“Nothing new, no.”
“You’re lying,” she sing-songs. “Tell me. Give me some gossip.”
“Well… he came back today.”
“Shutup! What’s that, three times in the last six months? What was the issue this time?”
“His fuel pump fuse was damaged—waterlogged or something. Which is strange, because nothing else was touched by water. Anyway, yeah. I feel bad. He was at the shop for so long because there were problems with another customer’s car, so by the time I was done, the shop was closed. Then Patrick took off with his keys, so Saint had to wait in the lobby with me. He shared the most amazing sandwiches with me. He made this bread with a garlicky, herby swirl in it and?—”
“Wait, wait, wait. Hold on. Rewind. You had a date with him?!”
“No! It wasn’t a date, Kelly. It was just… he had food, and we were hungry, and he couldn’t leave because Patrick had his keys so…”
“That sounds like a date, Mikey.”
“No.He’s a customer who was stranded for a bit.Andhe lives in Cupid’s Cove. We should go visit, by the way. Check out his bakery. He brought more cookies, too. They’re delicious, and I’d like to see what else he makes.”
There’s a moment of silence where I don’t even hear Kelly breathing, and I just know the next thing she says is going to be something I don’t want to hear.
“Mikey…”
“No.”
“I think?—”
“Don’t say it, please.”
“—you have a crush on him. You’ve never once had the desire to go to a bakery almost two hours away. More importantly, I think he likesyou.Three times in six months, Mikey? Come on.”
“He doesn’t like me, he’s just nice. He can’t help it if his van breaks down. Sure, the timing is a little off, but?—”
“Why are you so against letting yourself crush on him? And don’t give me the ‘he’s a customer’ excuse. You’re not a doctor or something. There’s no ethics violation if you date him.”
“You know why,” I whisper. I don’t want to rehash my fear of falling in love. I don’t need to remind her I watched my dad’s heart slowly break after Mom died. I don’t need to replay the way my heart was ripped out of my chest after my ex and all the time it took to rebuild myself. How Kelly’s the one who had to come to my apartment and force feed me saltines because I could barely function.
“Your parents—yourmom—wouldn’t want you to close yourself off from love, hon. They’d want you to grab it by the neck and hold on tight.”
“I know… but there’s no telling if this crush I have could be more. He hasn’t asked me out, and besides, I’ll probably never see him again.”
“Okay, you may be right, but what if he comes back? What if he does ask you out? Will you say yes?”
“I don’t know, Kell.”
I hear her sigh, then she says, “I’ll drop it for now. I’ve got to go, but call me if you need anything. Love you big, Mikey.”
“Okay. Love you, too, Kell.”
We hang up, and I decide it’s time to go to sleep.
That night, I dream of a man with kind hazel eyes and a blonde beard showing up at work to ask me on a date.
I say yes.
5
November
Perhaps my timing is making it too obvious. I should have waited another month before I came back, but I just couldn’t. I was getting restless, sitting at the bakery and thinking about Mikey. The need to see her freckled face and hear her voice andseeher was overwhelming.
