Page 9 of Falling Hard
I retrieved the coffee from her hands and sighed before repeating myself. "My best friend. Who wants to marry somebody he barely knows, a woman who is all wrong for him."
Tami leaned over and glanced at the line behind me, her smile still sweet as I continued.
"Six months ago, Solemn came into our lives, and I welcomed her without a second thought. I assumed she’d be gone soon. I was wrong about the girl with the gray eyes. And now they’re engaged." My fist clenched as I explained.
Tami looked at me like she didn't understand the problem. "Maybe they love each other."
I scoffed, "Give me a fucking break. Love? After six months?"
"Maybe it was love at first sight."
I thought of slapping that innocent smile off her face. Thankfully, I wasn't the violent type.
"Lady, are you done? Can I order now?" a voice behind me asked.
I threw my head back and shot a glare at the man in a neon yellow and orange construction vest. "It's only coffee, not oxygen. You won't die waiting."
However, Tami's words had spoiled my mood. It felt like a rain cloud had burst overhead, drowning me in icy water. I sipped the coffee and marched from the shop. Clearly, I was talking to the wrong person.
My SUV was double-parked in front of the coffee shop. I jumped inside.
"Take me to the tennis club," I ordered Hopeton.
Luke’s mom, Vicky Forrester, should be there taking a lesson now. If anyone could stop him, it was her. Maybe she could talk sense into her son since I couldn't. Why didn't I think of this sooner? Once I got Vicky on my side, she'd definitely pressure Luke into making the right choice. In under two minutes (thanks to Hopeton’s liberal interpretation of speed limits), we arrived.
I entered the club and found Vicky pretty quickly on a private court. She was beautiful. Wrinkles framed her face, but confidence erased years better than Botox. Vicky giggled like a schoolgirl as she adjusted the straps of her V-cut top. She wasn’t beyond flirting, clearly. Her manicured hands ran down the arm of her tennis instructor, the diamonds on her wrist outshining the fluorescent light.
"Olivia, what are you doing here?" she asked then put some distance between her and the man who was possibly her newest boy toy.
I walked over, gave her a hug, and waited. After a couple of seconds, the tennis instructor took the hint and left.
"Luke is marrying that woman. Did you know that?" I blurted out.
Giving me a slight nod, Vicky dabbed her face and then led me off the indoor court. "I know. We may not be the closest, but that boy had to tell me he was engaged."
"Okay. So, what are you going to do about it?"
Vicky and I walked to a nearby table and sat. She stared at me in a familiar way; it was the same look Mei and the girls gave me. My defenses flew up. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Come on, Olivia. I made no secret that I wanted you to be my daughter-in-law, but you and Luke crushed my hopes every time. Actually, you did that more than him."
I rolled my eyes.
Vicky touched my arm gently. "This was bound to happen sooner or later. What am I supposed to say to him?"
What? She needed me to write her a script? Her son was making a mistake, and Vicky couldn't find the words to talk him out of it. Just as I opened my mouth to help her, Vicky spoke. "Luke loves her."
"Not possible."
"Why? Because she isn't you?"
Her words knocked the wind out of me, and I had no reply
"You two are older now," she continued. "We have to let you both make your own decisions."
"So, you're just going to stand by and let him make a mistake?"
Vicky locked eyes with me. "I watched you both doing it for years. Luke was bound to find somebody else eventually."
