Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 73665 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 295(@250wpm)___ 246(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73665 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 368(@200wpm)___ 295(@250wpm)___ 246(@300wpm)
“Fine. The most romantic not-a-date ever. And by the way, he hates tacos. I could have told you that.”
“Better to have learned the hard way than not learned at all?”
“So what’s on the agenda for Sunday?” Mika pries.
“Taking the word agenda out of his schedule and going back to his roots. I thought, what’s something he loves that he hasn’t done in a very long time?”
“Getting laid?”
“Mika! Noooooooo. Think older.”
“My dad is way old. At least older than you.”
“Mika!” I say exasperatedly.
“You like geezers. I know you’re afraid to do anything that will make your parents get all up in your face and your business, which is why your condo is so bland and you date guys that are super boring, capitalize the word boring. But remember that party we went to years ago? You had a few beers and confessed to me that you think older guys are hot. Specifically, it was our film professor. And I concur. He was super hot.”
I start breathing all over the place, sucking in air loudly to try to encourage my lungs to come back to the ship after they try to jump.
“Relax. Age gaps are hot. Everyone is all about the zaddies now,” Mika adds.
The most unfortunate part of that statement is that it’s true. I don’t know about the zaddies thing, but age gaps are hot. Rowleigh is hot. He’s inconveniently and almost horribly attractive.
I desperately need to change the subject. Unfortunately, that means circling back around to the very reason for this conversation. “Anyway, I want to find a place where we can go picking.”
“Picking? Antique picking?”
“Yes! I got my car back this morning.” It was the alternator that went bad and not the transmission after all. It’s hard to believe one part could cause so many problems. It cooked my battery and some of the belts, so those had to be replaced too. It wasn’t cheap, but at least the shop got the work done somewhat quickly. “I’m out at this super cool barn right now, checking it over as a potential venue. Technically, I’m done already. I’m just sitting out here because it’s beautiful and I have an apple to eat before I go venturing down a few different back roads out here.”
“That sounds like a really good way to get abducted or shot.”
My stomach pinches and sours so badly that I’m glad I haven’t started eating anything yet. “I thought so too. I’ll be careful.”
“Avoid the yards that have posted trespassing signs.”
It’s hard not to smile at that. Mika is so like my mom sometimes, but unlike my mom, she doesn’t mean to imply that I don’t have enough brain cells to figure that out. Mika just worries about me because she loves me. Period.
“I’ll be careful,” I reiterate.
“Jumbo rats? Mouse armies? Gotta watch out for anything and everything. If you find a place, go prepared. Proper shoes and safety equipment are a must. Those places are Hantavirus waiting to happen.”
“I’ll make sure we have masks, safety glasses, sturdy shoes, and water. I…do you think it’s something your dad would like to do, or would it be triggering for him?”
“Triggering?”
“Something from his past that he used to do, and now he doesn’t.”
My hand clutches the phone a little tighter. Those guys in the furthest group on the green are the loudest. They’re laughing again, and I definitely just heard the word balls. Not in relation to golf either.
“He doesn’t do it anymore because he doesn’t have time.” Mika sounds so sure. “He’s busy running an empire. He could just sit back since he’s already so rich, but it’s the only thing that gives his life any meaning. If he quit that, he wouldn’t know what to do with himself. I think he’d like to change it up. So, no, it’s not triggering. I’d say more like nostalgic.”
“Hmm.”
“Hmm,” she echoes, then laughs. “Did he say anything about me?” She cleverly sneaks that in there like she doesn’t care, but I know just how much she does.
“He said that…”
I’m torn between being real with my best friend and protecting Rowleigh’s vulnerability. He’s a grown man, and he doesn’t need me to shield him from the world, but he told me those things in confidence, in such a way that pretty much screamed he doesn’t do that with just anyone.
“Yes?” Mika’s not even trying to hide her curiosity. That yes is practically a shove off a ledge.
I can’t lie to her and say that Rowleigh didn’t say anything. I don’t think it’s betraying him by being honest. I know Mika is in a place in her life where she’s open to adult feelings and examining what she thought were truths from her childhood.
You see things differently as you age.
You see your parents differently. You realize they’re just older versions of yourself. Flawed. Messed up. They don’t have it together any more than anyone else. They’re not infallible.