When I landed, I dropped my bag at my house and called the front desk of the inn.
"Mistletoe Inn.How can I help make your stay merry?"
"Aspen?"I felt relieved to hear her voice.
"Are you in town?"she asked, her voice lower.
I nodded, even though she couldn't see me."I'm back now."
"How's your friend?"Her voice was soft.
"He's having a tough time, but I think we got him set up so that he has support."
"Is he why you missed the parade?"
I sighed."Yeah.I texted Natasha, but the message never sent."
"Eve and Natasha aren't talking about it, so I don't know how that went over," Aspen said, and I sensed she was chewing her lip.
"Do you know how I can get in touch with Eve?I need to talk to her first, explain what happened, and apologize."
"I'll send you her contact information."
"That would be great.Thank you."
After a brief pause, Aspen asked, "Are you planning to talk to Natasha?"
I sighed."I'm not sure how to make that situation right.I'm hoping Eve can give me some ideas."
"Good luck."
"Thanks."I clicked off and waited for Eve's number to come through.When it did, I texted her, asking if we could meet for coffee.
When I walked inside Coffee Dreams, Eve was sitting in the back with a laptop open on the table in front of her.
I sat across from her, not bothering to order myself anything.I didn't need caffeine.I was already hyped up on the urgency to win Natasha back.
Eve's expression was wary.
I didn't bother with niceties and got straight to the point."I'm sorry about not being at the parade.I texted Natasha, but the message never went through.”
Eve's face softened slightly."Natasha said you were helping a friend."
I nodded."But that's no excuse, especially with our history.I should have called her or talked to her in person."
Eve nodded."You should have."
"I wanted to talk to you first.One of my buddies in the military just got out and is having a tough time assimilating into civilian life.We spent time with him, signed up for a gym membership, and helped him apply for a few jobs.The best thing we did was find him a local veteran who could serve as his mentor.Someone who's done this before."
"That's a nice thing you did for him," Eve said, her expression unreadable.
I dropped my head, staring at the chipped table."I don't want Natasha to feel like she comes in second to the military or my friends."
"Then don't."
"How do I fix this?How do you make up for past mistakes?"I'd spent the flight home thinking of what I could do and came up empty.
She met my gaze."You tell her the truth."
