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The urge since hitting the tarmac a few hours ago is overwhelming, more so than the previous times. She looks up from her suitcase like I’ve gone a little mad.
“Are you sure?”
I shrug, the feeling in my stomach resembling restless butterflies… butterflies I haven’t felt in such a long time. “It’s now or never,” I say to her, daring myself to believe it.
One way or another, I’m going to have to face things.
And it could be way sooner than I thought.
* * *
We’re meeting Cindy and Susie at Piccolo’s restaurant. It’s a cute little bistro down on Seattle’s waterfront overlooking Elliott Bay, serving seafood and pasta dishes. It’s casual dining, but I dress in my pleather pants and a white lacy long-sleeve top. I throw a lightweight denim jacket over the top for good measure. I’ve grown my strawberry-blonde hair longer these days. It’s still a little unruly, but I’ve learned to use certain styling products to tame the beast, and tonight I sport a high ponytail.
“OHMYGOD!!” Susie runs across the parking lot to greet us and practically jumps on me.
I laugh, hugging her. “Oh, Suse! It’s been way too long.” Her shoulder-length silky blonde hair dances around her shoulders. Susie is still blessed with the most gorgeous creamy skin, she hardly wears much makeup, and she still hasn’t discarded the big glasses she wears to frame her blue-gray eyes.
Cindy follows, hot on her heels, hugging Maddie, then she turns to me and squeezes me tight.
“You two!” Cindy hollers, looking as divine as ever. She’s tall, curvy, and sleek with long jet-black hair and a blunt fringe. Her sharp yet delicate features are framed by big dark eyes and long lashes, and to top it off, she has gorgeous high cheekbones.
Cindy’s always been a stunner. I can only imagine the commotion she causes around the hockey stadium.
The fact she gets to see Taylor on the regular too… that has my stomach flipping with envy.
Maybe it’s because I’m back in Seattle, but the buzz around is palpable. The Hawks are plastered everywhere.
“You both look fantastic!” I enthuse, as I hug them both again.
“You do too!” Susie chimes.
We all laugh and have a group hug before walking over to Piccolo's. It’s great that even though Maddison didn’t grow up knowing Susie or Cindy, she gets along with them like she’s known them forever. It’s really cool that we can all hang out like this together. My heart is soaring high by the time we get into our first bottle of Moscato.
“I’m loving what you’re doing with your hair,” Susie says as we sip our wine, waiting for our entrees.
I swoosh my ponytail around, exaggeratedly. “I’m scared I’m gonna knock someone out with it.” I laugh.
“It can give a person whiplash if you get too close,” Maddie adds, laughing over her wine glass. She sports her golden halo of curls loose and flowing, never tamed, always unruly.
Despite that, Maddison always manages to look put together. Maybe it’s a Florida thing… or a real estate thing… but even when she wears her sweats, she looks effortless.
“How was the flight over?” Cindy asks us.
“The flight was great.” Maddie says.
“It’s so awesome you could come along,” Susie smiles over at Maddie.
“My boss doesn’t want me racking up too much vacation time and then taking it all at once.” She laughs. “But I haven’t taken time off in three years, so she practically forced me out the door.”
“That’s actually insane.” Cindy shakes her head. “Burnout is real.”
“You sound like my boss.” Maddie laughs. “But you’re probably right. I’ve been feeling pretty tired lately.”
“And how did the move go?” Susie asks me.
“It was fine,” I say, trying not to show my heavy heart. “Mads helped me pack up the rest of the house. The movers came and we had a day to clean up the place before the flight.”
“I’m glad you got the move sorted out before you left for vacation,” Cindy says. I can see from the look in her eyes she’s sympathetic to my cause. They know about Doug, of course, and my dad not being well at the moment.
