Page 24 of Lessons in Forgiving
“Paula. Good.” Eddie chose as his opening line, sounding somewhat surprised to have reached me. “You had about half a ring left before you would’ve lost me,” he said, and for him, that was almost a joke.
“Sorry.” I tried my best to match his surprisingly chipper mood. “Just…” I glanced toward my cat—on my lap purring contentedly, then took in my dark room and realized I hadn’t even noticed how late it had gotten. “Super busy over here.”Obviously.
“Ah,” Eddie said. “Is this a bad time? Lacy mentioned you had big plans. Honestly, I’m kind of surprised you still managed to get that transcript to me today. I thought I’d have to hassle you about it tomorrow, and we both know how much I hate that. Anyway—”
I wasn’t even listening anymore. He’d lost me about three sentences ago.
“Lacy?” I cut him off bluntly, and if the circumstances were different, I’d probably feel bad about it.
Right now, though, it was worth figuring out what my name was doing in Lacy’s mouth. “Lacy said what?” I asked. It took a lot to take the edge off my voice.
“Oh,” Eddie conceded. “Not much. Just that she thought you were busy tonight. Mentioned big plans?”Of course.“Something wrong with that?”
I blinked back my confusion, head shaking until I remembered he couldn’t see me. “Nothing.”
I did just tell him I wassuper busymyself. Something else I’d love to tell him: Lacy had no business telling him mine. “Absolutely nothing. The connection was just… bad for a second.”
“Anyways.” He sounded a little confused as well, though he covered it up quickly enough. “What an interview, huh?”
My stomach dropped. Obviously, he wasn’t calling to chitchat about what Lacy may or may not have said, but my short-lived annoyance with her had made me forget the actual reason for a second.
What an interview.
“That bad?” I didn’t really have to ask. I knew.
“Well.” Eddie cleared his throat. “No, notthatbad.” I think he might’ve winced as he said it. “You just seem a little stiff. Quiet. Right?”
I sighed into the speaker, leaning back in my chair. The movement earned me a complaint from Pip, who quickly decided my lap was no longer suitable for her needs, before she made herself scarce. Stretching at the newfound freedom, I listened to Eddie.
“It’s fine, Paula.” His voice took on a soothing note, which kind of surprised me. “I’ve basically shelved you for a year. I don’t expect you to spring back into top form right away.”
But I wanted to, I realized.Spring back into top form right away. If this was supposed to be my calling, if I’d given up everything to be a journalist, shouldn’t it come easily? Shouldn’t I be a natural?
“These are minor things, we’ll fix them in a heartbeat, alright? We’ll schedule more interviews. You can go through the questions with me beforehand if you want. You’ll get back into it. Promise.”
Deflated, I just nodded, not caring that he couldn’t even see.
Only time would tell.
CHAPTER 10
THEN, March: three years ago
Once a month, the girls and I drank cheap wine, played cards, blasted loud music through the house and called it: Game Night.
A tradition Laila had brought from home, where she and her mom had done the same, minus the cheap wine. We only hadthatcourtesy due to Riley’s fake ID.
This month, we had company.
“Uno!” Blake practically screamed across the table, holding the last black card in his hand up like a trophy. His huge smile revealed a set of perfect white teeth that contrasted with his dark skin.
Behind him, Dylan and Caden cheered with matching laughs, whooping like he’d just won them the NCAA championship and not like he’dalmostwon a game of Uno against their neighbors.
“Look at you guys,” Riley cooed from the opposite side of the dining table. Out of us girls, she was the only one who still had a chance to win this. Laila, Maeve and I had had over twelve cards each, and had ceremoniously given up. We stood behind Riley like her own emotional support wall. “You’re acting like you’ve already won.”
She placed a matching +2 on the pile of cards. “Uno.”
Blake’s eyes lifted in sync with the corner of his full lips. With a smirk, he placed a blue +2 on top of it. “Uno. Uno.”
