat and a chicken) also highlights their sensitivity, which contrasts with Bee’s earlier perception of Levi as cold or hostile.
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