I relaxed into the pedicure chair, glass of wine in hand as I tried — unsuccessfully — to cheer myself up. The point of this trip to the spa was to separate myself from the stress of spending the last few days in Chicago with Des, who was now five months pregnant. The plan was to get away, and have a little girl time with my best friend, but I’d spent the majority of the visit between three activities: The most annoying was being lectured on the importance of dating again after a divorce, which I refused to discuss with Des, period, but she was content with telling me — no response needed. Second was being grilled about Avery’s dating progress, which I couldn’t discuss with her anyway. If neither of those were happening, she was raving about her new life with Drew and the impending arrival of the baby, both of which — call me a hater— I didn’t want to discuss, at least not for hours on end. I was happy for Des and Drew, but they were so into each other it was overwhelming sometimes.
Des and I had always been solid friends, like sisters. I wasn’t sure exactly what shifted, but she was starting to make me question our friendship with her criticisms and judgments of my life, especially when it was hypocritical. So, with that weighing on my mind, I’d gone to the spa when she was unavailable, with the intention of being alone to have every bit of anxiety massaged, exfoliated, waxed, clipped, and polished away, but I was no closer to serenity than I’d been when I walked through the door.
I went back to my hotel to shower before I was supposed to join Drew and Des for dinner, but I considered crawling into my bed with a bottle of wine. My mood was gloomy at best, and I didn’t want to be that girl, taking out my frustrations on everyone else. Nevertheless, this was my last night in Chicago. I wasn’t about to cancel the plans that had been in place since before I arrived, so I threw on my ‘uniform’: skinny jeans and a cute top, a little makeup, and brushed my curls into big, puffy waves. By the time I arrived at the restaurant, I had pep-talked myself into a better mood.
Then, I got to our table.
I had to keep myself from rolling my eyes at the sight of Deidra and Wes tagging along with Desiree and Drew. Excellent. Now, instead of enduring one lovey-dovey couple, I had to manage two, and I wasn’t the biggest Deidra fan. I tolerated her for Des.
Somehow, I managed to plaster a smile on my face. “Hey guys! I didn’t realize you were coming too!”
“They were a last minute addition,” Des explained. “They called to invite us out, but of course we already had plans with you, so I figured we could blend it.”
Deidra chimed in. “Yeah, Des is the best, isn’t she? Always thinking up a compromise.”
I was saved from giving my thoughts on her compromise by the appearance of the waiter to take our drink orders. I waited patiently until he got to me, and ordered water. “Oh, and a Long Island Iced Tea, please.” I needed it.
“Jameson neat for me, man.” A lump formed in my throat at the sound of a warm, rich, familiar voice. I looked up to see Avery stepping around the waiter with a smile on his face as he took the last seat at the table — beside me. Freaking déjà vu. He greeted everyone, then dipped his head closer to me. “How have you been?”
I had been avoiding seeing Avery in person for nearly two weeks, in an effort to tame my swirling emotions. I couldn’t get the memory of him pushing me against my door, with his body pressed to mine, out of my head. He looked as handsome now as he did then, and as always, he smelled divine. I swallowed hard. “I’ve been good.”
“Yeah, Mel told me that, but I figured I’d ask for myself.”
I lifted an eyebrow. “You talked to Melanie?”
“Yeah… I stopped by your office day before yesterday to talk to you, but you were already in Chicago. Mel gave me a little pep talk, and sent me a list of my matches, said I might want to take a second look at some of the ladies.”
Des calling out to us from across the table interrupted me from reacting to that little tidbit. “What are you two whispering about over there?”
“Something that doesn’t concern you.” Avery shot back with a grin, which Des met by rolling her eyes.
She sat back with a huff, crossing her arms. “Right. You’re both being all secretive about stuff now that you’re working together.”
“I still can’t believe you two are working together on this,” Deidra said, accepting her drink as the waiter came back.
Des sat up again. “Why, because of the breakfast blow up? Avery apologized, and they got past that. I texted Avery after you and Wes decided to come, so we could have a do-over of that meal.”
“No, not because of that,” Deidra said with a dismissive wave. “I’m surprised because we saw them leave the reception together, so I was sure something was going on between them.”