“Hey! Do you have any plans tonight? Mine fell through, so I wanted to see if you were free.” Her voice fills my car, and I turn the volume down just a bit so it’s not blaring.
“I’m actually almost to Julian.”
“Oh! I can hear the smile in your tone, Zee. Ringing in the new year with your new beau?”
“You could say that. Going to come clean to his aunt and uncle today, and I’m a nervous wreck.”
My stomach twists in knots as my car climbs further up the mountain.
“Stop. They already love you. That won’t change.”
“They’ve met me once,” I stress. “They’re going to bereallypissed that I lied to them from the get-go.”
“Eh.” Something rustles in the background, muffling her voice a little. “Don’t put words in their mouth, Zee. Just see what happens.”
I sigh and glance in my rearview mirror again. “You’re right.”
“Typically, I am. Is that hot doctor going to be there?”
“How do you know he’s hot?”
“Because you have good taste in men. You wouldn’t have gone on a date with him if he wasn’t attractive.”
My head bobs along in agreement even though she can’t see it. She’s not wrong. All the men I chose for holidates were super cute. “Yes, Lincoln is supposed to be there. He’s feeling just as guilty as I am about this.”
“Good, place the blame on him. It was his idea. It’shisfamily.”
“I know, but I really care about Miller, and that’s his family, too.”
“Ah, Zee. Always so logical.”
“So, what happened to your plans tonight?” I ask, drumming my fingers against the steering wheel.
“Killian and I broke up.”
I roll my eyes. “I didn’t realize you were seeing him again.”
I don’t know Killian, per se, but I know what she’s told me about him and it’s enough to make me not like him.
“Againbeing the operative word. I should’ve learned the first time.”
“We all make mistakes.”
“Yeah, well, I won’t be making that one again. Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me, and all that.”
“I’m here if you need anything.”
“Technically, you’re not, because I need to get drunk tonight and kiss a new prince at midnight.” She laughs at herself. “Seriously though, I know you are, Zee. Thank you. Do you need me to check on Potato while you’re gone?”
Smiling, I glance at him in my rearview mirror. “No, I actually brought him.”
“That was rude of you. Uprooting him from his comfy home on a holiday.”
“Iknow, but I wasn’t sure how long I would be up here, and I didn’t want to ask you to watch him without having a solid plan.”
“You know I would’ve done it,” she singsongs, seeming a little distant from her phone. She must have set it down.
“That's because you’re the best.”
