Page 6 of Meant to Be
“How much of that wine have you had? You’re not usually so melodramatic or defeatist.”
“Not enough.” She rubbed the spot over her heart that had never quite stopped hurting since she and Mitch split.
“I’d tell you to come home, but I know you’re not a quitter. So, how about I come see you?”
“Really?” Sydney prided herself on being a strong, independent woman, but right now the idea of a shoulder to cry on sounded perfect.
“Yeah, of course.”
“What about your job at the gallery?”
“You know I only do that to appease my parents. I haven’t gotten paid since the economy tanked. But my parents are happy knowing I have something to get out of bed for.”
Sydney laughed. They both grew up in affluent New York families, but while Sydney had always been driven, Julia would have been better off living in the 19th century, where her skills as a pretty, rich hostess would have served her better. Patrick was more like Sydney, determined to accomplish things in the world. He’d completed two doctorates and now worked as a forensic psychiatrist.
Growing up they’d been inseparable. Their parents called them the three musketeers, which, as an only child, Sydney loved. As children, they’d decided that Patrick and Sydney would get married so the three of them would always be together. Sydney and Patrick had gone so far as to date in high school and his first years in college. But Sydney left that fantasy behind the day she met Mitch McKenna her freshman year at Princeton.
Since graduating from college and ending things with Mitch, the three musketeers were back together. At one point, Patrick attempted to re-establish their romantic connection, but Sydney hadn’t returned the sentiment. Thankfully, he seemed to have moved on.
Julia and Patrick both questioned whether trying to resolve things with Mitch was a good idea, but fortunately, neither had tried to stop her. She’d hit the jackpot with her friends. She needed to find a way to let them know how grateful she was.
“Yes, come down and we’ll live it up. Well, as much as you can live it up in a town where everything closes by nine.”
“Nine!”
Sydney winced. “We’ll make our own fun. Maybe we can find some genuine moonshine.”
“Now you’re talking. I’ll be there tomorrow.”
