Willa rolled her eyes. “Yeah, that can be terrible. There have been times when I’ve stepped away and let other people finish serving certain tables, but it doesn’t happen often.”
“That’s awful.”
“Yeah, people can be special. So how are you doing?”
Bree smiled. “Great. My man is doing great, and we’re happy.”
“That’s good.”
“You know, not every guy is a jerk like Robert.”
Willa shrugged. “I guess. But there’s no one I’m interested in, so that’s not an issue. Besides, I’m not ready for a relationship of any kind.”
“I get it. If you do end up finding someone, I hope they are awesome.”
Willa shook her head. “It will be a long time before I’m ready to date. Robert did a number on me, and I can’t go through that again.”
Bree took a sip of her coffee, then something, or someone, caught her eye. Her lips spread into a huge smile. “Oh, hey, Remi is here. She’s great.”
“Oh, nice.” Willa drew in a slow breath, trying to calm her nerves. She was taking things slowly, and meeting another of Bree’s friends was great, but a little nerve-wracking.
“She must have dropped the kids off with someone,” Bree said just before Remi stepped over. Then they were hugging. Willa missed that kind of friendship. Never again could she allow a man to get between her and her friends. Bree turned to her and smiled. “Do you remember Willa? She works at Aces.”
“Oh, yeah. It’s good to see you. I didn’t recognize you with your hair down.”
Willa shook her hand. “Yeah, I can’t wear it down when I wait tables. Sadly, I get bigger tips when I wear it in styles that make me look younger, like braided pigtails.”
Remi rolled her eyes. “I’m not surprised.”
“That’s gross,” Bree said.
She nodded. “Yes, it is.”
“I’m just picking up a coffee, then going clothes shopping,” Remi said.
“Oh, something special?” Bree asked.
“No, just need some shirts that aren’t stained.”
Bree chuckled. “I hear ya. Have fun shopping.”
“I will. You two have fun here.”
“Oh, we will,” Bree said.
They were alone again, and Willa sipped her coffee, worry sifting through her. She set her cup down and met Bree’s gaze.
“Everything okay?” Bree asked.
“Yeah, it’s just, I should have left Robert when he started in on my friends. You and Remi seem so close, and I really appreciate you being nice to me. I just lost so many friendships when I should have told Robert to go to hell.”
Bree took her hand and squeezed. “We live and learn. You can’t beat yourself up about what you did then. Now you know. If you ever do get with a guy and he tells you that you can’t have friends, you should run.”
“Yeah. I can’t believe I was so dumb and stayed.”
“You weren’t dumb. Sometimes we don’t think right when we’re in relationships. We get in and then end up thinking it’s all okay, but it’s not. Like I know when my guy needs a break, and we leave a party, but he knows when I need more time with friends because we talk and we share things. Relationships should make your life better, never worse.”
Willa blew out a pent-up breath. “I don’t know if I’ll ever find anyone right for me.”
