Page 14 of Love, Morgan

“I am your best friend. And you know I’m right. That’s why you’re being difficult about it.”

“No. I’m being difficult because you’re not offering me a solution.”

“The solution is to talk to her. Take the edge off how tense you are about existing in the same space as her. But, if you don’t want to do that, ignore her. Treat her like she’s anyone else on vacation there. I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”

But she wasn’t just anyone here. She wasn’t just anyone anywhere. And I couldn’t talk to her. She’d said in her video that she needed a break. She’d come to an incredibly exclusive resort for said break. The last thing she was looking for was rabid fans trying to meet her and ruin her vacation.

But I couldn’t just ignore her. Did Ripley think she could just ignore Alicia and everything would be fine? I’d hidden in abushfor her in her attempt to avoid Alicia. Not once had it occurred to her to just go about her business as if Alicia hadn’t come home to Jackson Point.

Maybe she should fly out here. She could hide in bushes with me to avoid Iona. It wasn’t nearly as pathetic if you weren’t doing it alone, right?

“So, that’s it?” I asked. “That’s all the advice you have?”

“That’s all the advice there is to have,” she replied, amused. “You’re not coming home because your vacation is important to you and, despite what you might say right now, you don’t want to come home. So, all that’s left is to find a way to… co-exist for two weeks. Either talk to her, or don’t, but you’ll be fine whichever you choose.”

“That’s the worst advice you’ve ever given anyone.”

“I thought that was the time I told you three chocolate puddings did not a breakfast make.”

“Oh. Right. Yeah, that was just a full lie. It’s not even advice. So this tops it.”

She laughed and I heard her moving around the store again. Clearly, she’d decided she’d given me good enough advice to engage in other things. I was buying her an advice-giving course for Christmas. She clearly needed it.

“You do realize she’s going to be around every corner, just waiting for me to show up, so she can pop up and terrify me?”

“I’d remind you that the world doesn’t revolve around you—”

“But it clearly does and we all know it, so let’s not even try.”

“Iona’s not going to be around every corner,” she continued, amused. “You might not even see her again for the rest of the trip. It’s exclusive, but it’s notthatsmall.”

“Yeah, maybe you’re right…”

I’d thought Ripley trying to avoid Alicia when she came back to Jackson Point was ridiculous. It was a small town, they both knew the same people, had the same old haunts, and I’d been right. You couldn’t avoid your ex-wife in a place like that. But maybe you could avoid someone you didn’t know in a place like this.

Loathe as I was to admit it, Ripley was right that I hadn’t been paying enough attention to the other people here to know if I’d seen them multiple times, but I didn’t remember doing, so maybe there was hope.

Or, maybe, I should have known Ripley’s only advice was going to be avoid her or talk to her. This was the woman who’d had me hiding in a bush from her ex-wife.

I should have called Harlow.

I sighed. “Fine. But, if sheishiding around every corner. You owe me pancakes at Didi’s every day for a month.”

“I’m not—”

“Amonth, Ripley. Take it or leave it.”

“Takewhat?” she spluttered. “We’re not making a deal.”

“We’re always making a deal.”

“I have no idea what you’re going on about, but I have work to do, so, if it gets you off the phone and back to enjoying your vacation, sure. Take it. Pancakes for a month.”

“Good. Bye.” I hung up as soon as she got a cursory parting line out and flung my phone at the couch.

I loved Ripley but she gave the worst advice sometimes.

I slid the French doors open and stepped out onto the balcony over the water. The sun was setting on the horizon and my deck had a gorgeous view of it. No matter what was going on, I couldn’t miss that. And it wasn’t like I was going to run into Iona on my deck.

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