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“Oh dear.”
“Yeah.” I try to suck in a lungful of air, but it’s difficult with how tight my chest feels. “He said, ‘Good luck and good riddance.’ Good riddance . . . god . . . we’re done, and it’s all my fault for not telling him something that I should have told him weeks ago. Before things between us got serious.”
“Give him time to calm down. He’ll come to his senses. It was just a shock, that’s all.”
“He won’t. I know he won’t.”
“He’ll come around, child. It will all be okay.”
“He didn’t even want to hear me out when I tried to talk to him.”
“Men are stubborn like that, Libby. It’s best you learn that now. He’ll come around, and when he does, you two will work this out.”
“Why does my chest hurt so badly?” I whisper, looking into Miss Ina’s dark eyes.
Her face softens. She doesn’t answer my question; she just wraps her arms around me and gives me a hug.
“Am I dying?” I ask, hugging her back.
“What?” She pulls back to look at me.
“You’re hugging me and my chest is hurting. I must be dying of a heart attack.”
“You’re not dying, child. It’s called heartbreak.”
“Great.” More tears fall down my cheeks. “Heartbreak sucks. Remind me to never fall in love again,” I say, then feel my eyes widen. “No.” I shake my head when her eyes turn knowing. “I’m not in love with him. I’m not. I can’t be. It’s too soon.”
“Hush.” She covers my mouth with her hand. “Love doesn’t always happen when we expect it to. It doesn’t always happen with fireworks and explosions. Sometimes it sneaks up on you silently, when you least expect it.”
“I’m not.” I try again, my voice muffled by her hand.
She shakes her head.
“You are, and it’s going to be okay,” she says gently.
I want to believe her, I really do. But I saw the look in his eyes before he left. It wasn’t just me not telling him about buying the pizzeria—it was something deeper than that.
“It will be okay. One way or another, it will be okay, Libby. That I can promise you.”
Grabbing her hand, I pull it away from my mouth. “What if he doesn’t forgive me?”
“Then he doesn’t deserve you, and you will find someone who does. Someone who will cherish you exactly like you deserve.”
“What if—”
“Enough with the what-ifs, child.” She lets me go and stands. “Right now I’m going to make you some tea. Then you’re going to go upstairs, wash that makeup that’s running down your face away, and go to bed. Tomorrow you’re going to start a new day knowing that, one way or another, things will work out.”
“Okay,” I agree, watching her walk slowly to the kitchen.
When she comes back, she hands me a cup of tea that smells like peppermint. I drink it while she watches in silence. My mind is in turmoil.
“Is she sleeping?” I swear I hear my sister Fawn, but I know I must be dreaming.
“Her eyes are closed, so my guess is yes,” Mac answers.
I frown. Why am I dreaming about my sisters?
“Should we wake her up?” At that question, I blink my eyes open and stare at my sisters, who are both standing over my bed. “Never mind. She’s awake now,” Fawn says, and her face softens. “Hey.”
“What are you guys doing here?” I ask, looking between my sisters. They both have concerned looks on their faces.
“Mom called us,” Mac answers, taking a seat on the bed. She jumps up a second later when she accidentally sits on Pool, who was under the blankets.
“You got a cat.” Fawn picks up the kitten and holds him against her chest.
“That’s Pool,” I tell her, feeling my chest get tight.
Why did I let Antonio name him? Now I’m going to be reminded of him every time I say the name.
“He’s cute,” Mac says, taking him from Fawn.
“Why did Mom call you?” I ask, bringing the situation back into focus.
They both look at me.
“Miss Ina called her last night and told her what happened.”
“Great.” I close my eyes, wishing that I could go back to sleep and wake up with last night being nothing but a really bad dream.
“How are you doing?” Fawn asks, sliding my hair away from my face.
My heart feels like it’s been ripped out of my body and stomped all over, then run over a few times. I open my eyes and sit up.
“I’m okay. You guys didn’t need to come over.”
“We’re your sisters. Of course we needed to come over.” Mac sighs as Fawn walks around to take a seat next to me on the bed. “We know we’ve sucked lately. We’re sorry for not being here for you.”
“You both have your lives to live. I get it. It’s okay,” I say quietly as my throat starts to get tight.
