Page 51 of The Ex Effect
My one true love.
“It’s not fun doing all the bullshit pleasantries, that’s for sure.” I snapped off a dry branch from the tree and twisted it in my hand. “But I’m going to be back in the city in just a few weeks. Maybe I’ll push it out until the end of August, but if I don’t get theBirch & Willowgig, I need to book more jobs.” I crossed the yard and pushed the twig against the tire swing. “And then what? I try to maintain some sort of long-distance thing with her? It’s not logical, or practical, for me to start things back up with Morgan.”
A huff came through the phone. “Since when are you known for your practicality? God love ya, sis, but you are more impulsive than the average bear. You’ve always trusted your gut. How about you just keep doing that? Stop trying to explain things, justify things, and worry about things. Just go for it. Whatever that looks like. At least this time you both know exactly what you’re getting into.”
Was Quinn right? Sometimes I questioned her judgment, like staying at her god-awful job over the years. But right now, I was pretty sure she was the voice of reason I needed to get out of my head. I might just jump through the phone and squeeze my sister. “God, I love you.”
“Love you, too. Now, I seriously need to drop before I get fired. Although at this point, getting fired sounds as wonderful as going to a day spa.”
I frowned. “Still that bad?”
“Alwaysthat bad.” Quinn chuckled. “See ya. Call me later when you figure out the rest of your life.”
After I hung up, I hovered my fingers over the screen. Text Morgan, or don’t text Morgan? It shouldn’t be this hard. Did I want to talk to Morgan? Yes. Then, great, pick up the damn phone. Did I not want to talk to her? Kind of. Cool, then stop thinking about her.
What an emotional roller coaster of a day. It wasfive million hours ago when I was in Delilah’s flower shop wondering why Morgan was late. The hint of losing Morgan when I heard about the accident freaked me out so much that all I wanted to do right now was to wrap Morgan in my arms and keep her safe.
But I had a lifetime of making impulsive decisions, and this couldnotbe one of them.
TWENTY-FOUR
MORGAN
Oh, how things change in a twenty-four-hour period. First, I was nearly scratched to death by poultry. Then Frankie flipped my world upside down by kissing me. And then I got a major break in the final missing piece for the wedding. After I threw a wedding-day Hail Mary pass (Frankie would be so proud I know that term) and posted a Facebook message seeking a connection to a DJ who was open for that date, a former classmate DMed me saying he’d been DJing for the last year and was available for the wedding.
A miracle. DJs book up almost as quickly as venues, and I had burned through my entire digital Rolodex last month trying to find one in the state.
I popped bread into the toaster and tugged on my lip, the one that still had the reminiscence of Frankie’s mouth on it from yesterday. I thought about calling or texting Frankie last night, and I assumed Frankie was weighing the same pros and cons. Being an adult, and not a starry-eyed teenager, came with a whole different perspective. We each had lives and careers and homes, and whatever was brewing was not as simple as “let’sjust do this!” Too many consequences were involved, and I needed to take a long moment to think.
Or perhaps, maybe for once in my life I didn’t need to think and plan and organize. We were still working together for the rest of the summer, and as of now, Frankie would be in my life. So, maybe we could continue being friends, and I would bury all of this.
Or maybe…
Morgan:
hey, I know I said we get to take this weekend off…
I held my breath, which was not a smart thing to do as Frankie notoriously never had her phone on her. But before I passed out, the three dots appeared.
Frankie:
Yes, you sure did. The only thing I’m doing this weekend is sitting in Peaches’s fuzzy pink bathrobe and taking a bath in her seashell-decorated pink bathroom with a box of twenty-year-old Calgon bath salts I found in the closet.
Morgan:
Wow. That is an oddly specific agenda for a Saturday night.
Frankie:
I could be talked into something else. Have something in mind?
Yes, Ivery muchhad something else in mind. I breathed through the tingles.
Morgan:
Remember Tag Docksen from our class? He’s a DJ, is free for the wedding, and just so happens to be playing a show tonight in a dive bar about five minutes outside of Superior. I wanted to scope him out, and if he doesn’t suck, hire him for the wedding.
Frankie:
