“I guess,” he says. “But I really wish it were different.”
“So do I.”
“We’re going to find a way to be friends again,” he insists.
“I hope so,” I tell him, meaning it.
Truthfully, only time will. With time, the pain will dull, and our relationship will change. We’ll pull apart, and it will hurt, but maybe we’ll find a new peace at the end of it.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Group chat with Hannah, Briar, and Sophie
Hannah: Holy shit, holy shit, you won’t believe it.
Hannah: The gods are smiling on us today.
Hannah: This is MAJOR.
Briar: Did you just get engaged?!?
Hannah: BETTER
Me: Better than a double wedding? Unthinkable.
Hannah: THE SHIRTLESS CHEF WAS UNMASKED. THERE WAS ANOTHER UNMASKING.
Me: Holy shit, who is he?
Hannah: I’m sendingyou the video.
Hannah: His brother walked in, and the camera got jostled so we all saw his face. It was a live broadcast, so now everyone knows.
Hannah: Get this. His name is Giovanni Cafiero. He and his family run this Italian deli in a small town in Maine. That place is gonna get MOBBED.
Hannah: Not in the Italian way, but in the busy way.
Sophie: Uh, guys. That’s super interesting, but I have bigger news.
Briar: You’re pregnant?!?
Sophie: Nope. Not yet.
Sophie: Rob just got off the phone with his dad.
Sophie: JONAH GOT ARRESTED
Hannah: OMG. I almost just peed my pants laughing
Hannah: What happened?
Sophie: Let’s meet.
It’s probably bad form to celebrate someone else’s misfortune.
I honestly couldn’t care less.
It’s Thursday afternoon, twenty-four hours before Cormac is due to get back from San Francisco, and I’m in Tea of Fortune with Hannah, Briar, Sophie, and Dottie.There’s a handwritten sign on the door reading, CLOSED FOR PRIVATE CELEBRATION. We’re sitting at a little round table drinking iced tea dosed with peach schnapps, which is a surprisingly refreshing combination.
