Page 28 of October
“Sure. What do you want on the burger?”
“Ketchup and mayonnaise with lettuce and pickles.”
“And how do you want it cooked?”
“Medium well,” Finley said.
“Okay. I’ll put all that in. Wait. Do you want the skins to come out before or with her burger?”
“With is fine,” Molly answered.
The waitress walked away again, and Molly looked over at the woman who was no longer holding Ava’s hand, but that was likely only because Ava had a white wine now, and both of her hands were on the glass, holding it close to her body.
“So… It’s not weird for you to see the woman you’re dating out with someone else?” Finley asked.
“It’s weird, yeah, but not a big deal. We’re not technically dating. Can we change the subject, though?”
“What do you want to talk about?”
“Um… How many computers did you fix this week at work?”
Finley laughed and said, “You really want to talk aboutthat?”
“No, but I don’t know you very well, so it seemed like a safe topic,” Molly replied and took a drink of her water.
“How about we start with the basics. Any siblings?”
“Two, but neither of them lives here anymore.”
“No?”
“No, they–” Molly stopped and just decided to explain it. “My dad died a few years ago, and they’re both younger than me, so when my mom couldn’t live in the house anymore and needed to move out of the city, they went with her.”
“I’m sorry about your dad,” Finley said, dropping her smile.
“Me too. He was a great dad, and I miss him a lot.”
“I bet it’s tough that the rest of your family moved away, too, though.”
Molly lifted an eyebrow because no one had ever said that to her before, not even Juliet, who had heard the whole sob story.
“It was, yeah.”
“Why didn’t you move with them?”
“I love it here. I feel closer to my dad in New Orleans, and he’s buried here. This is my home. I get why it was hard for my mom, but I needed to stay.”
“You’re the oldest sibling?”
“Yes. I’m twenty-nine. My brother is twenty-four now, and my sister is twenty-two. She’s finishing up her last year of school, and my brother is living at home while he figures out what he wants to do with the rest of his life. He’s been a little aimless since Dad died.”
“That’s understandable, I think.”
“What about you? Siblings?”
“Sister. Younger by two years,” Finley replied. “She still lives in Kentucky. I see her once a year, maybe, at the holidays. It depends.”
“On what?”
