“Sorry I’m late! But I have brunch!”
Margo stared at him. “You don’t have brunch. You have groceries.”
“Ah, groceries that willbebrunch. Give me ten minutes.”
Margo groaned and brought her attention back to Emma. “Never marry a chef.”
Emma shrugged. “Okay.”
“I mean, someone in the restaurant industry is fine, but just, like… not a chef.”
“That’s… oddly specific.”
“Is it?”
Emma narrowed her eyes on her sister. “What’s going on?”
“I’m just offering more sisterly advice,” Margo replied, eyes wide with feigned innocence.
“Okay.”
“And, you know, Montgomery Knox is back in town in a couple of weeks.”
Emma’s head fell back against the sofa again. “Very subtle, Mar.”
“I just think you two would be perfect together!” her sister exclaimed, immediately dropping the act.
“So what’s your evil genius plan?” Emma asked, resting her head in her hand and getting comfortable.
“I want you, me, Ben, and Montgomery to go out, something casual. Maybe he could even come to Sunday dinner! Less pressure.”
“Yes, no pressure at all when a woman’s entire family is there on your first date.”
“It’s not a date. It’s just dinner.”
“Is he actually coming this time? Or is there going to be a dessert crisis in Marrakesh or something?”
“He is! I think. He’s just got so much going on. But wait until you meet him, you’lllovehim.”
Emma sighed, resigning herself to Margo’s plotting as the smell of bacon and chives wafted in from the kitchen. It felt like her sister had been trying to get her and Montgomery together for months to no avail. Emma could never understand why she didn’t just give up. But now, as she watched Margo get up and wrap her arms around Ben’s waist, and Ben lean down to place a kiss on the top of Margo’s head, it suddenly wasn’t that hard to understand at all.
CHAPTER 8
“And then he hung up on me!” Nadine exclaimed, her arms flying out so wildly that she almost spilled her glass of pinot grigio all over Emma’s linen duvet.
Emma listened from her perch on the armchair next to her bed, mentally patting herself on the back for choosing white wine, while also looking appropriately shocked by Nadine’s retelling of her breakup with Marty. The anticipation had grown over the past two days between the actual event and when Nadine had time after class to come over to relay the full story, but Emma had the wine ready, as well as an array of post-breakup essentials: chocolate, tissues, and her Beyoncé playlist.
“Oh, very mature,” Emma said, rolling her eyes.
“That’s not even the worst of it. Apparently, he showed up at my parents’ house afterward to see if they could get me to come home!”
“Stop it.”
“Then my parents thought he looked hungry and asked him to stay for dinner!”
“Oh no.”
“Thank goodness Nana sent him on his way with some of herapple crumble.” Nadine took one of the chocolates and shoved it in her mouth. “Like… I can make my own decisions about my life, you know?”
