“The one and only,” I answer, refilling my beer.
“How funny. What are the odds of having two Charlottes in your life? Bethany would call that fate.”
“Well, it’s only one Charlotte,” I say, and he narrows his eyes at me. When the dots don’t connect on their own, I give him a hand. “It’s the same Charlotte.”
He blinks. “Wait. Sweater Dress girl is the wedding planner?”
I nod.
“Holy shit,” he half laughs. “Does Ben know?”
I shake my head mid sip. “Absolutely not.”
“Yeah, because that would be awkward,” he says.
“Oh trust me, it’s awkward enough without him knowing. She’s closer to his age than mine,” I say, staring at the foam on the beer.
“I think you mentioned that,” Elias says.
“I really wasn’t expecting to see her again. I mean, what are the odds?” I ask.
“Slim to none,” he answers.
“Yeah.”
“So is she still the sticky note and checklist girl you described before?” he asks.
“Worse,” I chuckle. “It means she’s great at her job, but it wouldn’t kill her to loosen up a little.”
“You mean you didn’t loosen her up enough before?” he teases.
“She’s just so…” I scratch my head trying to think of the right word. Funny thing about Charlotte is that she makes it hard for me to think of the right words. “Interesting. Like she’s very Hermione Granger meets Elle Woods,” I say, and he grins.
“I love that description.”
“I know there’s something else under there. Like she wants to kick her shoes off, but has never tried.”
“Maybe she just needs a little help with the shoestrings,” he says.
“Listen, brother. I’ve tried. I’m trying. But everything I do or say seems to wind her up even more. It’s kind of fun, honestly…” I smile as memories flash through my mind. “I don’t know. I feel like everywhere I turn, there she is. I don’t hate it.”
There’s a quiet moment where we sip our beer and watch the other people around us for a moment. Then Elias pulls me back into the conversation.
“You think you could ever fall in love again?” he asks. Elias wears his heart on his sleeve and Bethany is his soulmate. I know that feeling, but for me it’s gone.
“Allie was it for me,” I answer quickly.
“She’s been gone for a while,” he says gently.
“Doesn’t change anything,” I say.
“You know…Bethany and I, especially since having kids, we talk about the what ifs. What if my job transfers me and we have to go to Europe? What if Evie gets into an Ivy League school and the other two don’t even want to go to college? What if something happens to one of us?”
“Where are you going with this?” I ask a little defensively. Because any time the subject of Allie comes up, I get a little touchy, like a pufferfish. Losing my wife to a drunk driver will never not be a sore subject.
“We both agreed that while we could never see our lives without each other, neither of us would want the other to be alone if something did happen. Not forever. I wonder if Allie would feel the same?”
I chew my lip thinking about that. We actually had that conversation years ago. The thing is, I never actually thought it would happen.
