Page 2 of Lucy Loves Him Not
“But—”
“I think this festival is supposed to be a fun thing you do to help the city. That was how Grandma did it, wasn’t it? She had fun with it, but still had time for mom and her granddaughters,” Olivia said. “She still got her butt to church on the regular,quilted, and basically ran the Sweet River Historical Society. The festival wasn’teverythingto her. She had a life, Lucy.”
“And she had help with the festival every single year. Tons of it,” Gracie added, her eyes squinted earnestly. I tried not to laugh at the cuteness of my little sister and focus on the seriousness of this intervention. “It should be ajointeffort.”
“I do getsomehelp. But it’s not that simple for me. Grandma was this important figure in the community. There were people she’d known for years she called on to help her out. I’m just, you know,me.” I shrugged. I had so many memories of watching Grandma dial people’s numbers from her worn address book, calling people to ask them to lend a hand. The door to her life, her heart, always seemed so wide open.
The idea of asking for help, calling them out of the blue the way she did, felt like a skillset I’d never learned. Like someone was telling me I needed to figure out how to build the engine of a car.
I had handled it on my own with the usual volunteers the past couple of years and I was doing fine, anyway. I took a big gulp of my margarita,totally fine.
“I think it’s more than that. I’m your big sister. I see how you’re doing. I see that you go from two-thirds of the year with teaching consuming everything, to the other third of the year with the festival consuming everything. You need some time tolive, to let life be aboutyou,” Olivia said, her tone nearly maternal.
“Time todate,” Gracie almost shouted, making me jump. My drink splashed a little on my top.
“Why are you so concerned with my dating life?” I asked Gracie. It felt like my sisters had my whole life under inspection right now.
“Because when was the last time you went on a date?” Gracie muttered judgmentally.
“What does that matter?” I countered, trying to do the math in my mind.Had it really been, what, three years?
“Because you’re 26. You’re hot, adorable, and fun. A total catch. And I think you’re ready for more in life than story time circles and dinner at Mom’s,” Gracie said, matter-of-fact.
There I sat, my messy, red hair in a tangled ponytail and makeup wearing off, with Gracie telling me I was a catch. I wanted to hug her, but also tell her to get off my case because it was hard to find a man in a small-town, no matter what the romance novels said.
“But do you think I’m in the Sweet River top five?” I clicked my fingers playfully along the table.
“You know, I don’t remember the last time I was on a date, either,” Olivia mused, her voice light. But her words carried weight because we all remembered Olivia’s last date was with her ex-boyfriend, Ryan. Her very serious, years-long relationship. They had been broken up for nearly a year now.
“I went on a date last week,” Gracie said softly. “It was a flop.”
“Are you feeling ready to date?” I looked at Olivia, my head cocked to the side in curiosity.
She is quiet for a beat. “Maybe.” Then, to me, “Do you want to fall in love?”
I laugh a little at her question. At the directness. The tenderness. The specificness. Classic Olivia, always cutting to the chase.
Do I want to fall in love?
I wasn’t super interested in dating. It had always intimidated me, not to mention that I was exhausted at the end of a workday. As my grandma used to call me her fiery little redhead, I felt like most men veered in the opposite direction of us.
But…love?My heart felt like a nervous, wide-eyed little bird at the prospect of it. Open, but tentative. Wondering,Is this a safe place to land?Because romantic love hadn’t always felt likea safe place to me. Not in my history or the history of those I hold closest.
“Luce?” Olivia pushed.
“Doesn’t everyone want to fall in love?” I asked as syrupy sweet as the drinks on the table.
“I’m not asking everyone,” Olivia said, pointing her finger at me. “I’m asking you.”
“How would I go about falling in love, anyway? It’s not something I can simply decide to do.” I fidget with my cup. “Even if I wanted it.”
“You’re right. You can’t plan for it. But are you going to open the door if it comes knocking?” Olivia asked with a raised brow.
“I think I’m not home to answer the door,” I deadpanned.
We all giggled. The server came by to freshen our drinks.
“What about you guys?” I asked after the server walked away.
