Page 80 of The Rebound
“You make it sound like I’m some heartless womanizer.”
“You are a womanizer.”
“But also a woman, so it’sfine. And I’m only that way because I haven’t found therightwoman. Maybe it will help if I—”
“It will not help. Do not engage.”
“Whatever.” She sighs, long and loud, and makes a show of looking around. “So now what do we do? Day-drink?”
I wish. “The pubs aren’t open yet.”
“So then what? Come on, give me the tour. I’m just going to keep talking otherwise. I’m just going to sit and give you advice and yell at you and—”
“Alright,” I groan, standing up. “I’ll show you the heron.”
“Oh, goody.”
17
Jess tells me she’s staying four days. Four days sleeping in the tiny spare bed in Louise’s converted office. Four days in my tiny village where the Wi-Fi signal is spotty at best. Four days of having my best friend back. Four days of having the most unpredictable person I know be in the most predictable place.
Jess’s mind moves too fast for any kind of plan to order her world. If she makes a bad decision, she doesn’t dwell because she’ll have made another before you can even question it. Which is why I’m not completely shocked when I return from brushing my teeth the next morning to see her sitting on her unmade bed, unwrapping a parcel that just arrived.
“What are those?”
“Hiking boots.”
“And are we going on a hike?” I ask when she doesn’t explain further.
“Ding ding! Ten points to the girl with too much dry shampoo in her hair.” She discards a wad of tissue paper onto the floor. “I ordered them before I got on the plane. I thought we could go up those mountains you told me about.”
“Today?”
“Yes, Abby, today. Unless you have other plans you’ve forgotten to share?”
“Don’t you need to wear those in a bit first?”
“I have the perfect size-seven feet. I’ve never had to break in a pair of shoes.” She sticks her foot into one, pulling the laces tight. “And don’t look at me like that. It’s not like you have anything better to do. I’m only here for a few days and I want to see the sights.” She looks up at me, her smile dropping at my reluctance. “I don’t know why I’m even pretending you have a choice,” she continues. “Because you don’t. Suit up. Boot up. We’re going on a hike.”
I know better than to try and change her mind. Louise lends me a pair of her old walking shoes and I grab a pair of leggings and a light T-shirt. Jess, of course, looks like she just stepped out of a Patagonia catalog but I’m used to that by now.
“It will take us an hour to get there,” I say to her as I fill up our water bottles in the kitchen. “We can stop for lunch after and you can eat overpriced Guinness stew or something.”
“You’re making fun of me but I am totally going to do that. Do you want to come?”
I glance over my shoulder to see Louise hovering in the doorway.
My sister looks surprised. “Me?”
“Sure. You busy?”
“She’s working,” I say.
“I’m not,” Louise says pointedly. “It’s a bank holiday.”
Oh.
“Then what about a bit of girl time?” Jess asks. “I’d love a local guide. Abby doesn’t count. She got lost coming back from the forest yesterday.”
