I smiled thinly. “Diet Coke, please.”
The attendant popped a can for me and poured a bottle of water for Theo, then pushed her cart further down the aisle.
“You good?” Theo asked.
“I want to puke, my skin feels like it’s a size too small for my body, and then there’s that.” I pointed to my jouncing leg. “I should’ve given you the window seat. I’m going to see Vegas get closer and closer as we land. We’re crashing right into everything I’m scared of.”
“Maybe it’s too soon,” Theo said. “It’s only been a few days since you quit.”
I shook my head. “I have to do this. If I stop to think too much, I’ll chicken out. Plus, I’m already on the plane. Too late to have them swing around and drop me off in Oklahoma.”
“Nobody’s mad at you,” Theo said after a moment. “My mother, especially. She’ll just be happy you’re okay.”
“It’s more than that,” I said. I glanced out the little window where Texas was a vast, flat space of pale green and brown below us. “It’s Vegas. And Jonah.” My throat constricted and I gripped the armrest of my seat. “How do you do it?” I asked. “So many memories…”
He shrugged. “Work and school keep me busy.”
I blinked. “What do you mean, school?”
He made a face. “Bound to come up sooner or later. I went back to UNLV to get an MBA.”
“Teddy.” I socked his arm. “Shit, that’s awesome. Why didn’t you tell me?”
He smiled dryly. “You weren’t really in the mood to make conversation.”
I snorted. “Seriously, when did you start? How much do you have left?”
“January and I have a year to go.”
I curled in my seat to face him. “Why did you go back?”
“So when I buy my own place, I won’t be totally in the dark about how to run it.”
I felt my cheeks stretch in the widest smile I’d worn in ages. “I’m so proudof you. Does that sound condescending?”
Theo said, “No,” while nodding his head ‘yes.’
I laughed and socked his arm. “Smartass.”
I sat back in my seat, a strange, hopeful thought sparking in my mind.If he opened a shop in New Orleans, I’d have a friend.
My best friend.
What else would you call the person who dropped everything to fly across the country to save my life?
“Do you think you might want to open a shop somewhere outside of Vegas?” I asked slowly.
“Maybe. Mom’s health isn’t great.” He waved his hand at my alarmed expression. “She’s okay, she’s just… She had the rug pulled out from under her, you know? She’s shaky and scared all the time. I’d feel like shit leaving town.”
Theo was stuck. Suspended. Just like the Tarot card said. My short-lived fantasy he might open a shop in New Orleans died a swift death. Family comes first, of course, but I hated the idea of him not pursuing his dream.
“I’m sure there’s a way you can market a shop in Vegas so it stands out,” I told him. “You’re really talented, Teddy. I’ve seen your work.Inkedhas featured your work. If you open a shop, customers will come foryou.”
“Maybe. It’s a risk. It was already risky. New businesses fail all the time. It would be different if it wasn’t Jonah’s money…” He shook his head, biting off his own words. “I’ll get this degree first and go from there.”
He clearly wanted me to drop the subject, so I did. I turned my head to the window and watched the land slide beneath us. Soon enough—too soon—the plane began its descent and I watched Las Vegas—and all of the memories I shared with Jonah—growing closer and closer.
Tears blurred my vision, but I blinked them back to watch the Strip with its lights—brilliant and colorful even at midday—glow against the yellow sands. Like colored glass glinting in the sun.
