Page 96 of Weekends with You

“To say the least. I suppose we have some logistics to cover, don’t we?” I asked, looking around the cluttered office and imagining the amount of work ahead of us in turning over the business.

“Do the Anderson pickup, then enjoy the weekend with your flatmates. We can start talking through logistics on Monday.”

“Are you sure? I mean, we must have loads to do.”

“Celebrate with your mates first, pet. Legalities and paperwork can wait.”

As soon as I imagined announcing the news to the apartment, Henry’s face flashed in my mind. I’d been savoring the distance between us over the past few weeks, and imagining what the apartment would be like if he never came home at all.

Fortunately, taking over the shop was just exciting enough to distract me from my heartbreak. I was floating on a cloudthat not even Henry Baker could pull me down from, and I was determined to keep it that way.

Once the Anderson delivery was safely refrigerated and prepped for Sunday, I raced home to tell Raja the news. It was way too big to text, and I’d been counting the minutes until I could get back to the apartment to make the announcement.

I stepped off the elevator expecting to dash up to her room, but instead I was met by most of my roommates chatting around the kitchen table with drinks. No sign of Henry or Cal, but it looked to be about everyone else.

“Oh, Luce, you’re home!” Liv said, reaching for a beer to throw my way. “Sorry we started without you, but you haven’t missed much of anything yet. We’re just—”

“Renee is giving me the shop,” I said before I could stop myself. Their collective chatter turned to silence as they waited for me to continue. “Sorry, er, I didn’t mean to just blurt it out like that. I’m still kind of in shock.”

“She’s just handing it over?” Margot asked.

“Yeah, I mean, she’s retiring, so. She wants to work part-time still, and we have a lot of legalities to cover, but yes. It’s going to be mine.” My giddy smile felt a bit silly, but I was too excited to care. Saying it out loud to my mates made it feel real, and my chest pounded at the sound.

“Bloody hell,” Finn said, getting to his feet and slamming his beer on the table.

A second later, everyone else exploded in celebration. There was hugging and cheering and chugging of beers, and I was smiling so hard my cheeks started to hurt.

“So, no getting fired after all, huh?” Raja teased, nudging my shoulder.

“Quite the opposite.”

“I’m really, really proud of you, Lu. I know how hard you’vebeen working to keep the shop afloat, and it’s no surprise all that work paid off. I can’t think of anyone more deserving.”

I threw my arms around her, savoring the rare moment she was serious. “Thank you,” I whispered into the hug.

“Cheers to you,” she whispered back.

“Cheers to me.”

“Well then, it looks like celebrations are in order, doesn’t it?” Jan said, gathering a few more drinks and bringing them to the table.

“Where are the other two?” Liv asked, and my heart thudded against my ribs as I listened for a response.

“Cal’s finalizing some stuff for the house, so he won’t be home until tomorrow,” Margot explained, “and Henry should be home in a bit, I think. But who’s to say with him, really? Haven’t heard more than a word since we left Ireland, so I guess we’ll just see him when he shows up.”

“Who needs them?” Raja said, reading my mind. Nothing against Cal, obviously, but I could do without Henry—I was trying to maintain my good mood. “Everyone has five minutes to text me what they want from Nando’s if you want me to place the order. Starting now.”

We claimed spots around the table, texting Raja our orders and opening fresh beers, settling in for the night. It was the kind of night where we spent a couple of hours sitting in the same seats, sharing food and collecting empty cans, too lazy to move or change the playlist or talk about anything other than who was watching what and when the rain looked like it was going to clear up.

“Oh my god,” Raja said after a while, nearly knocking over her chair as she scrambled to her feet. “Lu, we have to burn your resolution. You wrote on the paper that you wanted to be promoted, right? That was the goal?”

“Oh my god,” I echoed. “You’re right.” The rest of the lot cheered lightly, encouraging me to go collect the box.

When I returned, I was met with expectant gazes and anticipatory silence. The lid of the box creaked open, our resolutions nestled among each other inside, save for Raja’s, which we had burned the night she signed her contract with H.M. Whitaker. My hands trembled only slightly as I fished mine out, holding it up to the crowd.

“Wow,” I said, more to myself than to my roommates, turning the paper over in my hands. If the reality hadn’t set in before, it certainly had now. I took a deep breath to maintain my composure as a familiar tingling began at the back of my eyes. Only this time, they were happy tears that threatened to fall.

“Burn, baby, burn,” Finn chanted, pounding his fists on the table. Jan handed me a lighter, and I watched the flame dance around the edge of the paper before setting it ablaze.

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