“Hi, sweetheart. Don’t sound so panicked, everything’s fine.”
Megan breathed a sigh of relief. “You never call atthis time.”
“Well, I have some exciting news.”
“What’s that?” Megan signalled one finger towards Candice, indicating she wouldn’t be long.
“Ashley’s article got published!” Nancy screeched.
“Seriously? Wow, that’s incredible. When?”
“Today! It’s inThe New York Timeson page ten. She bought us a copy and it’s amazing.”
At once, Megan was met with contentment that brought great joy to her soul. She was undeniably proud of Ashley and what she had accomplished, a feat she believed her capable of all along.
“I knew she’d do it.”
“And guess what?” Nancy could barely conceal her delight. “It’s actually bringing people into the bar.”
“Like, newcustomers?”
“Yes! Can you believe it? I went to breakfast this morning with your aunt Julie. When I returned, Christopher told me he’d had four or five different people ask him about the article.”
The tone of Nancy’s voice fluctuated throughout, so shrill towards the end that she had to remove the phone slightly from her ear. This made Megan laugh quietlyto herself.
“I am honestly so happy for you, and Ashley,of course.”
“She refrained from telling you so that I could. So don’t bemad at her.”
Megan stared at the floor, watching her feet shift slowly from side to side. If only she had a right to be mad at her, their relationship had become non-existent and at times that made her sad, but the ability to switch off those emotions was a skill she attained from the years of travelling alone.
“I won’t.” Megan glanced at Candice, who was shooting patiently. “Gram, I need to go, I’m in the gym training, but I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Okay, Meg. Love you,sweetheart.”
“I love you too.”
The call ended and suddenly Megan’s motivation drained. The thought of Ashley fully consumed her mind, to the point where she missed 10 of her 20 shots from the right corner—which was almost unheard of. Pinpointing the reason behind her sudden loss of concentrationwas elusive.
“Did you just get some bad news?”
“What do you mean?”
“The phone call? You just missed half ofyour shots.”
“My mind’s just elsewhere I guess.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“Not really.”
Candice sat on the bench and proceeded to take her shoes off, trading for a more comfortable slider.
“Okay, suit yourself.”
Megan had spoken to Candice on several occasions, but never about anything other than basketball. Her willingness to share with someone she barely knewwas absent.
“Sorry, I just don’t really have anything to say.”
