Page 34 of Can't Help Falling in Love
Maisie waggled her eyebrows. “Oh, you can handle it. I love that he’s pushing you out of your little scaredy-pants cave.”
“Hey!” Lexi turned back, added an extra helping of sugar to her mug.
“Hey, nothing. Excuses are fine if the guy isn’t worth it but your fiancé sounds amazing. Completely worth it.”
Lexi shushed her friend, turning to make sure her mother was still asleep. The engagement shouldn’t impact anything in her life. Her mother didn’t go online for any reason other than to order books and was unlikely to find out. Why complicate things further?
Her phone buzzed again with an incoming text and like her heart was already trained to respond, it squeezed tightly at the thought of it being Will.
“Is it him?” Maisie tried to peek as soon as Lexi pulled her phone from her pocket.
Lexi laughed. They were older but maybe there were still pieces of high school girls inside of them. Which could explain why she sighed in disappointment when it turned out to be Brett asking if she could pick up an extra shift the following week. She also noted Jackie and Becca had started a group chat, insisting the three of them needed to get together again soon and asking if she was having an engagement party and wasn’t it just fate and good luck that had them all together again?
Lexi typed out a quick “let me check my schedule” that she hoped would suffice for her friends. Then she said yes to Brett and slipped her phone back in her pocket.
She settled into the stool beside her friend, who had already sat, with her tea. “I really like him, Maisie. His family isn’t happy about things but he doesn’t seem to mind that. His best friend is a cutie. You should see his pub. We’ll have to go sometime.”
Maisie nudged Lexi’s shoulder with her own. “We will. How cute are we talking?”
Lexi laughed. “Let’s not complicate this further. I should have walked away. My first interaction with Will was a disaster, so we’re starting from a foundation of misunderstandings. I’ve got another paper due in three days that I haven’t started, I’m not getting better at waitressing, I’m so tired of working at the Dress Hut. I’m tired of this house, of running on empty.” She heaved out a large sigh, exhausted by herself and her list of complaints.
Maisie put a hand on Lexi’s back, rubbing slow, soothing circles. Lexi had to stop herself from purring like a cat. “You need something stronger than tea. Like an entire night with Will. Like you said, it won’t impact you much except you’ll be dating a gorgeous, funny man, getting out of this house a bit. Maybe it’ll remind you that you’re young and deserve good things. I know you’re tired but it’s because you’re so close to the finish line.”
Dig deeper.
“I know you’re already busy but I could use a hand with a job this weekend. Just for a few hours. It’s an engagement shoot out by Lake Union. I’ll pay you what I’d pay my assistant, and that combined with the tools should cover the rest of your tuition.”
Lexi picked up her tea. “I don’t want you paying for my stuff.”
“Don’t be an idiot, Lexi. I’m paying you to do a job I pay someone to do. I need help; you need money.”
She had considered a third job. She was being silly. Her friend wasn’t giving her charity and so what if she needed a little help? That’s what she told herself, but it still made her feel heavy.
“Can you pay me in advance?”
Maisie laughed. “You’re doing better than you think. You won’t work at either of those jobs forever. I know you’re tired. Give yourself this. You like him. You know he likes you. See where it goes.”
Setting her tea down, she leaned her head on Maisie’s shoulder. “Sorry. You’re a good friend.”
“I know. So I’m going to add a little more happiness to your day.”
Lexi lifted her head. “What is it?”
“Gwen is really talented.”
Lexi smiled, gave a half laugh. “She’s getting really good at the figures and the scenes, isn’t she? When I’m restless, I go in there and stare at them.”
Maisie nodded, her smile widening. “So good I’d like to hire her to create a cake topper for one of my clients. She was talking about not being able to find exactly what she wants.”
A strange sense of pride and a small kernel of hope stirred inside of Lexi. “Really?”
“Really. Gwen’s got a great eye and her details are exquisite. When I brought it up, she seemed really excited. She started throwing out ideas, almost talking to herself like she could see it in her head.”
The thought made Lexi happy.
“It’d be good for both of you to have more to look forward to. To see outside of this grief funnel she’s in.”
Nodding, Lexi stared at the wall.Grief funnel.That was a good term for it. “I’m going to go for a run tomorrow. Maybe I’ll see if she’ll go for a walk.”
