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BARRETT: Thank you, Drew. I appreciate your help. And congratulations again on your engagement and the baby news.
DREW: Thanks, man. And Tatum wants you to know her decision to use a midwife isn’t personal. She just doesn’t want to get undressed in front of her brother-in-law on a regular basis. Even if he is the only OB-GYN in a fifty-mile radius.
BARRETT: Understandable and no offense taken. But I’m always here if you have questions or need me for anything at all.
DREW: We appreciate it. And good luck tonight. Tatum and I both have our fingers crossed for you.
Chapter Fourteen
From the texts of Wren Baxter
and Tatum O’Leary
WREN: Hey, I know you’re on your way home today. If you’re busy, no worries at all, but if you have a few minutes to spare, I could really use some advice.
TATUM: Oh boy.
WREN: What?
TATUM: I may or may not have been sworn to secrecy by someone else who just texted Drew for advice.
WREN: Barrett texted Drew? Really? About me? And tonight?!
TATUM: I can neither confirm nor deny anything. But if I were you, I’d relax and enjoy your evening. The person in question is working hard to make an excellent second impression.
WREN: Great, now I’m even more nervous!
TATUM: Why? This is good news. Great news, even. I know you said you weren’t interested in being more than friends with Barrett anymore, but that was before you saw him again and realized you’re still perfect for each other. Right?
WREN: But are we? Maybe we’re only good in a work setting. Maybe, all these years, I’ve been living in a fantasy world.
TATUM: You don’t believe that. If you did, you wouldn’t have made out with him in your bathroom this morning.
WREN: HE TOLD YOU ABOUT THAT?
TATUM: He told Drew, but I was reading over his shoulder. Don’t be weird, making out is a good thing.
WREN: It was a lot more than making out…
TATUM: Oh yeah? Are you finally going to spill some juicy details?!
WREN: No, I’m not. I’ll just say that he’s still really good at making me feel really good and leave it at that.
TATUM: Sounds like you have an excellent connection on several levels. Now, you just need to relax and let the do-over work its magic. Trust me, I have a feeling about you two. I have since the moment I first saw you together. You have a meant-to-be vibe.
WREN: I used to think so. And I want the do-over to work, I really do. But I’m worried I’ve come too far from the person I was when I left for Thailand. I spent three months willing myself to get over Barrett and move on. What if it’s too late? What if I’m only opening us both up to more pain and frustration with this whole do-over idea?
TATUM: What if Drew and I die in a plane crash on the way home and leave Sarah Beth an orphan?
WREN: OH MY GOD DON’T SAY STUFF LIKE THAT. THAT’S THE SADDEST TEXT I’VE EVER READ.
TATUM: It is! And I didn’t mean to freak you out. I just meant that life is uncertain, and any day could be our last day. You just need to decide, if this were your last day, would you want to spend it playing it safe or would you want to spend it with the man you love?
WREN: Wow. When you put it that way it seems so simple.
TATUM: Because it is simple. Just concentrate on the love part and everything else will fall into place. The love part is the only thing that matters. I mean, assuming one of you doesn’t have chronic, uncurable halitosis or a collection of antique harvesting tools you like to keep hanging on the garage wall like some kind of creepy serial killer.
WREN: Lol. Drew’s reading over your shoulder, isn’t he?
TATUM: He is. And he says the tools are pieces of history. (I say serial killer history, but I guess we can agree to disagree. Since he’s the love of my life and my baby daddy and all that.)
WREN: Aw, I love you guys. I’m so happy you’re so happy. And please don’t die on the plane because Sarah Beth and I are both going to need you for a very long time. Preferably forever, until we’re all old and gray and Sarah Beth has to come with us to Bingo because even with our hearing aids, we need someone to scream the numbers into our ears at close range.
TATUM: Sounds like a plan, sweet friend. Sending you hugs and luck. Also, just FYI, if you feel like texting a teensy-weensy bit of gossip my way tomorrow, there’s a batch of your favorite marshmallow and chocolate chip cookies in it for you.
WREN: If I’ll kiss and tell for anything, it’s those cookies. Talk to you tomorrow.
