Chapter Thirty-Seven
Nora
A town near Firebrook Valley
We came for the best grilled cheese in three counties. Emma, Palila, and I had claimed the corner table by the window because the light was good and the waitress working that section knew to keep the iced tea coming without asking.
Emma slid her phone across the table. The screen showed photos of a small animal hospital right outside Burlington. White clapboard building, big windows, fenced yard for the dogs to run. “They’re hiring a new associate vet next spring. Full-time. Benefits. I’m considering it.”
Palila leaned over to look. “That’s only forty minutes from here. You could commute.”
“Or move closer,” Emma said quietly. “Rent is cheaper up there. And the practice is small. Mostly farm calls, horses, goats, the occasional llama. It’s exactly what I wanted.”
I reached across and squeezed her hand. “Then take it. We will help you pack. We will throw you a going-away party at Mabel’s. We will visit every weekend if you want.”
Palila nodded fast. “And we will make sure the apartment smells like cinnamon rolls when you move in so you don’t get homesick.”
“And we’ll come visit,” I promised.
Emma’s eyes went shiny. “You guys are the worst. I’m trying not to cry in public.”
“Too late,” I said, passing her a napkin. “You’re already leaking.”
She sniffed. “The move isn’t permanent. I need to get some experience under my belt before I can open my own clinic, but once I do that . . .”
Palila smiled. “You’ll be back. And who knows, maybe with a hot clinic partner in tow.”
Chuckling, Emma said, “I don’t hate that idea.”
We laughed loud enough that the couple at the next table glanced over and smiled like they remembered being young and stupid and full of plans. The moment felt easy. Right. Like the future was finally something we could touch instead of only wish for.
Then Palila turned those dark, knowing eyes on me.
“So,” she said, drawing the word out. “While we’re being brave and making big moves . . .”
Emma grinned like she had been waiting for this. “Let us talk about the snail-paced romance happening in the house you’re remodeling.”
I groaned and dropped my forehead to the table. “Not this again.”
“Oh yes, this again,” Palila said cheerfully. “Evan Holliston is objectively amazing. We all love him. He’s practically living with you. He’s stocking your fridge, looking at you like you hang the moon. That man is all in. But girl, he is moving slower than the continental drift.”
Emma nodded solemnly. “We love that he’s giving you his full attention. And that you’re his priority. But when are you getting the ring?”
I lifted my head. “It’s not all about a ring. It doesn’t have to be complicated. We’re happy the way we are.”
Palila made a soft, pitying sound. “We love you, Nora. But we also know you. And we know Evan. If we leave the two of you to your own devices, you will procrastinate the absolute shit out of this. You will make assumptions, you will tiptoe around feelings, you will wait for the perfect moment that never comes, then you will both be too old to have kids and you will blame the wallpaper you spent six months stripping.”
Emma leaned in. “We’re not saying rush into anything. We’re saying while we are out here in the city anyway, let us go buy the ring. The one you wish he would give you. And then you ask him to marry you.”
My mouth dropped open. “Shouldn’t it be the other way around?”
“Sure,” Palila said with a shrug. “Traditionally, it’s great if the guy surprises you. Will you really care about that when you’re taking turns doing diapers at three a.m.?”
“Hang on, who says I’m ready to have a child?”
“If you’re having sex, you’d better be,” Palila said dryly.
My mouth rounded in surprise, but then the humor in this talk hit me. My mother hadn’t been the type to talk about such things, but I wasn’t missing out. With friends like Emma and Palila, I could still count on awkward conversations on topics I wasn’t ready for.
And I didn’t hate that.
Emma reached over and snuck a fry off my plate.
“The two of you are amazing together. Everybody can see it. We have always seen it. It is only the two of you who made this harder than it had to be. So make this one easy. Get the ring. Give it to him while you’re alone or get him in front of everybody, it won’t matter because he won’t say no. ”
I stared at my iced tea like it might have answers. “I’d love to, but I guess . . .” The truth was hard to admit. “I was hoping my father would come around.”
Palila’s voice softened. “I knew it.”
I blinked. “What?”
“You’re not worried about Evan saying no,” Emma said gently. “You’re worried about your father’s reaction to your engagement.”
“He’s been good.”
Shaking her head, Emma said, “He’s not a dog. And you’re not helping him by avoiding what you’re afraid will upset him.”
I let out a shaky laugh. “Can’t I just have my happily ever after without all the drama?”
They both shared a look then chuckled with sympathy.
“No.”
“Wouldn’t that be nice?”
I tossed a paper napkin at them. “I hate when you two are right.”
Palila leaned forward. “Do you remember when we sent you to New York to tell Evan how you felt?”
“Absolutely,” I said. “Look how badly that went.”
“At first,” Emma corrected gently. “But if you hadn’t gone, Evan might never have woken up. He might never have come back. Brady would never have gone over there to tell his brother the truth. So actually, it did work out well for you. Just not at first.”
I sat with that for a moment, studying the condensation on my glass.
Evan had just come back from talking to his father, the same father who had finally agreed to family dinners, to sitting down with Drew and Bella and all of us.
They were not yet happening, but they were on the calendar.
The storm wasn’t the same anymore. It wasn’t on all sides, ready to tear us apart.
It was something we were learning to navigate. Together.
“You’re asking me to trust the process,” I said slowly. “Even if it gets messy at first.”
“That’s exactly what we’re saying.” Emma nodded.
“I don’t want to elope,” I murmured.
Palila, reached across the table and took my hand. “Then don’t. Do this your way.
Emma laid her hand over ours. “Don’t ask Evan to marry you because we told you to. But don’t not ask him because you don’t know how your father will respond to the news. Life is hard enough without trying to live it while carrying around someone else’s emotional baggage.”
“Amen,” Palila said.
I looked between them, my oldest friends, the ones who had seen me at my messiest and still showed up. My chest felt full and tight at the same time.
“Okay,” I whispered.
Palila’s grin was instant and wicked. “Okay what?”
“Okay, let us go buy a ring.” I laughed, realizing I was ready to face whatever this brought. “And I’m going to ask Evan Holliston to marry me.”
Emma whooped loud enough to turn heads. Palila threw her arms around me from across the table. The waitress appeared with fresh iced tea and a knowing smile like she had heard every word.
I sat back, heart hammering, and looked out the window at the golden afternoon.
The storm was still there somewhere on the horizon.
But I didn’t need to look for the sunshine. It was all around me.