“Are you saying I didn’t do right by you?”
“No, I’m saying I have to go,” Xeni said, keeping calm. “We need to talk about this, but right now you’re not listening. I can only talk to you if you’re going to listen to me. So, I’m going to go.”
“Wait, when are you coming home?”
“I don’t know. I’ve barely touched the house.”
“Did you find the jewelry yet?”
“I’ll let you know when I book my flight back. Tell Daddy I love him.”
And just like that, the switch flipped back. “Okay, I will. I love you, honey.”
“I love you too.” Xeni ended the call, then set her phone in her purse on the passenger seat. Once, she didn’t talk to her mother for more than five minutes for two months. It was over grad school. A stupid fight about loans and staying in state. Xeni had a plan, a good plan, but her mother was so set on her own plans for Xeni’s future that she wouldn’t listen to anything she had to say. This was bigger, more consuming, and hurt in a way that Xeni couldn’t understand. She had a right to know what happened. She didn’t care who was wrong or who had made the best decisions, she just wanted details. She wanted at least some version of the truth, without someone screaming at her.
Xeni closed her eyes and tried to breathe. No tears still. She was too angry to cry real tears. Too frustrated, but she could feel the anxiety rising. The stress pulling at her heart in that very specific way. She needed to tell someone. She needed to talk to someone she could trust. She reached for her phone again, then jumped when it started ringing in her hand.
An unfamiliar New York number scrolled across the screen. Thinking it might be Ms. Jordan, she answered.
“Hi. This is Xeni.”
“Hi Xeni. It’s Liz. I’m Mason’s cousin. The one who’s seventeen months pregnant.”
“Oh, hi. How are you?”
“I was just calling to ask you the same thing.”
“I’m fine,” Xeni chuckled a little. Astronauts could see that was a lie from space. “Thank you. I’m guessing Mason told you our amazing plan?”
“Yeah, I’m looped in. He gave us our to-do list. But it occurred to me that you don’t exactly have a girl squad to help with last-minute bachelorette duties. A bride needs her clique. What can I help you with?”
“Oh no. It’s okay. It’s the middle of the week. I know you guys are busy. And you have your kids, born and unborn.”
Liz laughed. “P’s at daycare until five and the other one goes where I go for a few more weeks and then like five years after that. The bakery is covered and I’m going to whip up a cake tomorrow morning. Oh, that reminds me. Do you have any food allergies?”
“No, but I am somewhat of a vegetarian. I eat seafood, and I’ll eat chicken if I have no other option, but I prefer not to.”
“Okay great. Veggie options on the menu. I make a mean apple cake with vanilla cinnamon frosting. Perfect for a fall wedding. Sound good?”
Xeni’s stomach actually started growling. “That sounds amazing.”
“Perfect. What else do you need?”
Xeni didn’t want to bother Liz or any of Mason’s friends with things she could handle on her own, but… “Actually, yeah. I was going to find some place to get an inexpensive dress. I’d love some recommendations.”
“How about this? I finish up around two and I can come with you.”
“Sure. That would be great.”
“And listen, I know this all seems like a lot, but Mason is a good guy. If you need a man that comes with terms and conditions, you couldn’t find anyone better than him.”
“You know, in all this, he’s actually the least of my worries,” Xeni said and she wasn’t at all shocked that she meant it. So far, dealing with Mason had been the easy part. She ended her call with Liz then drove back to her aunt’s house to start looking for that fucking jewelry.
6
Aquiet chuckle slipped from Xeni’s lips as she pulled around the front of Kinderack’s local Target. Liz was waiting, sitting on one of the red concrete orbs by the entrance. She spotted Xeni and waved. Xeni pulled into one of the many empty parking spaces, then quickly walked across the lot to meet her shopping companion.
“Thanks for meeting me.”
