“Sadie wanted to be the one to tell you, but it’s better you know right away. Callie, Rick’s going to be at the wedding.”
A loud humming sound in my ears drowns out everything—my mom, the weather, any concerns about my car.
“What did you say?”
“He’s apparently dating Adam’s sister, Alexis. She’s one of the bridesmaids, of course, and surely you don’t want to show up without a date when your ex-fiancé will be there, accompanying someone in the wedding party.”
My vision goes red.
Why does the universe hate me so much?
How in the world could Rick be coming to this wedding? Surely, it’s a joke. How does he even have the nerve?
“How could you let that happen?” My voice cracks, and I’m gripping my phone so tightly, it’s probably about to break.
“What can we do, Callie? Sadie was upset about it, but we can’t very well tell Alexis Hargrove that she’s not allowed to bring her boyfriend to the wedding.”
Bitter tears mix in with the raindrops that splatter my face.
“You just need to put your best foot forward, Callie. Bring your new boyfriend, show Rick you’ve moved on. It won’t be that bad.”
It won’t be that bad? Please tell me this is a nightmare.
The phone starts to slip from my grip. As I clutch at it, the keys fall instead—again—straight toward another puddle. I kick myfoot out, trying to break their fall, but all I manage to do is splash water up my leg.
After I pick up my keys, I stomp my foot down hard to let out some frustration, sending up a spray in all directions. “I gotta go, Mom.”
“I’m sure your boyfriend will be able to come. What’s his name, so I can tell the calligrapher?”
“I’ll call you tomorrow, Mom. I need to go. Bye.”
As soon as I click off, a groan of frustration thunders out of me.Fuck my life! Fuck this car. Fuck Rick, most of all, and not in the good way.
I pull back and kick the front tire hard. It hurts my foot, but it’s so satisfying I give it another kick with my other foot.
I have no idea what I’m going to do about anything, but getting out of the rain seems like a logical first step. Before I turn to go back inside the sandwich shop, I jab my thumb down on the unlock button, pressing it as hard as I kicked the car.
And the car clicks and the lights flash.
With lightning speed, I yank at the door handle and it opens.Thank god!
I collapse the umbrella, toss it across to the passenger side floor, slump into the driver’s seat, and pull the door shut behind me. Finally, something is going right.
I have no idea what I’m going to do about Rick being at the wedding, and—oh my god, I look like a raccoon!I flip down the visor to check my reflection in the lighted mirror, confirming what I caught sight of in the rearview mirror.
Big black streaks drip down from my eyes, and when I try to wipe them away, I only make a bigger mess, smearing them onto my cheeks. The free mascara sample I got at the drugstore is definitely not waterproof, and it’s going into the trash as soon as I get home.
I press the starter and hear a few hollow-sounding clicks. Another press. More clicks. All the lights on the dash are dark.
Aarrgh!My clenched fists bang the steering wheel in futile frustration as I let loose a string of curses. I don’t have the money for a car repair, and I’m sure it’s going to cost a hell of a lot more than a new vibrator.
I drop my head into my hands, fresh tears stinging my raccoon eyes, depression settling in on me heavier than it’s been in months.
Life isn’t fair! And I know it does absolutely no good to whine about it, but I just can’t catch a break, despite how hard I’m trying. What am I doing wrong, for so many bad things to happen to me?
Knock. Knock. Knock.The loud sounds make me jump. Barely visible through the rivulets of rain running down the window is a man standing right next to my car.
CHAPTER 8
