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“Well yeah, but I’m not the one with a baby in my uterus listening to everything I’m saying.”
“That’s not how this works.” Savannah motioned towards her body.
I waved her off. “You know what I mean.”
“Focus, Whitney.” The concern in Savannah’s voice sobered me.
I set down my drink. “Yes, Mom hit my car. Yes, she was drunk as a skunk. Yes, the ambulance ushered her to the hospital. Maybe, she knows that it was me she hit. I certainly wasn’t quiet about it when I found her coming out of the vehicle. And no, I don’t know what Jack and the police are going to do about it.”
“I’m going to throw up.” Savannah ran to the bathroom and threw up the few bites of food she’d managed to eat. I followed her into the bathroom, rubbing her back the entire time.
“Pregnancy sucks.”
“Tell me about it,” Savannah said as I handed her a cold washcloth to wipe her face with.
“You okay?”
She smiled at me, tears forming in her eyes. “I am now that you’re here.”
“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
I woke up early the next morning. My body was still used to the hustle of working twelve-hour days to keep my business afloat. Being my own boss had a lot of benefits, but it also came with a lot of responsibility. I had clients to please, a portfolio to grow and at least an event a week I had to finalize, staff, and manage. I found it exhilarating. And just a tad bit frightening that I had closed shop so quickly.
Truth be told, I was a little burned out from all the work. A small part of me had been relieved when Savannah needed me. That I could step in and fix things for the one person in my life that mattered most. In the meanwhile, I could distract myself from loneliness I had started to feel so acutely.
I hadn’t been in a relationship in years and the one reliable friends-with-benefits decided he wanted to get serious. With someone else. I couldn’t even muster the energy to be mad about it because I was so busy with my demanding, rich clients.
For the whole three days I had been driving across country I kept thinking it would really hit me that I’m not going back to California. That I’m not going back to my company. This wasn’t just some quick vacation—this was my life now.
My life was in Ohio.
I tried not to hyperventilate at the thought of starting over. Tried to hold on to the peace that would come from being closer to my sister.
Fortunately, being as amazing at my job as I was, I managed to squirrel away a significant amount of money into my savings account. And with my condo on the market, I stood to make a substantial profit. With that money I planned to put a down payment on a house close to Savannah.
As much as I loved her and was here to support her, I needed my own place, if only for my sanity. Sure, I’d probably spend most of my time at Savannah’s anyway, but it would be nice to know I had a place of my own to go back to.
Besides, real estate in Ohio didn’t even compare to California’s real estate market. I could buy something cute and not break the bank.
Once she finally woke up, Savannah joined me in her cozy kitchen. It was Saturday, so I guess I couldn’t blame her for wanting to take her time. Oh, and she was pregnant. I heard that makes women tired.
I popped up from the table where I had been scouring Redfin for the last two hours while guzzling down my requisite pot of coffee.
“I’ll make breakfast. What do you feel like?” I asked my sister as I poked around in her refrigerator. It was pretty empty, but I spotted some eggs, spinach and cheese — enough to make a hearty meal.
“Omelet sound good?” I asked with my head still in the fridge.
Savannah yawned. “Works for me.”
I cracked the eggs and then buttered the skillet as Savannah told me her plans for the day. She needed to clean and get some blood drawn for her next prenatal appointment.
As I flipped over the first omelet, I reminded her of our mother, who was probably still tipsy in the Haver’s Creek drunk tank. There was no way she was injured in the accident. Her body had probably been too relaxed to even feel the impact.
She groaned. “I can’t deal with her, Whit. Please don’t make me deal with her.” Tears threatened to spill out of my sister’s eyes so I moved the skillet to another burner so that I could walk over and give her a firm hug.
Those pregnancy hormones were no joke.
“I’ll take care of it,” I promised her as I pushed back her hair to soothe her.
