Page 32 of The Suitcase Swap

‘Don’t get me wrong, I respect it,’ Marisa said, taking a big bite. ‘I’m a big fan of women speaking up for what they want.’ Her eyes narrowed. ‘And now that I’ve held up my end of the deal . . .’

Sophie sighed, setting her pizza back onto her plate. ‘We kissed.’ Kiss was such an oddly simple word for a complicated thing, glossing easily over what was sometimes such an impactful action.

Marisa’s eyes widened. ‘Ohhhh. This is even better than I’d hoped.’ She tipped her head to the side, examining Sophie. ‘Kissing usually doesn’t lead to that face, though. That’s an unhappy face. Was it bad? Dead fish bad, or plumber going after a blocked drain bad? Terrible breath?’ She scrunched her nose. ‘I’d always hoped older men would be better at this sort of thing. Surely they must learn as they go. You’ve extinguished a great hope that I held dear, Sophie. He’s so hot, too. I had higher hopes for Michael.’

Sophie looked at her, exasperated. ‘Do you want to actually hear about it, or spin a ton of conjecture first?’

‘Conjecture,’ Marisa said instantly. ‘That’s the fun bit.ThenI want reality. But I’m done now, so carry on.’

‘The kiss was . . .’ Sophie struggled for a word to describe it. How to convey the chemistry of it, how good it had felt, and how thinking of it now made her want to cry? In fact, she’d wanted to cry the second he’d stopped. She made a helpless noise, her hands fluttering at her sides.

‘Oh,’ Marisa said, her tone knowing. ‘It was reallygood,wasn’t it? One of those knee-weakening, fairy tale kinds of kisses that make you feel like they should be illegal. Panty-melting.’

Sophie made a noise like the saddest balloon with a slow leak.

‘Those are good kisses,’ Marisa said. ‘And since we’re pretending we’re two friends, I will admit that those kinds of kisses are why I’m engaged.’

‘Really don’t want to think about that,’ Sophie said. ‘But also happy for you.’

‘Okay, so if Michael laid one on you that unleashed a sexy kraken—’

‘I do not understand that statement at all.’

Marisa batted this away with one hand. ‘There’s an 80s movie, my mom loved it. Greek mythology. We’ll watch it next, because I think you’ll love it. Let’s focus. If it was that kind of kiss, why the sad face?’ Her lip curled. ‘Please do not tell me it made you nostalgic for your ex. I’d like to put Andrew into some kind of wicker man.’

Sophie tapped her fingers on her plate. ‘Seems . . . extreme.’

Marisa shrugged. ‘Lots of weird leftover hormones right now, plus I do not like what that man did to you and Tom. If we were on theTitanicright now and it was sinking, I’d rather drop an empty lifeboat into the ocean than let him get into it.’

‘Wow,’ Sophie said. ‘I’m honestly a little impressed with your level of spite right now.’

‘I don’t like it when someone hurts the people I love,’ Marisa said simply. ‘And that includes myself. You and Tom should try it. Belessforgiving to those that hurt your loved ones, and that list should start with yourself.’

Sophie digested this quietly for a moment. ‘I think you might have something there.’

‘I’m wise beyond my years,’ Marisa said dryly. ‘Now focus.’

‘Right. Well, the good news is that it didn’t make me miss the Wicker Man,’ Sophie said. ‘Bad news is Mike shut it down pretty quickly. Done, over, got me into a Lyft, dropped me at my door.’

Marisa groaned, throwing back her head. ‘Noooooo. Mike, you’re killing me, buddy. Please tell me he didn’t apologize for kissing you.’

‘He did. Very “so sorry, that shouldn’t have happened” kind of nonsense.’

‘Uggggghhhhh.’ Marisa shoved the last of her pizza into her mouth, chewing angrily. ‘Why are men?Why?’

‘I don’t know.’

‘Well, I’m sorry,’ Marisa said. ‘That’s shitty. And . . .’ She eyed Sophie, like she wasn’t sure how the next bit would be taken. ‘Probably felt extra terrible, after what the Wicker Man did to you?’

‘Yes,’ Sophie said, with more force than she’d intended. ‘Thank you – you get it!’

‘Rejection squared,’ Marisa said. ‘It becomes exponential when they’re back to back like that.’

‘It wouldn’t be so bad,’ Sophie admitted, ‘if we hadn’t been having so much fun. Honestly, yesterday . . . I don’t know when I last laughed like that, except when I’m with Edie.’

‘Edie’s a good friend,’ Marisa said with a nod. ‘The kind you could have fun with even if you’re stuck somewhere really terrible.’

‘Yes,’ Sophie said, ‘she is. But last night . . . I had such a good time dancing, then dinner at the park, with the river and the lights and the carousel. It was honestly magical.’

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