"Did you already order?" I asked her, after giving her a hug.
"Um. No."
That was an odd answer. "Let's get in line together then."
"Actually, I'm just here to give you this. Flynn found it on the nightstand and didn't want to give it to you himself."
"What could he possibly have of mine? I put everything in storage."
"He said it was a necklace he bought you for your anniversary."
I scoffed. "You mean the one we celebrated while he was dating someone else?"
Eliza grimaced. "He said you would say that."
I tipped my head to the side, considering her. "I thought we were friends." When she remained silent, I continued, "You knew he was dating both of us."
"It wasn't my place to say anything."
I sighed, feeling exhausted. "I don't care about him. But I thought you were my friend. Why didn't you tell me?"
She sniffed. "Your relationship with him wasn't my business."
I shook my head. "You were never my friend, because if you were, you would have told me as soon as you found out. What he did erased everything between us. I suspected that I'd lost my friends to him too, but this confirms it."
I turned to leave.
"Wait. What am I supposed to do with this?" She held up the necklace, and I laughed, feeling freer than I had before I walked into the coffee shop. "Throw it out."
Then I pushed open the door and walked the short distance to my office. I breathed in the air, taking in the traffic and the people on the street. This city was nothing like Sanibel, and I missed the island as if it was a living, breathing thing.
The island had become my home. I wanted to do everything I could to be living and working there again. I wanted to be able to support myself and create the life I wanted on my own terms. I was done with reporting to someone else.
I'd reach out to the businesses on the island to see if they could use my services for their logos, menus, or even their websites. I'd always thought I had to work for someone else, that I didn't know enough about business to do it on my own. But I was smart; I could make it work.
Whenever I worked with clients directly, they seemed to like my approach. I could carry that into a business.
I didn't need someone else to be the go-between. I wanted to control my destiny.
I'd spend the evening researching what I needed to do to start my own business. Even if this thing with Marshall didn't work out, I could still live on the island.
I'd be okay without him, even if the thought of attempting to live there without him by my side was physically painful.
I'd made the decision to move to the island and figure out a way to support myself with my work. Something about that decision released the creativity inside me, and I was able to finish the project I was working on before six.
I walked out of the office, feeling amazing. Normally, I would have felt pressured to stay longer and be the last one to leave for the night. Not anymore.
I had plans to make and a life to create. I was humming to myself when I heard someone call my name. I turned slowly, not quite believing the sound of the voice.
It was Marshall. "Saylor."
I looked around. "How are you here right now?"
"I wanted to talk to you."
"Is everything okay with Hayden?" I asked him, scared that he'd come to tell me something had happened. But wouldn't he have called, not driven here?
"She's fine, a little homesick for the island," he said with a chuckle.
