“I’ll change,” I promised. The shot of liquid vitamins was a good start. I’d been giving them to her every night, and tonight the concoction was extra strength. A Myers’ cocktail was better with a bag of saline, but I couldn’t risk her waking up while she was hooked to a drip. No, just a shot for now. But soon, I would take care of everything. Give her what she needed.
A soft sigh escaped her lips.
One delicate, slim arm reached out. Even in sleep, it seemed like she knew I was there. She was trying to touch me.
My heart thumped hard against my ribs.
I placed her hand back against her body, wrapping the blanket tightly and denying her my touch. “Soon, Mandy. We’ll be together soon.”
Chapter 13 –Amanda
It might be early summer, but the rain felt cold. I pulled the sweater over my shoulders, ignoring the mysterious soreness in my arm, wishing I wasn’t sitting next to the window. The cup of plain black coffee was lukewarm, and my salad was wilted and unappetizing.
I refused to look at the bakery case and the beautiful bagels glistening under the lights.
After spending a good hour journaling, purging my negative energy with a volume of words, I was spent. But I had a plan, and I was ready to tackle the week.
There was one more thing I had to do today before I went grocery shopping, picked up my dry-cleaning, and meal-prepped for the busy days ahead. All that would be done by noon, and then I’d spend the rest of the day invested in the preparations for the trial.
If I impressed Carter Lewis, he might throw in a good word for my promotion.
I could almost taste the title of senior partner.
“And if I don’t get it this time, I’ll be ready for the next time they offer it,” I repeated to myself.
But wouldn’t that be something? I could walk down the aisle, marry an impressive match, and tell my dad I made it, all in the same day.
Pulling out my phone, I checked the messages once more. It was as if my inbox was scrubbed clean. There weren’t even pictures on social media to confirm we had gone out to a club with a cast of circus animals. I bit my lip and debated again whether I should ask my friends if it had indeed happened.
They would either tease me for being tipsy and running out, or worse….
They would confirm that I was losing my mind, and we had, in fact, not gone clubbing. My dress was dry when I woke up, hanging in my closet with my shoes. My credit card had no charges on it, even though I distinctly remembered orderingdrinks when we’d first arrived. There wasn’t even a strong hangover to confirm the wild night of fun had happened.
I tapped out of the messages and dialed a number by memory.
She picked up after the first ring. “Hi, sis, what’s up?”
My chest squeezed to hear her voice. “Not much, just haven’t talked to you in a while. How’s my niece or nephew?”
Nicole chuckled. “Currently? Kicking my bladder.”
Child incubation sounded brutal.
Nicole confirmed my thoughts. “I peed myself in church this morning. But enough about that, when are you coming home to visit?”
I closed my eyes and focused on the frother making someone’s latte. Rich, inviting scents of caffeine swirled through the air. The invisible cloud of goodness wrapped around me like a warm hug.
I can do this.I could tell her.
“About that, I’m getting married next weekend,” I blurted out.
There was no response. Cristiano’s boom in the background was the only proof that Nicole was still on the phone.
I cracked my eyes open and watched the line of customers file to the counter. Maybe they were having better Sundays than I was. It would be mathematically phenomenal if they also had siblings they needed to tell about their twisted business arrangements.
“Is this the guy from England?” Nicole finally asked.
“Steven, yes,” I breathed.
