I nod. “Have a good weekend.”
“I’m sure it won’t be as good as yours, from what I hear.” She shoots me a sly smile.
“Have you been talking to Darla about me again?”
“You hired me because we were friends. You can’t expect us not to talk about your love life.” She crosses her arms.
“That’s exactly what I expect younotto do.”
“No promises. You know us women like to talk.”
“And just for that, I won’t tell you how the date goes.”
Nadine huffs. “Well, that’s not fair. We only want you to find love and happiness. You can’t blame us for that.”
“Goodnight, Nadine.” I make a quick escape out the front door so she doesn’t see my smile. I’d rather her believe I won’t tell her anything all weekend. It serves her and Darla right for always butting into my love life.
When I get to my car, I check my phone and sigh when I see Kelsey’s response.
KELSEY
Alyssa and Shayna said they don’t mind having Evie over for a little girls' night while you’re gone.
ME
Wonderful. Please tell them I’ll drop her off at five-thirty.
KELSEY
*gif of Michelle Tanner saying, “You got it, dude.”*
I’d secretly been hoping no one would be able to watch Evie, giving me a reason to tell Aunt Darla I couldn’t go on this blind date.
“Maybe it won’t be so bad,” I mumble, putting the car in drive and heading home. I release a long breath through my nose. “Or maybe it’ll be the worst mistake of my life.”
Either way, it’s only one night I have to get through to appease Aunt D. Then this mystery woman and I can both move on with our lives and never have to see each other again. Unless she’s my soulmate—but the odds of that are highly unlikely.
Evie finishes her bowl of macaroni and cheese with a contented sigh. While I normally try to feed her well-balanced meals, I caved tonight. But I did buy the most organic-looking box I could find.
“Eves, do you remember you’re hanging out with some of Ms. Kelsey’s friends next door tonight?”
Her eyes light up. “Do you think they’ll paint my nails? My polish is almost gone from when Ms. Kelsey did them.”
I shrug. “I’m sure they will.”
She fist-pumps at her side. “Yes.”
“I’ll be home in time to put you to bed.”
Evie slowly meets my gaze, her brow furrowing. “Where are you going?”
“I’m meeting up with…” I trail off. How exactly does one talk about going on a date with their five-year-old niece without telling them they’re going on a date? “With a lady friend.”
“Can I meet her later? I like your other friends, like Ms. Kelsey and Ms. Mallory.”
I’m not about to tell Evie that said ‘friends’ have pretty much flat-out told me that they don’t like me, let alone view me as their friend.
“Maybe, Eves.” I rub the back of my neck. No wonder my sister hasn’t been on a date since she divorced Julian.
