Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 74575 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74575 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
“But what am I going to do without you?”
“I’m sure you’ll manage just fine.” She gave me a playful nudge. “Besides, you have Bones. I’m sure he will keep you entertained.”
“Yeah, but it won’t be the same.”
“Maybe not, but it’s for the best. You’re an ol’ lady now. It’s time for you to start hanging with the other ol’ ladies.”
“You’re serious about all this.”
“Yeah, I am.”
“But where will you go?”
“I’m not sure.” She shrugged. “I might go stay with my grandmother for a little while. Save up a little money and maybe move down south. I don’t know. I’ll just see how it goes.”
“When will you leave?”
“I’ll wait until the lockdown is over, but after that, I’ve gotta go.”
“I understand.” I looked around at all the stuff she had to pack and asked, “Can I give you a hand?”
“No, it would be too depressing. Besides, you’ve got some socializing to do.” She motioned her hand towards the door. “Darby and the girls are in the kitchen having breakfast. Time for you to go join them.”
“You don’t want me to help?”
“No, honestly, I need you to go.” She grabbed a handful of clothes and stuffed them into a box. “Otherwise, I might end up changing my mind, and I really don’t want to do that.”
“Oh, Lacy.”
“No. None of that.” She shook her head and ushered me towards the door. “You gotta go.”
I wanted to give her a big hug, but it was clear that she was in a fragile state. I didn’t want to make things worse, so I smiled and said, “Okay, fine. Can I come back later? Maybe we can have a couple of drinks to celebrate your big move.”
“Yeah, I’d be down for that.”
“Good deal.” I stepped out of the room as I told her, “I’ll see you in a bit.”
My heart was heavy as I turned and started down the hall. As much as I hated to see her go, I knew she was right to leave. She would never find what she was looking for at the clubhouse, but it broke my heart to think of losing such a dear friend. I knew we would promise to call and visit, and we would—for a little while.
But eventually, it would get harder and harder to keep in touch.
Time would get away from us, and before we knew it, a year or more would have gone by. While it saddened me to think of not talking to her every day, I couldn’t help but feel excited for her. She was going after what she wanted, and with her stubborn streak, I had no doubt she would find it.
It was a thought that had me smiling as I walked into the kitchen, and it only grew wider when I saw that Lauren and Casey were sitting with Darby and the girls. I loved Lauren, but I hadn’t seen much of her since she’d married Flynn. And it was the same with Casey. She’d been seeing some guy from school and rarely ever made it home. I rushed over to the table with a big smile and said, “Hey, guys! Long time no see!”
“We were just thinking the same about you!” Lauren hopped up and gave me a big hug. “Where have you been hiding?”
“I’ve been around.”
Casey stood and rushed over to me, hugging me tightly. “It seems like it’s been ages since I’ve seen you.”
“Because it has been ages. You never come home anymore,” I fussed.
“Well, it’s tough with school and all.”
“I get it. I’ve been busy with school stuff myself.”
“That’s not all she’s been busy with.” A smirk crossed Darby’s face as she teased, “From what I’ve heard, she’s been pretty busy with our boy Bones, too.”
“I heard the same!” Susana cocked her brow. “Spill it, lady.”
“Well, we’ve been talking.” I sat down next to Darby as I told them, “And it’s been pretty great.”
“I’m not surprised.” Mia smiled. “I’ve always thought you two would be good together.”
“We definitely have our moments.” Normally, I would share the big news with Lacy first, but with her announcing her big move and all, I didn’t get the chance to tell her about Wyatt asking me to move in with him. Not knowing how they’d take the news, I was a little hesitant to announce it to the girls, but before I realized what I was doing, I said, “He asked me to move in with him.”
“What!” Lauren’s mouth dropped. “Are you serious?”
“Yeah, we talked about it last night.”
“So, you’re gonna do it?”
“I am.” I took a sip of coffee and smiled. “I mean, we’ll have to wait until Cotton lifts the lockdown and all that, but...”
“That’s awesome, Elsie.” Lauren sounded sincerely happy for me. “Wyatt is lucky to have you.”
“I’m just as lucky to have him.”
We continued to banter back and forth, everyone sharing something about what was going on in their lives, and it wasn’t long before the kitchen was roaring in laughter, especially when Darby and Susana started talking about how things were going at their school and how lame the college guys were. You couldn’t miss the frustration in Susana’s voice as she told us, “The last guy I went out with was a total asshat. He stayed on his phone the entire time and then got pissed when I told him I wanted to go home early.”