“And you didn’t tell me?” I screeched, launching myself at her and crushing her to me in a breath-stealing embrace, dropping the ice cream after all. “Is this payback for me getting engaged and you not being there?”
She tapped my back and groaned. “Can’t breathe.”
“Oh, sorry, didn’t mean to squeeze so tight. Just got a little excited.” I hugged her again, this time without cutting off her air supply. “I’m so happy for you guys. Congratulations. Have you set a date yet?”
She hugged me back and we separated, both smiling wide. “No date yet. Jameson wanted to elope while we were away. But I want a big wedding and my two best friends at my side when I say I do.”
“That’s great news, Wills, why didn’t you want to tell me?”
I was hurt that she’d left me out of the loop. Even though I hadn’t been the best friend to her lately, we still talked almost every day. She should have told me as soon as he got down on one knee. That’s what best friends were supposed to do.
“Well, with your not-so-happy engagement to David and your break up with Mason I didn’t think you wanted to hear about it yet. I was just trying to give you time.”
“Wills, of course I want to know what’s going on with you. And celebrate it. I’m so excited you’re getting married, and it couldn’t be to a better guy.”
I picked my spoon and ice cream up from the floor and got a second spoon out of the drawer for Willa. Every time she said she was on a diet she would make up the extra calories she saved by eating healthy meals with ice cream. We settled on the couch and started eating the ice cream straight out of the container.
“And I didn’t break up with Mason. That would mean we were together in the first place.”
“That’s not what I was told,” she said.
“By who?”
“Landon.”
“Of course, I could have guessed.”
“He said that Mason was beside himself after he fired you. And nobody could talk to him for days for fear of losing an appendage.”
“I’m so sorry for everything that happened. I tried to explain but didn’t do a very good job of it. But I have to think of Nora. And I’m not too keen on having to leave the state. He was so angry, I think at this stage he is ready to move me to another state himself.”
“Oh, I think you’re wrong,” Willa said, looking smug. “He asks Jameson about you every day.”
I tried to ignore the spark of hope flaring to life in my chest. I couldn’t get my hopes up and instead changed the topic. I would dissect every word Willa had said later tonight when I was wallowing in my bed. “Tell me what you’re planning to do for your engagement party.”
Willa’s face lit up and she put her spoon down, a clear sign that she meant business. We sat down on the couch, both putting our feet on the coffee table.
“Now that you know, I can start telling people. And we want to get married quickly. So I was thinking of having the engagement party in a week or two?”
“You haven’t told anyone yet?”
“Of course not. I wanted to tell you and Maisie first. You are my best friends.”
She held out her fist and I bumped it. I felt tears spring to my eyes.
“You are my best friend in the world, you know that, right?”
“And you are mine,” Willa responded, blinking rapidly.
We both lost the fight against the tears, and I found my head squashed to Willa’s comfortable boobs.
“We need to stage another intervention. This time for Maisie,” she said. I mumbled my agreement, not willing to move my head off its comfortable resting place just yet.
“Are you going to help me plan my party?” Willa asked, playing with my hair.
This time I sat up. “What kind of question is that?”
“Good. Then we need to start with the guest list. And I just want something small. Rayna is doing the catering, but I don’t know where we should hold it yet. Jameson lives above the garage, my apartment is too small, and there’s no way anything decent will be available to book on such short notice.”
