Hollis wrung her hands together. “The thing you have to understand about me and Ruby is that we’re decades in the making and our timing is worse than my niece’s community theater production ofWho’s on First?”
“That’s very specific.”
“It was aterribleshow.”
The person in front of us approached the front desk and we were next.
“I think I told Ruby I couldn’t commit to her because...” She sighed. “The woman had fed me that line so many times, and I suppose a part of me wanted her to know how badly it hurt.”
“Oh.” It was wrong, but it made sense. I’d wondered plenty of times about what it might be like to inflict the pain on Brody that he had inflicted on me.
“Next,” the clerk called.
I turned back to Hollis with a shallow nod before approaching the desk and explaining that I’d lost my room key.
After checking my ID, the woman got to work creating a new key.
“Actually,” I said as she slid the key into a small holder. “Could I get a second one?
When I had both keys in hand, I pulled Hollis along with me. “Room six thirty-seven. Go get your girl.”
She gave me a soft kiss on the cheek as she held the key to her chest and stepped away toward the elevators.
I was still very upset with Ruby, but I knew what Hollis had said was true. They’d been at this for decades, and even if Ruby thought she knew how I should live my life, at least I knew how she wanted to live hers. With Hollis.
INT. POPPY’S BEDROOM—NIGHT
She’s lying on the floor. Wearing his sweatshirt like armor.
POPPY (V.O.)
He told me I was pretty enough to be amuse. It was a lie, but a sweet one.
December 31, 2014
Vera S.
Poppy, I want more for us, girl.
Chapter Forty-Three
“That’s pretty romantic,” Eli said as he pulled out a barstool at Herbsaint for me as I explained how I stumbled upon Hollis in the lobby. The restaurant was packed and we’d gotten lucky to snag two seats at the bar for lunch.
After retrieving my room key, I’d returned to Eli’s room, where he pulled me back into the shadows and kissed me against the wall until one of our stomachs growled.
He led me by the hand for the five-minute walk. I kept waiting for him to let go and for things to return to how they’d been, but he didn’t. And it was nice to not be the person constantly fighting for something.
Eli ordered several dishes for us to share and swore the spaghetti would change my life.
While we waited for our food, the sky outside opened with rain. Each drop practically steamed as it hit the pavement. I asked about Eli’s dad. He was retiring soon and a cousin would take over the practice. He discussed it so bitterly that I had to assume his cousin was more in line with the version of Eli his father had hoped for.
“I see my father every other year,” he explained. “Brigid or I will go for Christmas or Thanksgiving. He remarried to a woman a few years younger than me, and”—he shook his head—“after my mother died, we didn’t really have a reason to maintain the appearance that we liked each other.”
I talked about my mom and how she’d wanted to go back to school for social work but never did. After we got our food, I sent Ruby a brief question to see if she needed me for her events today. My wish was that she and Hollis had mended things and hopefully Hollis would attend to her. The only response I received was an ominous I’m fine...
I held out my phone for Eli to see as he placed a napkin in his lap.
“Does your dad do this shit with the ellipsis?” I asked.
