Page 91 of The Reluctant Roommate

Morgan’s kiss was sweet, soft like marshmallows, then spicy enough to leave them both gasping.

“So, Christmas?” Morgan asked when they broke for breath.

“I’ll have to check my hours.”

Morgan tapped her fingers on Heidi’s thigh. “Or you could give notice. Didn’t you get offers to work locally?”

“Fill-in shifts over the holidays. Not a permanent position.”

“I’m sure once they see how good you are, you’ll get more. Remember when we went to Oscar’s Tavern in the snow? The manager there said he’d hire you anytime they had an opening.”

“Yeah, and I applied to them first. But they don’t have anything right now. But maybe I could just take a punt that I’ll find work. And thanks to our Leadville road trip, my finances are less perilous.”

“So do it. No more dragging over to the FlyInn. No more Robert increasing your workload without extra pay.”

“And I could come to New Jersey with you.”

“No pressure. But I would love it if you came.”

The warmth in Morgan’s voice soothed her worries. It would be okay. She wasn’t teetering on the edge of homelessness anymore. She had money in the bank, somewhere she loved living—and Morgan by her side.

“I’ll give notice after my shift later today.”

Chapter 41

Teenage Sainthood

They flew out to New Jersey three days before Christmas. Morgan stared down at the snow-covered plains, her mind whirling. It had been over six months since she’d seen her family, and so much had happened that she hadn’t shared with them. Her job loss, Heidi, her new job, Aunt Linda. Despite her resolution to be more open and honest with them, she still curled and died a little when she imagined saying the words, “I was fired.” They would be mortified. Ashamed of her. Worried what the neighbors would think.Ha! As if the neighbors would ever know or care.But to her mom, appearances mattered. Reflexively, Morgan smoothed her hair.

Next to her, Heidi accepted coffee and the tiny pack of cookies from the flight attendant. At least Heidi seemed relaxed about the trip—their first one together as girlfriends. Even now, she was chatting to the older woman in the aisle seat, an artist from New Mexico who was telling her about an exhibition she was having in Jersey City.

“We’d love to come if we can,” Heidi said, turning to Morgan. “Wouldn’t we?”

She dragged herself away from her inner monologue. “Absolutely.”What had she just agreed to?

Once off the plane, they went over to the car rental desk. Morgan had insisted on renting a car while they were there, mainly so that if she or Heidi needed time away from the Favola household to breathe, they could escape to the Jersey Shore for a while.

While Morgan familiarized herself with the strange controls, Heidi wiggled in her seat. “How long is the drive? It feels so much colder here than Denver, yet we’re practically at sea level. Does that make us super fit, like the athletes who train at altitude?”

“Forty minutes or so, depending on traffic. And there’s more moisture here—that makes it feel colder. And I guess being at sea level will make you a bit fitter. We could go for a ten-mile walk along the Shore.”

“We’d freeze!” Heidi turned up the heater. “My feet are icy.”

They made the drive mostly in silence. Morgan concentrated on the traffic, Heidi stared out of the window, occasionally commenting on how different it was from Denver. Morgan turned off the freeway into the township of Toms River and followed the surface roads until she pulled up outside of her parents’ house. For a moment, she rested her hands on the steering wheel, staring up at the modest house adorned in holiday lights. “Maybe it was a mistake coming for five days. I should have come for two, like I always do.”

“It’s okay.” Heidi unclipped her seatbelt and leaned across to wrap her arms around Morgan’s shoulders. “If it was only two days, you’d fall back into your ‘everything is peachy in my life’ evasion. ‘Nothing to see here, move along please.’”

Morgan huffed a laugh. “Maybe.”

“No maybe about it. No, the new Morgan opens up to the people who love her.”

“As I did to you.”

Heidi sat back and stared. “Are you asking if I love you?” Her lips twitched. “Fi was telling me on our call the other day—not asking,tellingme—that I love you.”

Morgan froze inside. “I’m sorry. That puts you on the spot, and I didn’t mean that.” Her mind was filled with amillion thoughts flying in all directions. “What is love, anyway? Sometimes, I’m not sure.”

“I’m sure.” Heidi picked up Morgan’s hand and started counting points off on her fingers. “Love is so many different things for so many different people. I love my parents. I love my siblings—most of them, most of the time, anyway. Other times I want to murder them, but even then, underneath, I love them. I love Minty—my brother’s dog. I would die for that dog, especially when she snuggles her head on my lap and looks up at me with big soulful eyes that make me think she loves me too, although the reality is she’s begging for cheese. I love an icy margarita made with premium tequila and fresh lime juice, and a spicy, salty rim. So”—she took a deep breath—“as I’ve got margaritas on the list of things I love, why wouldn’t I include you?”