AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Lauren stumbled forward as Cass pushed her way through, and then she halted too.“Oh.”
“What?”Bea asked, though she knew exactly what.Lauren’s dark eyes hadn’t settled on Bea’s at all, flitting all over around her face and hair as they did.Cass reached up with one perfectly manicured hand and actually ran her fingers through her own hair.
Joy, who’d cut her hair short a couple of years ago, grinned like she’d just seen a leprechaun and would surely follow the fellow to his stash of gold.Her blue eyes twinkled like stars in the heavens, and she started laughing first.
Bea grinned at her, and then flicked a glance at Sage, the oldest woman in their group.She still wore her hair long, though she vowed she’d never dyed it to keep it the rich, earthy brown color it was.
“Is there something on my face?”Bea asked, switching her gaze to Bessie, the singular redhead in their group.She actually had gorgeous waves of blonde hair, with just a hint of strawberry in it.Bea had always been in awe of her hair, and that hadn’t changed despite her new cut.
“I have been sampling those chips with the hint of lime.”She made an overexaggerated swipe of her hand across her mouth, though she already knew she had nothing there.“They’re really good.”
“Your hair,” Cass said.
“It’s gorgeous,” Joy said, stepping past the still-staring Lauren and embracing Bea.“You’re beautiful.”
“Thanks,” Bea said, letting her eyes drift closed so she didn’t have to look into the shell-shocked faces of her best friends.She supposed she could’ve sent a text, but then she wouldn’t have been able to surprise them with her new haircut and see their reactions.
“When did you do this?”Lauren asked, taking Joy’s place in front of Bea as the other woman stepped back.“I do like it.”She ran her fingertips along Bea’s hairline and over her ear, as if she had to touch Bea’s hair to convince herself of her statement.“It’s very…sophisticated.”
“Tuesday,” Bea said.
“So the divorce papers came.”Cass circled Bea like she’d have a party in the back and needed to make sure the remoteness of her house hadn’t finally worn her down enough to go with a mullet.
“Yes,” Bea said without any lift in her chin.She didn’t need to defend herself to her friends.Not these ones, anyway.Perhaps some of the women at church, but not her Supper Club ladies.
“She’s addedget a puppyto her list,” Sage said, taking the bright blue paper from the fridge.Bea’s chest tightened, but she said nothing.Sage held up the paper.“And she’s labeled it a love list.”
“A love list?”no less than three women chorused together.Bessie tried to grab for the paper, but Sage lifted it out of her reach.Bessie had been divorced for about five years now, and Bea had texted her on Tuesday, so the news of the finalized divorce wasn’t novel for everyone.Apparently, this list was, though she couldn’t see how.All of her friends knew she made lists obsessively.
Bea laughed and rolled her eyes, pressing through the women in the kitchen to Sage.“Come on, it’s not that big of a deal.”She took the list with a mock glare at Sage, who only grinned at her, and refastened it to the fridge.Out of all of them, only Sage stood shorter than Bea—and was older—and they had a special bond.
“Don’t rip my list.”She turned back to everyone, who’d crowded into the kitchen with her.
“A puppy?”Lauren asked, wrinkling her nose.
“I like dogs,” Bea said.“They’re good friends.”
“You do know a dog is different than a puppy, right?”Cass asked.“I told Conrad that, and he didn’t get it until he was up three times in the night to potty train Beryl.”
Joy plucked a chip from the bowl and crunched it, and Sage couldn’t seem to stop smiling.
“I’m aware,” Bea said, opening a drawer and taking out a serving spoon.“And who loves Beryl now?Hmm?”She pointed the oversized utensil at Cass, her eyebrows cocked.The other women laughed, and Cass didn’t argue, which meant that yes, of course,shewas Beryl-the-golden-retriever’s mother.
“Now, come on,” Bea said.“It’s a fiesta!We’re not going to talk about my divorce, or my crazy ideas on my list tonight.”She picked up the remote for the CD player and hit play.Loud, obnoxious music with plenty of maracas, guitars, and a fiddle filled the house.When the first trumpets entered the fray, Bea threw her arms up and started a cha-cha line.
“Come on,” she yelled over the music.“The food is hot and ready, and there’s plenty to drink over here.”She danced the way around the end of the peninsula to the table, all six of them laughing already.
The dance line broke up, and pure joy filled her at the sight of her friends grabbing cheap plastic plates the color of tomatoes and turning to the counter behind them, chatter breaking out among pairs or trios.She took an extra moment to soak in their goodness, the ready way they loved her and accepted her, and how much she appreciated their friendship and who they were.
Then Cass turned, her left eyebrow cocked, and Bea hastened to grab the last plate from the table and join her best friend.“You’re okay?”Cass asked.“For real?”
“For real, for real,” Bea said, her heart feeling like she really might be for the first time since everything had started months ago.
Cass put her arm around Bea and squeezed her tight.“Okay.You know I’m here if you’re not, for even a moment.”
“There will be good days and bad days,” Lauren called down the line.“At least that’s how I am.”
Bea said nothing as she exchanged a silent glance with Bessie, because she didn’t know what life would be like as a single, never-married woman.She’d been married.Now she wasn’t.There was a difference, but she believed Lauren.Today had been a good day, but she’d been busy cooking, cleaning, and decorating.Her daughter had come to visit.She hadn’t had time to lament about her newly single status or what tomorrow might look like.
