“Well, why the hell not?” She mock pouted. “This is upsetting me and my new Louis.”
I snorted a laugh.
“I have to meet this real estate guy for lunch. It’s about mygrandparents’ farm. His company is interested in buying and I told him I’d hear him out.”
“Youareplanning to sell that farm, right? If I see even one picture of you in overalls holding a pitchfork, I will block you on all social media platforms.”
“I haven’t decided yet.” I chuckled. “I know my grandparents would want the farm to stay in the family, but I know my mother doesn’t want it, and I don’t know what the hell to do with a farm. Plus, it’s four hours away.”
“What does Theodore Aloysius Baker the Third think?” she asked sardonically. I’ve never been able to tell if Max likes or dislikes Teddy. She’s extremely talented at keeping her cards close to her chest, something that makes her one of the best PR reps at the firm. However, she never misses an opportunity to drag Teddy and his family in her never-ending indictment of the self-proclaimed Atlanta elite.
“Teddy thinks I should sell as soon as I can.” I sighed. “With his upcoming senate run, he thinks we need one less thing to worry about and more money to put toward a house.”
“A house that you don’t want.” Max raised an eyebrow.
“I never said that I didn’t want a house.” I defaulted to defending my relationship. “I just said I wasn’t ready for one. I mean, we’re going to have to buy one eventually, right?”
“Hmm.” She narrowed her eyes before continuing. “What about your mom?”
“She told me that my grandparents left the farm to me and that it was none of her business.”
“For real?” Max dropped her head to the side, her eyes widened in shock.
“Her exact words.” I sighed.
“That’s tough, baby girl.” She wrapped her hand around mine and squeezed gently. “Well, if you want my unwashed opinion, and you’re gonna get it anyway, I think you should sell. This is a lot to get dropped on your lap. Plus, it’s wrapped up in family drama, which is a big no-no for me.”
“Max, you love drama,” I scoffed.
“I don’t love drama for me or the people I care about.” She pursed her lips and gave me a pointed look. My heart swelled at her sentiment because Max wasn’t the particularly warm-and-fuzzy type. “Now”—she raised her eyebrows and dropped her chin conspiratorially—“other people’s drama? Sign me up for jubilee!”
I burst out laughing, making the ambient chatter from the rest of the offices stop momentarily.
“So where are you meeting this real estate guy?”
“Chops and Lobster.”
“Okay, moneybags! Have fun.”
“I doubt it.”
“Well, if you change your mind, Louis and I will be at The Capital Grille… at the bar.” She gave me another pointed look that made me crack up.
“Please leave before you get us fired.”
I smiled as I watched Max leave our office, swinging her new bag. My smile faded as I opened the top drawer of my desk and ran my fingertips over the old picture frame inside.
“Emma, you’re about to be the next Michelle Obama, you know you can’t run a farm in the middle of West Bubblefu—fudge… Hmm? Parker, no. Mama is talking to Titi Emma. See? Wave.” A tiny brown hand covered in what looked like red marker shot into the frame of my tablet and wiggled back and forth. “You need to be patient. Go play with your Mandarin flash cards and I’ll get you carrot sticks and hummus in a few minutes…”
My four-year-old godson’s diet put mine to shame. Teddy was working late again, so I was leaning over my sink, eating pad thai directly out of the take-out container, and drinking red wine out of a rinsed-out coffee mug—all so I wouldn’t have to wash dishes.
“Danielle, five more minutes on the tablet… Oh my God,” Rebecca groaned. “Don’t have kids, Em. It’s a setup.”
I was midsip of wine and almost choked. Becks was joking, of course. Those kids were her entire world, and my best friend was born to be a mother. She got a lot of practice with me, her practically motherless roommate, all four years at Spelman. She started dating Benjamin West the same year Teddy and I got together—technically the same day. But unlike Teddy and me, Ben and Becks got married right after graduation, and she skipped postgrad to start having kids while Ben went to medical school. Now her life is PTA meetings, extracurricular activities, and homeowner committees.
“Mrs. Rebecca Perez-West, blink twice if you want me to rescue you.” I grinned at my iPad screen.
“Em, don’t tempt me. I have a go bag in the hall closet. It’s filledwith tiny tequila bottles, thongs, and rolls of dollar bills.” She waggled her eyebrows at me.
