“Add movies that make me laugh and you have a deal,” I replied.
Ava smiled. “I can do that.”
“Fine. My house or yours?”
“Yours,” she said immediately. “I need cuddles from Satchel.”
I rolled my eyes. “I think you’ve been replaced as her favorite person. Brace yourself.”
“What? Not possible,” Ava scoffed.
I nodded. “She loves Rhys. Sometimes she’ll sit on the back of the couch and stare out the window at his house. If I try to talk to her, her tail twitches and she glares at me as though she’s plotting my demise.”
“Okay, so I’ll stop and get her a little present on my way too. I don’t want her to kill my favorite employee.”
That wasn’t saying much. She often hired college students to work part time throughout the year, but the turnover was high. She and I were the only tarot readers as well.
“Bribery might work,” I agreed.
“Great. I’ll meet you at the house in half an hour.”
We decided that she would get the wine and ice cream and I would order the Thai before we parted ways. I walked home in the early evening light, calling the restaurant as I strolled down the sidewalk. The sun would be going down soon and the sunset promised to be spectacular. Maybe I could talk Ava into sitting in my back garden to drink our wine and eat our take-out. Despite my plans to pretend it didn’t exist, I found myself glancing at Rhys’ house. There was a single dim light on in the front window and I knew he was likely sitting in his living room, reading a book or watching television. I wondered how he had been since the last time I saw him, but I tried to shove him out of my head. He’d made a decision and I wasn’t going to argue about it.
Maybe it was pride but I would not chase after a man, no matter how ridiculously hot he was. I might have strange talents but a man should want me enough to pursue me. Especially in the beginning.
Resolutely, I turned away from Rhys’ house and moved up the sidewalk toward my front door. Satchel sat on the windowsill, her little gray body wedged behind the blinds, and her blue-green eyes were full of accusation. When I opened the door, she ran over to me, meowing and blinking rapidly. I wasn’t sure if she was telling me all about her day, giving me the rundown of Rhys’ activities, or chewing me out for being gone until so late. However, when I leaned down to pet her, she reared back and pawed lightly at my hand until I picked her up and cuddled her to my chest.
“So you still love your mommy, I see,” I murmured as I shut the front door behind me and went through the house, turning lights on. I went straight back to the bedroom and changed into yoga pants and a t-shirt, relishing in the comfort.
A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door and I knew it was Ava before I opened it because of Satchel’s reaction. She ran straight for the door and stood on her back legs, batting at the wood with her front paws as she meowed loudly.
When I opened the door, Ava swept inside, holding four bags.
“How many bottles of wine did you buy?” I asked, taking two of the bags from her.
“Three.”
“Ava! We barely finish two between us. Why do you always bring so much wine? I think I still have a bottle left from last time.”
“That may be true, but our usual dinners are just for fun. This has to do with man trouble. Man trouble always equates to an extra bottle of wine.”
“What’s in the other two bags?”
“Four flavors of ice cream.”
I let my head fall back and I addressed my ceiling. “She wants my ass to be wider than it already is.”
“Whatever, you have a fantastic ass. Very J.Lo. Men love that.”
“If you’re going to say things like that, I definitely will need the third bottle of wine after all.”
I put the ice cream in the freezer as Ava poured us each a glass of wine. As though it were choreographed, the doorbell rang, announcing the arrival of our dinner. I managed to talk Ava into eating dinner on my back deck and we enjoyed the changing colors of the sky while the sun went down.
The idyllic moment made me think of my conversation with Rhys at the botanical garden. Peace could be found in the least likely places if you just took a moment to look for it. This evening, this moment in time with my best friend, was the essence of tranquility.
“What are you thinking about?” Ava asked me.
I picked up my glass of wine and sipped before I answered her. “Rhys.”
