“I’m gonna be frank with you dude,” he continues.
“Oh, that was you being polite just then?”
Ignoring the jab, he keeps going.
“Ellie loves you. You love her. You certainly don’t love Katie.”
He’s not wrong, at least about me, but hearing it out loud like that still feels like a baseball bat to the shins.
“What am I supposed to do with that, Jack?”
“I don’t know, maybe break up with Katie, make up with Ellie, and get your shit together? We all know it’s going to happen eventually, but I wish you’d hurry it up.”
Groaning, I sink further into my bed.
“You’re right, man. I’ll talk to Katie this weekend,” I say dejectedly.
“You also need to talk to Ellie, Griffin.”
“Okay okay, geez, I’ll talk to Eleanor, too.”
“Well, she’s out of town for spring break, so you’ll have to wait.”
Fuck me.
“Then why did you even bring it up?”
“To give you time to work out what you want to say to her. Don’t fuck it up.”
Without another word, he hangs up.
Inhaling a shaky breath, I put my phone back on the charger and stare up at the ceiling.
Ellie loves you. You love her.
Those two sentences play in my head over and over like a twisted lullaby as I try to fall asleep. I almost don’t want to believe it. Can we actually work this out? Is this the ‘right person, right time’ they talk about?
Either way, you still have to break up with your girlfriend.
That thought quickly douses any glimmer of hope that was growing, and I yank my covers over my head, deciding to let that be tomorrow’s problem.
Chapter 29
Ellie
October, Age 28
Tori:Definitely double booked myself, forgot I was meeting with the caterer today. You think you can handle the walkthrough on your own?
Of course Tori overcommitted–fork found in kitchen.
Margo:Kid emergency! Can’t make it, but the contractor will be there, he’ll show you around. Sorry!!!!
The second text came through right as I pulled up to the old barn. Tori and I had scheduled a walkthrough of the venue today. I’m hoping that my vision for this reunion is possible. I looked at the photos on the website, but I’m too familiar with real estate photography to trust the space just on pictures alone.
Margo, the on-staff event coordinator, was meant to meet us here and show me around, but given the fact that she has five children, I’m not shocked she also hadto cancel at the last minute. Thank God the contractor is here, the last thing I want is to reschedule this. I’m starting to feel the familiar nerves that come when approaching a project deadline–even if this is just a high school reunion and not the high-stakes commercial projects I’m normally running.
My footsteps echo in the enormous ballroom area as I weave through the main building looking for my new tour guide. Sophia wasn’t kidding–this place looks amazing. My memories of the barn mostly involve Yeti coolers full of Smirnoff Ice and drunken teenagers tripping over the broken beams scattered across a hay-covered dirt floor. Now it could pass for the type of coveted wedding venue that books out three years in advance.
