“I invited your parents, but they’re so busy with the wedding, they couldn’t make it,” Dolores says, setting the tray down. “But they wanted you to know that they intend to celebrate with you as soon as the wedding’s over.”
Shrugging as though it’s no big deal, I say, “Well, there’s really nothing to celebrate today. We don’t even know if I passed.”
“Yes, we do.” Dolores says firmly. She gestures to the tray while giving me an expectant look.
Glancing at it, I laugh when I notice a cheese me sitting on a bed of lettuce.
Izzy bursts through the door and runs down the steps with Mr. Bananas dragging behind her. She points at the blob of cheese and says, “I helped make a Cheese Lawyer Mum. See? You have a fancy suit on and a briefcase.”
Wow,” I say, staring at the unrecognizable white blob. “That is amazing. You two must have been working very hard all day.”
“Yep.” Isabelle nods proudly, then sets Mr. Bananas up at on one of the chairs. “Him can sit between us.”
“Perfect.” I pick up his little hand and give it a shake. “Mr. Bananas, thanks for joining us on this auspicious occasion.”
“You sit down and relax,” Dolores says. “I’ll go get us some wine.”
“Oh, yes, please.” I do as I’m told, a sense of relief coming over me as I take a seat.
The sun starts to set while we dine on the world’s saltiest celebratory dinner. Isabelle chats excitedly about the upcoming wedding and begins the extensive negotiations regarding how late we can stay out so she can dance the night away. Then I give her the it-all-depends-on-your-behaviour speech.
As we move on to the dessert portion—warm chocolate chip cookies with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and bacon sprinkles, I keep the smile on my face, even though on the inside, I feel strangely empty. I’m sure it’s just because I’m so tired.
By the time we’re done eating, it’s dark out, and the bottle of wine is empty. I have a nice warm feeling of being full, of having completed one of the biggest challenges of my life, and of being slightly numb.
Isabelle yawns audibly, and I glance at my watch. “Oh, dear, we better get you off to bed, young lady. We have a big weekend ahead of us.”
“Aww, but, Mum…” Isabelle starts.
“Who’s this Butt Mum you keep calling?” I say with a wink. “Now, you and Mr. Bananas go get your jammies on, or you’ll be too tired to dance all night this weekend.”
That seems to do the trick because she disappears into the house without another word while I stand and stack the dishes. “Thank you so much, Auntie. I’ll do the cleanup. You go watchJeopardy.”
“Don’t have to tell me twice.” She gets up, then gathers the salad bowl and wine bottle to take inside. Stopping after a few steps, Dolores turns to me. “You should just call him.”
“Call who?” I ask innocently.
“Leo. It’s painfully obvious that you miss him.”
I shake my head. “Why would I miss a big, irresponsible, goofy guy like him?”
“Because you’re in love with him,” she says. “Besides, he’s not irresponsible. He’s just more fun than you are.”
“Same thing.”
“No, it’s not, and you know it.”
Sighing, I let my shoulders drop. “He’s gone. End of story. So any feelings I may or may not have had for him are irrelevant. Not that I did have feelings for him, because I didn’t.”
“You’re a terrible liar. Always were,” she says, turning back to the house. “You love him, so the smart thing to do would be to call him, or swipe him on your phone, or whatever you kids do these days…”
I follow her inside. “I don’t… Even if I did have feelings for him, it doesn’t matter. We’re too different. Plus, he left, so—”
“So you need to tell him to come back,” she answers, setting the bowl on the counter. “He will.”
“No, he won’t. He made it very clear that he has no romantic interest in me whatsoever. Which is a good thing, because we’re totally wrong for each other. Not in any way compatible.”
“Oh, bollocks. He’s the yang to your yin. Without him, you have no yang. Is that the kind of life you want?”
