Chapter 2 Reid #3
“Mom, that’s delusional. Finding your soulmate online is literally impossible, trust me, I’ve tried,” said Regan. “But I did hear bookstores are the new hot spot to meet women. You’d like a bookish girl.” She pointed her fork at me.
“I’m not going to a bookstore under the guise of picking up women. That’s creepy as hell.”
“Is this coworker with that cat situation the one you wanted to set him up with?” Mom asked Ruby, suddenly hopeful.
“That was Natalie,” Ruby hissed. “And thanks a lot for bringing that up. He’s never going to fall for my subtle plans to introduce them now.”
I rolled my eyes. It wouldn’t have been the first time Ruby had invited me out while secretly trying to set me up with a friend.
I’d told her on numerous occasions that I would greatly prefer she stayed out of my love life altogether.
She never listened, though. I swore she and West had some sort of bet about being the first person to help me find someone since I became single.
“Thanks for the heads up,” I said, lifting my glass and taking a sip.
Ruby sighed. “As if being set up with my cute, sweet friend would be so painful.”
“Meghan was almost a year ago,” West added, unhelpfully.
I shot him another glare letting him know I felt every bit of his betrayal. “We were married. It’s not like I can move on just like that.”
“It isn’t healthy to wallow, honey,” Mom said.
“I’m not wallowing.” I sighed in defeat. So much for simply enjoying my meal.
“It’s okay to still be hung up on her,” Dad added.
“I’m not.”
“Do you still follow her on social media?” Ruby asked hesitantly.
“Ruby,” Regan scolded. “We agreed we wouldn’t ask.”
My heart slipped right into my stomach. They knew something.
They’d been talking about me behind my back.
We had a family chat, but occasionally, if something happened that we needed to talk about without one or two people, side chats would be formed.
They grew like bacteria. Birthdays, surprises, maybe one person was in a particularly sour mood.
We pretty much had a side chat going for each scenario.
“Family minus Ruby.” “Family without Regan.” “Just the siblings.” The investigator in me should have clocked that all those chats had been suspiciously quiet this week, but I hadn’t noticed.
Now it was abundantly clear to me that they had been quiet because my family was discussing me somewhere off in the “Missing Reid” chat.
“What happened?” I asked.
They all looked at me guiltily, my dad all of a sudden completely engrossed in his dinner.
“Just tell me. Her social media isn’t private. Even though I don’t follow her, I’m just going to go look at her page as soon as this is over, so tell me what it is.”
“A new boyfriend,” Ruby blurted out.
“He looks like a thumb,” Mom added.
Regan laughed before covering her mouth.
My chest tightened, but I forced my demeanor to remain calm.
The news wasn’t shocking, but that didn’t make it any easier to swallow.
I wasn’t torn up about it like my family might have thought I’d be, but still.
I preferred to pretend like my ex-wife didn’t exist. Our divorce hadn’t been bitter, per se, but the terms also hadn’t been the best. It wasn’t mutual, and she’d said some hurtful things at the end.
While I believed I was taking this time to focus on myself and take a break from dating, my family seemed to think that I was strung out, and unable to move on. They likely thought the news would break the delicate facade I was barely holding on to.
West clapped a hand on my shoulder. “She posted a few days ago. It’s probably new.”
“You’re in on this too?” I asked, trying not to scowl.
He shrugged. “I got added to the Missing Reid group chat years ago.”
“That’s how you know we’ve truly accepted you,” Ruby said, practically beaming up at him.
“Remind me to add you to Family Minus Ruby,” I grunted.
She glared at me in response.
“Are you okay?” my mom asked, pouting.
“I’m fine, no thanks to you meddlers.” I sighed.
“Obviously, she would move on. She was looking for someone fun and outgoing, and she probably found that. Good for her. I truly don’t care.
” Well, almost didn’t care, but close enough.
The news was really just a mild sting in the grand scheme of life.
Nothing compared to the gut-punch that had accompanied the initial moment she’d told me she wanted out of our relatively short marriage.
“It would be nice if you could post something with a girl,” Mom said.
“Yeah, really stick it to her,” said Regan.
“Oh yeah, because nothing says, ‘I moved on’ like strategically posting in the hopes of bothering an ex.”
My mom shrugged. “It could just be an added bonus.”
“Can we talk about literally anything else?” I asked, picking up my fork and taking a bite, hoping to signal to the table that this line of conversation was officially over.
My family exchanged glances, and for a few seconds, the only sound filling the small, tiled room was the soft clinking of silverware against plates.
“So about my friend with the cat,” Ruby said carefully after a minute.
I groaned, letting my head fall back. “I meant, let’s talk about anything that doesn’t have to do with me.”
“Please Reid,” she begged, clasping her hands and shaking them in front of my face. “Please at least meet with her. She looks so lost and hopeless right now. It’s sad.”
“I’ve never solved a live case,” I pointed out. My group’s entire focus was looking into cold cases that the police had botched.
“This could be your first!” she exclaimed.
“Are you really going to say no to some poor girl with a stolen cat?” Regan asked.
I rolled my eyes. “Not you too.”
“Come on, just meet with her. See if there’s any potential for you to help.”
I let out a small grumble but didn’t bother protesting.
Ruby unclasped her hands, a slow smirk spreading across her face.
She knew I’d already given in. Honestly, she had known I was going to give in from the start.
And while I had no idea if I could help this woman or her lost cat, it certainly wouldn’t kill me to try.
After a few more seconds of silence, my mom asked, “Is this girl single?”