Page 72 of Never Your Valentine

Annabelle: I’m up ten bucks

Grant: You know they’re letting you win

Annabelle: Who cares? Beers at The Driftwood are on me tonight

Grant: I’m working until 11

Annabelle: In that case, I’ll just cross the hall and knock on your door

Grant: I’ll be up

I’m sitting at The Grind, sketching and drinking coffee. I’m drawing a capybara riding a tortoise (Caption: No rush. We’re in this together.) when I run into both Lia and Sophie.

Lia’s supposedly on a short coffee break and Sophie’s only picking up a pound of dark roast for her mom, but they both crowd around my tiny table and we spend twenty minutes talking about the weather, and hockey, and summer plans.

Lia shows us the Zillow listings in warm states that she’s bookmarked because she likes to pretend. Sophie tells us about a tour to Tahquamenon Falls last week where someone asked if the water was frozen on purpose or by accident.

They both turn to me, eyebrows raised, expectant.

“What?” I ask.

Sophie moves her hands in an impatient circle. “This is where you tell us what you’ve been doing.”

I point to my sketches. “You’re looking at it. I’m making a new card line and I’m trying to scale up. I’m constantly at the post office or the UPS store. Robert keeps bringing me huge boxes and I think he kind of hates me for it. I could order twice as much inventory if I had the money and the space, which I don’t.”

“Your Insta is fire.” Sophie pushes her phone toward Lia. “Look at this. Look, Lia, look.”

Lia clicks on a speed drawing where you can see me create a card in two minutes. “Very creative.”

“Love the new reels,” Sophie says, looking over Lia’s shoulder. “Not your usual.”

“There’s something about this place,” I say. “The other day, I asked Grant⁠—”

I stop short as Sophie and Lia pop up their heads and stare at me.

Lia puts down the phone and leans in. “Asked Grant what?”

“I asked Grant…” I’ve got a trainwreck feeling in my stomach. Am I not allowed to mention my tenant/neighbor? Is my tone off? “If he wants to be on my Instagram,” I finish quickly.

“And why would you ask him that?” Lia’s in cross-examination mode.

“Because we’re friends?”

“Just friends?”

I look back and forth between them, a small smile leaking from my lips. “Close friends. That’s all I’m going to say.”

Sophie’s lips tip upward. “You could say a little more.”

“I could, but I’m not going to.”

“You don’t have to,” Lia says. “It’s written all over your face.”

Sophie gives me a high five. Lia shakes her head in mock sadness. “Good thing June isn’t here or she’d have to cover her ears again.”

“Poor June,” I say. “Cursed with hot brothers.”

“Are they?” Lia asks.