“I know I told you that I wanted this,” she says, throwing up a hand to indicate her office. “And I did. Ido.But I was also really nervous about it. It’s been this huge change. Suddenly I’m managing a restaurant, planning a wedding, being someone’s stepmom. I keep waiting for something to go wrong.” She shakes her head. “God, Nina, so much has gone wrong. All small stuff, but it’s been a steep learning curve. I went from being Alex’s girlfriend to his fiancée, and business partner, and co-parent. It’s been a lot of work for all of us to figure out what our family is going to look like, especially with Greyson’s mom coming around more often.”
“Shit,” I say, and take a bite of cheese Danish. As in,That’s a lot, Josephine.But also,Shit, as in,I’m totally a piece of it for having made all this about me.
“Greyson’s going to California after the wedding to stay with her mom for the first time,” Jo says. “I know she’s fifteen now, and it’s only a week, but”—she shakes her head—“I don’t know... It’s hard to think about. Grey wants to go, and Alex thinks it’s a good idea, but I’m worried, even though it’s ridiculous to feel like I should have any opinion about it at all. I’ve only known Greyson for two years.”
“Two years in which you’ve been a part of her life almost every single day,” I say. “Of course you’re worried. You care about Greyson. You know how much her mom leaving hurt her.”
Jo shoots me a look. “Okay, don’t laugh.”
“I’ll try not to, but you’re a very funny person, Josephine.”
“I can’t believe I’m admitting this,” Jo says. “But a part of me is worried Greyson will have this amazing time in LA. You know how obsessed she is with aliens and One Direction—”
“She’s the only person I know who can connect those two interests.”
“Oh God. Her theory about Zayn being replaced by a reptilian is... thorough.”
“It convinced me,” I say. “But that’s beside the point. Go on.”
Jo sighs. “Anyway, Maggie has all these fun things planned. Harry Styles was in the last movie she worked on as casting director, and she got Greyson meet-and-greet tickets for the concert he’s playing while she’s there. Then they’ve got this mini road trip planned to see all the UFO sightings in Southern California.”
“One of those things is definitely cooler than the other,” I say.
Jo groans and lets her face fall into her hands. I pat her on the back, and she lifts her head. “I guess I’m jealous. I hope she has an amazing time, but part of me doesn’t want her to havetoomuch fun. What if she comes back and thinks I’m boring? What if she doesn’t love me as much?”
“Josephine Walker, did you or did you not throw a Zac Efron–themed movie marathon?”
“Sure, but—”
“And go skydiving? And parasailing? You’re not boring. Greyson loves you.”
“For now,” Jo says. She shoves a giant bite of cheese Danish in her mouth.
I take Jo’s face in my hands, squeezing her cheeks as she chews. The door opens, and Alex’s head pops in. We turn to look at him, my hands still on Jo’s face, and he looks between us.
“Are you two having a moment?”
“Yes,” Jo and I say at the same time. Jo’s yes is more of ayearsh. Bits of cheese Danish fall onto her shirt.
“I’ll leave you to it, then,” Alex says before disappearing out the door.
“Anyway,” I say, turning back to Jo. “One, it’s impossible for anyone to stop loving you, because you are an ethereal being of light. Two, I highly doubt Greyson will ever think of you as boring, despite your severe lack of connections to the former members of One Direction. But even if she comes home after this whirlwind trip and suddenly thinks you’re the most boring person in the world, it won’t matter. You and Maggie aren’t in competition. Greyson doesn’t need you to be exciting. She’s only ever needed you to be there. I’m sure Maggie is a lovely person, but she hasn’t been able to give Greyson that.”
Jo starts to cough, and I let go of her cheeks to slap her on the back.
“Stop hitting me! I’m fine!” she says, her voice hoarse.
I sigh, slumping into my chair. “I wish you’d have told me.” Guilt gnaws at me. I wasn’t supportive when she told me about the restaurant, and so she’d kept all this to herself. I know I can be a selfish asshole, but it never hurts quite as much as when the victim of my jerky behavior is Jo. “But I get why you didn’t,” I add.
Jo shrugs and finishes off the last Danish before pinning me with a probing look. “You had a lot going on,” she says carefully.
I know this is her feeling out if I want to talk about Ollie. I wonder what he’s doing.Will he really go to Ireland? File the divorce petition? If so, when?I sit up to grab a framed photo from Jo’s desk. The photo has to be at least five years old. In it, she and I stand in front of theSerendipityin our formal whites, arms slung over each other’s shoulders.Ollieprobably took this, I think. It amazes me how much, and yet how little, has changed since then.
“I think it’s my fault Ollie left,” I say.
“Why?”
I set the photo back on the desk and get to my feet. I pace the office as Jo sits there in her chair, swiveling this way and that. “He’s the one who left, but I... I think I was the one who really ended things.”
