“Are there couples who don’t have a piece of paper who live happy, committed lives? Yes. Are there couples with a piece of paper who cheat? Also yes. Does getting that paper with someone who’s adamantly opposed to it guarantee happiness? Nope. Does showing someone that you can put their needs ahead of your own go a long way toward happiness? Hell yes.”
“But what does she need? Because it sure as hell wasn’t me the other night. She couldn’t leave fast enough.”
“And she regretted it all the way to the airport. The Uber driver was ready to stop at a CVS for Kleenex.”
“You said she was fine,” I bite out. It breaks my heart to know how miserable she was and that, not only was I the cause of it, but I wasn’t there to fix it.
“She made me promise not to tell you. She said she needed time to get her head straight, and I respect that.”
“You saw her text. It doesn’t sound like she can’t wait to see me and talk this out.”
“Yea, I saw her text. Did you?”
“What the hell? Yes. It’s on my phone. I showed it to you.”
“Look again. There are at least five spelling errors in that nine-word sentence. There’s no way in hell Molly sent that text. And if she did, she wasn’t sober.”
I look at my phone to see that he’s right. “Great. Another mystery to solve.”
“What’s the mystery? You turned down that promotion, Ev. You’re not fooling anyone.”
He’s right. At lunch, Akers offered me a position with our head office in London. It’s a total dream job. Even more money than I’m pulling in now, and way less bullshit. I’ve been feeling so restless at work lately. The thrill is gone, and this opportunity is likely exactly what I need. Who would turn that down?
Me. I would.
And, yea, I could pretend that it’s because my sister’s having a baby, and I want to stay stateside and close to my family. That’s what I told Akers, and he bought it. But Nate clearly isn’t.
“Whether you want to admit it or not, you’re sticking around to see if you and Molly have a chance. And I hope like hell you do. I love that girl. And you obviously adore her.”
“I do.”
“So, you need to figure out a way to show her that you love her, without scaring her off.The only way this is going to work is if you both get what you need. So, making that happen needs to be your primary focus.”
“It’s that simple, huh?”
I’m messaging with Elaine, and I’m afraid she knows I’ve been avoiding her. Well, not avoiding, really. I visited a few days ago, but I didn’t stay long. My head is in a weird place over Ev, and until I figure it out, I don’t really want to talk about it. That is, if he still even wants what we had. He hasn’t responded to my text. Well, Winn’s text, technically.
I miss him so much, more than I thought possible. And I could kick myself for running away like that. He was right. I should have had a drink at the bar with Nate, vented and bitched, and then we could have figured our shit out like rational adults. Instead, it’s been a week since I’ve seen or heard from him.
Elaine: Molls. Did you just leave me on read?
Molly: Sorry. Had to reheat my tea.
Elaine: I’ll allow it.
Molly: How gracious of you. So...you went to the drs. Yesterday and I’m dyinggggg to know…
Elaine: Know what?
Elaine: oh, that I actually gained four pounds and the doctor was very proud of me. I made him say it again, so I could record it for my mom.
Elaine: Oh, or are you dyingggggg (is that different than regular dying?) to know that I haven’t puked at all today?
Molly: You’re killing me.
Elaine: I know. That’s why your dyingggg :)
Molly: OMG! AM I GETTING A NIECE OR A NEPHEW????????
