Page 49 of The Relationship Mechanic

Jessica backed the car out of the driveway. She had spent the morning cleaning up and making changes to her travel plans. She was lucky enough to be able to find an earlier flight out of Atlanta that was leaving a little past ten that evening. It meant a seven-hour layover in Paris, but she was fine with that. There were plenty of shops she could wander around in and do some last-minute Christmas shopping as well as freshen up before the last leg of her flight. It did mean that she had left without saying goodbye.

She hadn’t made the decision to leave early until after Grace and Ava had already left. There hadn’t been a ton of seats left on the plane so she had to pick quickly before they were gone completely. Jessica had written a letter for Grace and also a note for her to give to Vini. Writing that note had been tough, and Jessica went back and forth with herself about leaving it at all. But it was done now. The letters were there, and she would let the chips fall where they might. Maybe she could come back to Peach Blossom in a year or two when the wounds weren’t as fresh and see if they could start over. Maybe by then, Vini would be with someone new. Someone who deserved her affections. Jessica didn’t doubt it would be tough for her to see, but it was what it was. Vini was a good woman, and Jessica had no doubt that once the right person realized that, they would never let her go.

Right when she put on her turn signal to merge onto the highway, her phone rang startling her. She took a deep breath before connecting the call. “Hello?”

“Sweetheart, what is this email I got from Delta about you coming to Naples early?”

Jessica sighed. “I changed my flight.”

“But why? I thought you were planning on staying there longer.”

“What gave you that idea?” she asked in confusion. “I never said anything about staying in Peach Blossom longer. Not over Christmas, anyway. Do you guys not want me to come visit?”

“Of course we do,” her mom protested. “You know we love having you and Jason come stay with us. It doesn’t feel like the holidays without the two of you with us.” Jessica could hear her dad laughing in the background and the familiar sound lifted her spirits. “Oh, you hush. You know you miss the kids.”

“I just thought it was time for me to come home. There’s nothing keeping me here now that I know Grace is okay.”

Her mom hummed over the line before speaking. “But I thought you were dating someone. You mentioned her all the time. Her name started with aV.”

“Vini,” Jessica replied before she could stop herself. She knew she had to clear up any misconceptions before she was forced to do it repeatedly over the holiday. “No, Vini and I were just friends.”

“But all the texts about her and every time we called, you two were together or you talked about her. Truthfully, your father and I thought you might have decided to bring her with you. We were getting excited to meet her.” That left Jessica’s mind whirling. Had she actually talked about Vini that much? “Are you sure you two aren’t dating? Maybe you just need to talk and tell her your feelings.”

“Mom,” Jessica started as she tried to think back to all their conversations. To her shock, she realized that after the first week, she had spent much of her time talking about things she did with Vini. She had no doubt that her text messages would show the same. “Oh, fuck.”

“Sweetie, where are you?”

Jessica squinted and looked at the mile marker coming up. “Um, somewhere in the middle of nowhere headed to Atlanta. Why?”

“I suggest you turn your behind around and make your feelings known.”

“Mom, I don’t have—”

“Jessica Jae-eun Miller, I wasn’t asking, I was telling. Now, I know you get your fear of commitment from your father—Calvin, hush, you know I’m right. How many cities did you move us to before I put my foot down? Exactly. Only thing you could decide on was me, silly man.”

Jessica snorted at the familiar argument from her mom. It wasn’t the first time her mother had brought it up, and she doubted it would be the last. Moving for their dad’s job had become so familiar that she didn’t think about it most days.

“Mom, it’s not a fear.”

“Oh, please. You took your father’s commitment phobia and ran with it. But I know you also got some smarts from me. So trust me when I say if you don’t face your fears and tell that girl how you feel, you will regret it for the rest of your life.” Her voice was firm, and it had Jessica sitting up straighter as she thought about it. Had she really been so blind? She had been trying so hard to keep things a secret that she hid her feelings from herself.

“But she broke it off,” Jessica said, her voice small and lanced with pain. “What if I can’t be everything she needs? You don’t get it, Mom. She owns her own business, and she’s planning on expanding. She knows what she wants and where she wants to be. I barely know what I want to wear in the morning.”

“Then, maybe she’ll rub off on you a little.”

“I’m not joking, Mom. What if she really gets to know me and doesn’t like me?” The thought was damn near immobilizing. Jessica had never thought she could have the type of love and stability her parents had. Her dad had got lucky. He had found someone willing to follow him and give up some of their dreams so he could achieve his own. “What if she realizes she doesn’t want me?”

“Then, you feel proud that you put yourself out there and take it as a learning experience for the next time you find love.” There was a shuffling sound in the background and suddenly Jessica’s dad spoke up. “Honey, I know our lifestyle made it hard for you to feel like you could land on solid ground, but maybe you just needed someone to land for. You’ll never know unless you let yourself really give it a try. Go get her, tiger. Put on the charm you got from your daddy. Ouch, Hillary, I’m just giving the girl a pep talk.” Jessica smiled at the heated whispers over the line, before he came back. “Also, your mother said that she’s canceling the plane ticket and we will see you sometime in the new year. Love you. Bye!”

Jessica didn’t have time to say anything before the call ended and she was left staring at the phone. She doubted her mom would cancel her flight, but it didn’t matter. She checked that the lanes were clear before she jerked the car over and cut across the median. She had to go back and give it one last try. This time, she knew exactly what she would do.

Twenty-Six

Vini leaned back in her chair, her eyes trained on the ceiling. She knew she should be out in the garage working on a couple cars that were in for basic service, but she had needed a moment to get herself together. She had gone over to Grace’s on her way to the shop, hoping to talk to Jessica. She didn’t know exactly what she planned on saying, but she had a rough idea. The conversation last night with her dad had given her the courage to face Jessica again and fight for what she knew they could have. There was something between them, and she knew it. She refused to let either of their insecurities or fears keep them apart. But when she got to Grace’s house, no one was there.

Vini knew that Grace would be gone to work, but Jessica should have been there. She hadn’t stopped to think about the driveway being empty with Jessica’s car missing. She had been so focused on talking to her that she had missed the obvious. Jessica was gone.

Vini had knocked on the door a few times before letting herself in. Small towns came in handy when people didn’t feel the need to lock their doors. Vini had gone inside and called out, but no one responded. In the kitchen, everything looked normal until she saw the sheets of paper on the dining table. One had been addressed to Grace and the other to Vini herself. She had picked it up, curious as to what it said, but after a few lines wished she hadn’t.

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