Page 25 of First-Time Caller
She manages to wrestle control of herself, then bursts out laughing as soon as she looks at me again.
I grab the wine bottle out of her hand. “I’m glad this amuses you.”
“It sure as shit does,” she says on another peal of laughter, her palms pressed to her cheeks. Her fingers fan out under her eyes as she watches me pour wine up to the rim. “Only you, Lucie. Only you.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I mean”—she leans across the table and grabs the wine bottle, pouring herself a glass measurably smaller than my own—”this is something that would only happen to you, She of Rotten Luck.”
She raises her mug and I reluctantly clink mine to it with a frown. “Rotten luck feels like an exaggeration.”
Patty takes a long pull from her drink and then holds up a single finger. “You got pregnant the first time you ever had sex.” She flicks up another finger. “You rarely date, and when you do, you somehow manage to find the worst men in the universe.” She wiggles a third finger. “And when your daughter tries to play wingman, your interview goes viral and the entire world decides to weigh in on your love life. Did I miss anything?”
“You forgot to add the part where the radio station wants me to come on the show and continue to talk about my disaster of a love life.” I slurp at my wine mug. “Maggie—the woman who called—she said she wants to help me find my happily ever after.”
Patty rolls her eyes. “She wants listeners. That’s what she wants. And sponsor money, I bet. Oh! I wonder if you’ll get sponsored by a lube company.”
“Patty.”
“What? It’s a natural connection.” She shifts down farther in her chair and nudges me with the toe of her shoe beneath the table. “I bet that would be a happily ever after for you. Lube.”
“I doubt it.”
“They make warming lube. Lube that tastes like piña coladas.”
“Please stop sayinglube.”
“All right, all right.” She reaches behind her for the plate of cookies that didn’t sell today, dropping them on the table between us. Her mom is a rare-books expert at the Peabody, and her dad owns a food stall at Cross Street Market. She always said opening her own bookshop bakery was a perfect way to honor them both.
I sift through the plate until I find the one with chocolate fudge on top, an old family recipe. There are few problems that can’t be solved with fudge.
“Let’s talk it out, yeah?” Patty grabs a cookie with white frosting. “What makes you want to say no?”
“You mean, besides everyone I know and everyone I don’t know listening to me talk about the thing I am most insecure about?”
Patty nods and dips her cookie into her wine. She takes a dainty bite and I shiver. She can be absolutely disgusting when she wants to be. “Fair point. But, honey, most people are insecure about their love life. I’m pretty sure that’s why your little interview is going bananas on the internet. You’re not special.”
“Thank you.”
She shrugs her shoulders. “You know what I mean. There’s got to be some comfort in knowing you’re not the only one who feels that way.”
I blow out a breath and collapse to my elbow. “You’re right. That is kind of nice.”
“What else?” Patty asks.
“What else?”
She nods. “Let’s keep the positivity train rolling. What else is good about this situation?”
“Well, Maya is thrilled about it.” She hopped up and down and clapped her hands together when I told her. Hugged me so tight she almost bruised a rib. She wants so badly for me to be happy, and I want so badly to be the type of parent she’s proud of. One she doesn’t have to worry about. I draw a smiley face on the condensation of the wine bottle. “She thinks if I do the show, I’ll be happier.”
“Are you unhappy?”
“I don’t think so?” I shrug. “I never thought I was, but—but Maya didn’t come up with that idea on her own, right? She must have seen something in me that made her think that.”
Patty hums. “Does Grayson have an opinion?”
“Grayson always has an opinion.” I smile to myself. “I’ve been avoiding him until I know where I stand.” As much as I can avoid the person I co-parent with who happens to live next door anyway. He’s vocal. I don’t want him to sway my decision on this.
