Page 115 of Friend Zoned

“The original poster took it off after I had my lawyer threaten her with a lawsuit. He told her she’d have so many legal fees, her great grandchildren would be paying them.” I tune out Roger Walsh. I could use a strong drink right now, but I can’t mix alcohol with my pain pills. Right now, my wrist is throbbing. Aiden must sense it because he rubs my thigh underneath the table.

We haven’t had much time to just be by ourselves. We were at my parents’ until late last night, only to go to Vickie’s this afternoon and then to Greenwich after that. When we woke up this morning, someone had posted a video of the fight between me and Camille.

My phone was ringing so much, I shut it off. It’s humiliating, and there are all kinds of speculation about what caused the fight.

“I saved it on my phone, though,” Roger says. “Look at that. Jeannie, I would have never thought a nice girl like you could fight like that.” He puts his phone down and starts throwing air punches at me. “Come on, Rocky. Let’s go.” He dabs my shoulder with his fist. I turn toward him, and he takes three exaggerated steps back and puts both his hands up to cover his face. “Don’t go for my face. I’m too pretty.”

“Dad, will you knock it off?” Aiden says.

“If my son gets mouthy, I beg of you. Don’t hit him.” He dabs Aiden’s shoulder this time. “Don’t worry. That broken nose is the least of her problems. And that scumbag too. I golf with her CEO, and she was fired before we got to the third hole, but she doesn’t know it yet.” He puts a finger to his lips and tells me to shh.

“You okay? Do you need a pill?” Aiden whispers in my ear.

“I’m good,” I say to him. “Maybe in an hour.” He nods and squeezes my thigh. I almost jump out of my seat when I hear a loud crash on the floor.

“Jesus, Mom!” Aiden yells.

Katherine pours herself another glass of wine and downs it in one gulp. Lincoln shakes his head, and Rita shrugs her shoulders.

“I used to cook all the time,” she says. “I’m capable of making a meal for my family and my champion son.”

“For years he wouldn’t let us go to the games,” Roger says.

“Roger, you know you do whatever the hell you want,” Lincoln retorts.

“Well, fine. Just let your mom cook for you. Jeannie’s mother did yesterday.” And there it is. It’s some kind of weird competition.

“My mom likes to do that stuff,” I tell them right before Rita drops a knife on the floor.

“Oh, me too, sweetheart,” she says.

“Then how come you’ve never done it before?” Aiden asks.

“It’s just that with all my charity work, I never have time. I hope you like lamb.”

Katherine shakes her head and walks over to us. I’ve never been so jealous of anyone drinking wine before in my life. “So, Quintin Gardner is about to be out too. I found cause. He messed up something. You both can be there when I do it,” she says, waving a hand around. “Anyway, I can’t believe you proposed without a ring.” She punches Aiden’s arm.

“And we didn’t find out about it until hours later,” Rita throws in. “We’ll have to get everyone together for dinner soon and figure everything out. I’m helping you plan, Jeannie.” Rita walks over and hugs Aiden. “Would you two consider getting married in Greenwich? I’d love it if you get married in the same church as me and your dad, Aid.”

“Which time?” Aiden asks, and I cover my laugh with my good hand.

“Your sister and Lincoln did too, and so did my sisters,” Rita says.

He looks at me and mouths that it’s my call. His mom and sister are practically holding their breath while they wait. Even his dad pauses. I rest my hand on Aiden’s and squeeze. He winks at me, and I’m reminded of all the love that I feel for him. Not only because of how he treats me but because of how he treats everyone who is important to me.

So, I take a deep breath, look around the spacious kitchen and say, “I’d love to get married in your church.” Everyone else exhales at once, and the chatter resumes. Roger puts both hands on my shoulders and kisses my cheek. “We don’t have much time though. We set a date for this New Year’s Eve.”

Roger lets out a loud whistle in the kitchen and everyone claps.

“Your mother and I are paying for the entire thing. Every last thing, and I’m not taking no for an answer,” Roger says. “I did it for my daughter and Linc, and I’m doing it for my son and Jeannie. Whatever you want. There’s no budget. If you want to fly to Paris or Milan for a wedding dress, that’s what you do.”

I open my mouth to laugh at the absurdity of that but think better of it. That’s nothing to these people. They will probably have me on their private plane today if I say that’s what I want.

“I’m positive I can find something in New York,” I say.

Lincoln pops champagne and sparkling cider for me. The kitchen is loud while we all talk over each other. Aiden’s dad puts his arm around me, and I let him welcome me into the family.

“One more thing,” Roger says. “I’m coming back to work part time. I’ve always wanted to work with my kids, and at its heart, The Walsh Group is a family business. I have Katherine and Linc, even though he’s a juvenile delinquent, and now I’ll have you two. Jeannie, I want to mentor you when you come to corporate.”

---