Page 58 of Under the Influence

I smile at her certainty. “I was never sure if I believed in the curse. It’s possible we never gave love a fair shake. Seeing you this happy makes me think the curse was never real.”

“I believe what I feel for Val is magic. If you had the chance at this feeling years ago, you wouldn’t have blown it off because of the curse. It would have consumed you like it did me.”

Lola’s words hit me down deep. Though I wish I could fess up to how right she is, I only smile.

“I saw the bridesmaids getting their super soakers ready for any trouble tomorrow,” I say, chuckling. “Clover was walking around with hers when I came here.”

Lola and I laugh at how infectious the homestead’s behavior has been. The meatheads are even behaving better with Val around. He’s a superstar with a growing fan club. It’s the weirdest shit I’ve ever seen.

“Are you okay?” Lola asks when I remain silent for too long.

“I want tomorrow to go perfectly. You deserve to have a beautiful wedding. It’s stressing me out.”

Lola stands up and hugs me. “Things are turning out well, right?”

“They’re great,” I say, wishing she wouldn’t worry so much about my problems. “My panic might have been over nothing. But it led to this thing with Val and the homestead. Even Clover seems happier. I’ve never seen her want to hang out with women who weren’t family.”

Lola exhales deeply and offers me a big smile. “I love Val. I know you know that, but I like saying it out loud. No more hiding my feelings. I plan to be obnoxious about my love from now on.”

“I don’t like that you kept this Val thing from me, but I understand why you did. We’ve always tried to be so sensible about our relationships with nonfamily. Each time Erin got divorced, she pretended like she knew it would happen, so it didn’t hurt. But we aren’t machines. It’s okay to feel scared or get attached. I think an emotional guy like Val will be a good influence on us.”

Lola instantly smiles at any praise for her man. At first, I was annoyed by how she felt the need to protect him from nonthreats. The guy is no weakling and doesn’t need her to play backup. Yet, the longer I’m with Edith, the more I worry about her safety, even when I know she’s with her people. No matter what I do, she’s always in my thoughts.

Lola’s obsessive need for Val makes sense now, but I can’t share that fact with her yet.

“I miss Val,” she says and looks at the door. “I’ve gotten used to having him around at night. Think you could hang around for a while and entertain me?”

Lola and I play cards for an hour before Val calls to ask if they can watch a movie together while in separate rooms. I leave her to goof around with her soon-to-be husband and head to my room. I text Edith to see if she wants to watch a movie together. She says Roxie is in the room, so she’ll have to refer to me as Philip and pretend I’m a nerdy accountant with a goofy haircut.

“Why did you give him that haircut?”

“I was in a silly mood. Also, my brothers are less likely to track down someone so lame.”

“Well, I can be Philip for tonight.”

Edith calls me up so we can watch “Ghostbusters 2” together. We stay on the phone until ten. I text her in the morning, but she can barely respond with all the hair and makeup prep going on with Lola and the other bridesmaids.

The next time I see her is when she prepares to walk down the aisle. Edith is a vision, and I struggle to peel my gaze away from her. I catch her peeking at me. Based on her little smile, she likes me dressed in my tux.

The rest of the day is a blur of wedding vows, awkward dancing, and a water pistol battle against a floozy who shows up to claim Val. Through it all, I’m torn between enjoying Lola’s big day and imagining when Edith will be the one walking down the aisle toward me.

EDITH, AKA GOING FULL EARLHAM

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The wedding is beautiful, and the reception is fun. We even nearly drown a troublemaker with our super soakers. Val and Lola can’t keep their hands off each other. They share that magic I saw growing up. Everything comes together with both families and clubs getting along well.

The day after the wedding, I wake up wondering if I should make plans to tell people about Duke. Is it too soon? I decide I should wait a few days. Maybe another week.

For days, Duke struggles to meet up with me for more than an hour here or there. Kerrie and Marv were still bunking at his house.

My ma doesn’t hound me to fess up, but I sense her wondering why I keep quiet. My goal is to think long-term and remain patient.

Then, this morning, I wake up scattered and emotional. I miss Duke. I’ve started doubting we’ll survive our families’ reactions. Everything we shared is over!

My period is also late. It’s probably just stress. I haven’t been sleeping well. I either eat too much or skip meals. I’ve gotten paranoid again.

All morning, I pace around the empty house until I’m basically circling the couch for thirty minutes while Ace Monroe plays on repeat.

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