Page 25 of A Lifetime in 30 Days
There weren’t any details to give. Unless they wanted to know that she’d revealed to this man—who had once been a very close friend of her husband’s—that a long time ago, she’d had a crush on him. And he, apparently, had had a crush on her too. She still didn’t know how to feel about that. For a brief moment after she’d arrived home last night and climbed into bed, she’d allowed herself to wonder what her life would’ve been like if she and Aden had exchanged names and numbers that day at the park. She would’ve never met Caleb under the circumstances that they had and would have gone on to become romantically involved with Aden, because that man was just as fine back then as he was now. Would they have gotten married? Had children? Would he have been the happily ever after she craved but was afraid to hope for?
She dropped an arm over her eyes and groaned. That line of thought had been pointless last night and was even more so in the morning. Especially since therehadbeen Caleb, and shehadloved that man to distraction. Why else would she have given him all those years? More importantly—and the point she kept trying to push out of her mind, but because it was such a big damn deal, it kept resurfacing—what the hell had Caleb gotten her involved in?
In two more days, she would hopefully find out more, but damn if she didn’t want all the answers now. Was she actually in danger of being sentenced to a long term in prison now? She knew what embezzlement was, but since she’d only worked in torts and litigation during her career in the legal field, she didn’t know the specifics on the actual charge, and the sentences that went along with it. So she’d researched, and succeeded in scaring herself even more at the implications.
Being charged with conspiracy to embezzle, she could get some crazy fines, probation, or a combination of all the above. What in the world was her life now? This was supposed to be her birthday-celebration month, she was supposed to be in a perpetual good mood from the first of August until the big birthday-dinner party she had planned for the 31st. Yet here she was, getting another headache from worrying over some mess she hadn’t gotten herself into, nor could she get herself out of on her own.
For as much as she cherished the people closest to her—Granny, Jamaica, and Ronni—and knew they were her ride-or-dies until the very end, Vanna hated depending on anyone. As a child, she’d depended on her mother for love and affection, and Diane had paid her dirt. Vanna vowed she’d never need someone like that again. There’d been a part of her that had even held back from Caleb. While she’d given their marriage 98 percent, the 2 percent she’d kept locked tight was a result of having been disappointed far too many times before. Now, if she ever even considered another serious relationship, unfortunately that person would only get part of her. At this point in her life, she wasn’t willing to risk any more than that.
Her bladder wouldn’t let her lie in that bed with racing thoughts a moment longer. She pushed the sheets off and got up.
Just as she came out of the bathroom, her phone chimed from the nightstand with a notification.
“All right, y’all, it’s barely eight on a Saturday morning. So damn impatient,” she said as her bare feet padded over the wheat-colored carpet on her bedroom floor.
But when she picked up the phone and swiped to view the text, she was surprised to see that it wasn’t from theJ&Rthread, as she’d named it.
Aden:Good morning, beautiful.
“Oh. My. Gracious,” she whispered.
Aden Granger, whom she’d learned last night was a former adviser at one of the largest financial firms on the East Coast and now owned a gym and a nutritional supplement line, was not sending her “Good morning” texts. But yeah, he was, she thought again, this time with a smile spreading across her face.
Vanna:Good morning.
She was not calling himhandsomevia text. Orfine af. Ordamn delectable. Nope. She was not.
Aden:Did you sleep well?
Vanna:I did. You?
It wasn’t really a lie. When she’d finally been able to fall asleep, it had been that deep, restful type of sleep. Which was probably why she’d been able to sleep until seven.
Aden:I did. Can I take you to dinner tonight?
Oh no! Last night had been a coffee to say thanks, and everyone had agreed she should go because she owed him that much. So she’d gone and it had been fine, but dinner? Tonight? What would that mean? Her worrisome thoughts were growing louder and louder, and she really needed them to calm down. The butterflies that had immediately awakened at the sight of Aden’s first text weren’t helping the situation. And now she had to figure out how to get out of ... Oh, wait, she had an excuse.
Vanna:Sorry. Can’t. FFSF Week #2 is Bowling Night.
Aden:FFSF???
She managed another smile as she whispered and typed the words that instantly came to her mind.
Vanna:Freakin’ Forty and Still Fine. It’s my birthday mantra.
Aden:I love it! And I’m a pretty decent bowler. What time and which location?
She dropped onto her bed, holding the phone in both hands now as she stared down at it in shock. Was he inviting himself to her birthday celebration? Should she tell him no, he couldn’t come? Why would he even want to come? He hadn’t celebrated a birthday with her before. This was weird as hell.
Twisting her lips as she tried to think this through, she held the phone tighter. She and Aden had admitted they’d liked each other last night. But that wasliked, past tense. And he’d shown up at her husband’s funeral. She had to stop saying that like she and Caleb were happily married. They’d been separated, just not legally divorced; so not technically an ex—or estranged, as she most often thought of it. Still, Aden didn’t know that. Or did he? She had no clue what Aden knew about her marriage to Caleb; he’d admitted himself that they hadn’t kept in touch. So him turning up at the funeral was odd. Well, maybe not. He was in the fraternity with Caleb, so him turning up at the funeral wasn’t that strange. Him showing up here last night was. Unless he liked her now too.
Her fingers flew over the screen to open the J&R text thread, the one she used most.
Vanna:Help! Aden wants to come bowling with us tonight. How do I tell him no, stay the hell away from me?
She bit her bottom lip and tapped her nail on the screen of the phone while she waited for one of them to reply. It would probably be Ronnifirst. She’d definitely be up at this time of morning, with her house full of kids. Plus, she did her market run on Saturday mornings because that’s when she could leave the kids with Croy. She usually sat at a Starbucks for forty minutes either reading or just people-watching because she said she had to build her self-care time into her other responsibilities. Granny would say she did it so Croy wouldn’t call her lazy and selfish and chastise her like she was the child. Vanna tried really hard not to tell her friends how to live in their relationships, especially not after her marriage turned out the way it had.
Jamaica:WTH did you put on him last night? Did you give him head on the first date?
