“Happy New Year,” he muttered before stepping out into the chilly desert evening and pulling on his helmet.
The city lights sparkled in the valley below the Catalina Foothills, the last breath of the holidays coming to a close. He straddled his bike and started it, the engine rumbling beneath him.
What could go wrong with one date?
three
sparkling wine goes with everything
For the first time since before Christmas, Elissa had the TV all to herself. Wrapped in a fuzzy blanket, she reveled in the quiet. Her brother was out with friends for the last Friday of winter break, making up for his lousy excuse for a New Year’s Eve. Her mom felt the best she had in a while, so Dad swept her away for a date night before their appointment with the oncologist next week.
Elissa looked forward to the quiet, but fate had other ideas.
Footsteps crunched on the gravel path leading to her parents’ front door and a familiar, rhythmic knock sounded before a tall woman with curly black hair and snappy brown eyes barged in like she’d been doing the last twenty years.
“Happy New Year!” Jules’s smile was as big as her personality: warm, caring, mischievous. She’d been Elissa’s friend since kindergarten, as opposite as it was possible to be and still be best friends.
Jules plopped down on the couch beside Elissa, setting down a bottle of sparkling wine on the coffee table with a loud thunk. She pulled Elissa into one of her famous hugs, the ones that made you feel loved and part of whatever ridiculousness Jules planned next. As much as she’d been looking forward to some alone time, she never turned down a chance to be with her bestie.
“Happy New Year,” Elissa said as they both settled into the soft cushions of the worn, but oh-so-comfortable couch.
“What is my favorite nerd doing by herself on the first Friday of a new year?”
“I was enjoying it.” Elissa found the grin growing on her own face. Jules was the only person she could tease like this. Her BFF was the one bright spot in what had been a soul-sucking year with little to smile about.
“Well, now you can enjoy it even more because I’m here. I won’t let you waste your night watching”—Jules looked at the TV for a minute to figure out exactly what Elissa was watching—“another Lord of the Rings marathon.”
“Lord of the Rings is comfort TV.”
“Lady, you don’t need comfort TV. You need comfort dick.”
Jules waggled her eyebrows at Elissa. It had been an ongoing discussion for the last few months once Jules had decided an appropriate interval had passed for her to grieve her relationship with Victor. Between her best friend and her mother, the pressure was on to re-enter the dating game.
“Have anyone in mind?” By the grace of God, Elissa kept a straight face.
Jules narrowed her eyes and studied her before her smile returned. She ruffled Elissa’s hair before pulling her in for a side hug.
“You’re messing with me.”
“Guilty as charged. What brings you to my parent’s couch on a Friday?”
“I knew you’d be here. Where else would I find my favorite nerd?”
“Not a nerd.”
“Uh-huh. Tell that to Gandalf on the Enterprise.”
“Gandalf isn’t on?—”
“Yeah, I know. Nerd.”
Jules bounced up, her never-ending energy propelling her to the kitchen where she grabbed a couple of wineglasses and some cookies from the cookie jar. She nestled onto the couch and poured the wine for both of them.
“Cheers.”
The glasses clinked in a satisfactory way. Elissa took a cookie from the napkin before sipping the bubbly. The bubbles fizzed on her tongue, releasing the sweet scent of the surprisingly dry wine.
“Are you sure this goes with cookies?” Elissa examined the chocolate chip cookie in her hand.
