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21
Sara
The next day,I’m back at the train station to pick my best friends up for our ladies’ weekend. It’s only been three weeks since Rome, but Jade has a work thing next weekend, so we moved our visit up a week.
Jade and Emma are already here, and Tessa’s train arrives in twenty minutes. We squeal and hug and get shushed by an old lady, but I’m just so glad to see them.
“How were your trains?” I ask.
“Fabulous,” Jade says. “When are we getting a train from Austin to Houston is what I want to know.”
“It was great, but the destination is even better,” Emma says sweetly.
“I’m excited to meet your rock star, Sara. And he has single bandmates, so . . .” Jade bats her eyelashes at me. “Maybe you can work out an introduction to break my dry spell?”
I roll my eyes. “Get in line. Zoe vacillates between pining for Chris and asking me to set her up with Alwin.”
“You need to tell her she can’t have Chris. But also,” Emma says, turning to Jade, “you’re still in a dry spell?”
“Yes!” she groans. “I’m just not clicking with anyone, and I hate it. Is it the Spanish men? Is there some pheromone I’m giving off that repels them? I don’t understand.”
“We’ll see what we can do here,” I offer Jade.
We chat about Jade’s work and Emma’s classes until Tessa arrives, and there’s more squealing.
Once it dies down, Jade clears her throat. “Okay, ladies, don’t kill me. But I booked us a session at the baths.”
Tessa laughs, and Emma looks mildly horrified. “The naked, co-ed baths?” Emma clarifies.
“Yes,” Jade says as we step out the station doors. “You don’t have to go if you don’t want to. But the baths are open until ten, and I thought we could go after dinner to wind down and relax. It’ll be fun, and I think it will help us all be more comfortable with our bodies.”
“And their aging process,” Tessa says glumly.
“Babe, you are fabulous,” Jade quickly tells her.
“I know,” Tessa says, making us laugh. “I mean, thank you. Sometimes though, being with a younger man has its downsides.”
I pop open the back of the car—the very expensive car that I’m still handling with kid gloves now that I know just how much it costs—and start piling the luggage in, thankful for the gas-guzzler once again.
“Luc hasn’t said anything to you, has he?” Jade squints at Tessa, possibly thinking about inflicting damage on Luc if the answer is yes.
“No, of course not. He’s great. But it’s harder than I thought it would be to be with a guy who’s eleven years younger. He’s very . . .” she trails off as if searching for the right word, but the look on her face quickly moves to lusty.
We all pause. “Hello, Tessa.” Jade waves a hand in front of Tessa’s face.
I smirk when her eyes refocus. “Luc is very what?”
“Hard is what I was thinking,” she admits, and we laugh. “But not like that,” she continues as we climb into the car. “His body is just so firm and his skin so young, and I’m feeling a bit like a wrinkled paper bag lately.”
“You’re not a wrinkled paper bag,” I say firmly as I back out of the spot. “You’re forty-two, for Christ’s sake.”
“I know, I know. At least Luc is an ass man.”
“Your forty-two-year-old ass is a classic, babe. Everyone loves a good ass,” Jade tells her.
Tessa smiles, and I let them chat while I focus on driving carefully.
I’m relieved when we pull up to the house. The ladies ooh and ahh over the mansion, though the wealth doesn’t leave quite the impression on them that it did on Zoe or me. Jade makes great money at her job, and Tessa’s from a wealthy family.
