7. Maggie
SEVEN
MAGGIE
“What’s going on, Mags?” Hope says, sorting through the box of things I brought into the store.
“What do you mean? I’ve been out searching for items to make your bachelorette party epic. Just like we always planned.”
Shaking her head, Hope says, “You didn’t have to do that. What plans were you going off of? Because if it’s the ones we made when we were nine, I don’t want a tea party anymore.”
I laugh, remembering that detailed plan. We’d even made seating arrangements for that one.
“No, I’ve been writing down things for years. Then again, you mentioned a tea party when we were eighteen.” I chuckle and say, “Your list of ideas, in no particular order: themed photoshoot, spa day, cooking class, or a movie marathon with all the good snacks.”
Hope’s bottom lip quivers. “You took notes for me? And all I did for your bachelorette party was set up dinner.”
“There’s always next time,” I say, trying to lighten the mood. It’s weird to see Hope this emotional about something so little. “Are you okay?”
She sinks down and sits on the floor. As much as I don’t want to do that right now, I need to help her with whatever is going on.
“I’m just tired and stressed.”
“Tell me what you need me to do and I’ll get it done. And then take the rest of the day off. Go get your nails done or something.” That’s usually the trick to cheering her up.
Hope blows out a breath and says, “I just got some news from the doctor this morning while you were out. I’m going to have to have surgery for my endometriosis.”
I pull her into a bear hug, wishing I could help her with it. Hope had always struggled with pain, especially during that time of the month, but she’d never had to have surgery before.
“I’m sorry, Hope. Is that why you want to hurry and get married?” I ask.
She sniffles and says, “No, I already decided that before. But what if I can’t have kids? Jason and I both want a bigger family. Four or five kids.”
This reminds me of the conversation I’d had with Zander before getting married. I didn’t realize he didn’t want kids until the day before he disappeared. If I ever do start dating anyone, I’ll know that the hard questions need to be asked sooner than later.
“Well, why don’t you head out and call Jason? I’ll be fine here. Carly should be coming in later, so I won’t be alone all day.”
Hope hugs me again and says, “You’re the best cousin ever.”
“And I’ll be there during your surgery. It will all work out. I know there are lots of options now to having kids.”
We both stand and she hugs me long and tight. When she pulls away, she says, “What’s going on with you and the ice cream man?”
“I thought we were the ice cream people.” I say, trying to figure out who she means.
“Not important. What I find interesting is that you told Duke your theory about ice cream and people.”
Great, he’s the last person I want to talk about. I wave her off. “That means nothing. And it all happened when I was in a weird headspace. Besides, he sells timeshares for a living. That’s a red flag right there.”
She tsks and says, “You don’t know that. He could be completely different from the guy who swindled your grandmother. In fact, I can tell he is. Yes, he sounds like he could persuade with the best of them, but I get a vibe that he’s sincere. At least he was throughout high school.”
I groan, not wanting to talk about this with her. “I don’t know why you keep bringing him up. Are you not convinced you’re ready to get married?”
Hope looks like I just told her the moon was made of cheese. “Duke is not my type, Maggie. But the two of you would make a cute couple. Especially to a certain event in thirty days, surrounded by our family and friends.”
“Well, I barely know him, so I wouldn’t categorize him as a friend.”
Hope bites her bottom lip, looking guilty about something.
“What did you do?” I ask, my stomach clenching as my brain spins all the options that could cause her expression.
“First off, he’s always been a nice guy. He’s got a few quirks, but overall, he’s leagues above Zander. I know you’ve got a lot going on already, so I might’ve mentioned that you need a date for the wedding.”
“To Timeshare Moose Tracks Guy?” I say, practically shouting. A customer walks in the door right at that moment and freezes, looking at us like a doe when there are humans around.
“Welcome to The Candy Jar,” Hope says with a quick smile. “Let us know if you need help.” She turns to me and says, in a softer voice, “What’s wrong with that? If anything, he can be a stand-in. You know how the family will hound you about your singleness.”
I sink back to the floor and ponder her words. She’s right. I’ll be the butt of every joke at the wedding. Hope and I are the only ones over the age of twenty who aren’t married yet, and in a few short weeks, that’ll leave me as the lone wolf.
“I can find a date,” I say, more to myself than anyone. I’d rather avoid it with a ten-foot pole, but I’m still trying to decide what’s the lesser of two evils. Have people pester me for bringing someone and when we’ll be getting married, or being called a spinster?
The look on Hope’s face tells me she’s trying to be supportive.
“What about King, over at the bakery?”
Hope smirked. “Georgie would have a lot to say about that.”
Shaking my head, I say, “That’s right. I was just in there yesterday.”
“What about Marlin the taxi driver?”
I shake my head. “That’s a big no. I don’t want to babysit my date for your wedding. The guy doesn’t have all the screws in place, if you know what I mean. And I need someone believable to be my boyfriend.”
“So you’re wanting a boyfriend?”
“Slip of the tongue. I mean, I need someone I can actually look interested in. Because a wedding is like a third date or later type of thing.”
Hope chuckles and shakes her head. “I don’t know how you come up with all these ideas and levels, but I love you for it.”
“Don’t you have a cousin on your dad’s side who’s single and cute?”
Scrunching up her nose, Hope says, “Not if you want to go for the older vibe. Most of my cousins are women.”
“I’ll keep thinking. There’s got to be someone around town who wouldn’t mind some free desserts.”
“I’m just saying Duke will go. So if you’re out of options, you can always ask him.”
“Not a chance in the world.”
She shrugs and says, “No worries. I just thought I’d put that into your head in case of an emergency.”
“Anyway, let’s get back to talking about your bachelorette party. Any of the ideas I mentioned earlier sound good?”
Hope sighs. “I don’t know if I’m up for that. We’ll be closing up the shop at seven and then heading out. Can we do take-out and then an at-home mani-pedi?”
I’ve already got a list a mile long of options for this night, but that wasn’t one of them. “Are you sure? You’ve been talking about your wedding since we were six.”
“I don’t want to be exhausted and hung over for the wedding. Who are you inviting?”
I pull out my phone to go over the list of people I need to contact. Most are friends Hope has had since high school, but there are a couple who I remember her mentioning but don't really know.
“How about we just make it a chill thing? Who is high drama that we should cut out from that list?”
Laughing, I shake my head. “You must’ve hit your head this morning or something. There’s no way that you’re suddenly not all about the details of your wedding.”
Hope smiles and we wait to continue the conversation while someone buys their candy stash. Once they’re out the door, she turns to me and says, “It’s okay for things to change. For the vision to be different. I never thought I’d be marrying a guy in the military and having to wait for him to come back from deployment, but when you know, you know. The hardest part for you is giving guys a chance and actually dating.”
“I date,” I say, frowning.
“Name your last date.” Her defiance has my defenses rising.
I frown. She knows exactly who my last date was. “Before Zander the Cheater, Davey Parsons.”
Hope laughs and says, “That was three years ago.”
“Has it really been that long?”
“Yes, that’s why I’m pushing you now. It’s time.”
“What if I’m not marriage material?” I say, rubbing my hands over my eyes. I’m exceptionally tired today and I’m not sure what to do about it. What if that’s why Zander decided to swindle me out of thousands of dollars and leave with the receptionist instead of being faithful to me?
Hope walks over and pulls me into her arms. “You’re definitely marriage material. But you don’t have to be perfect on the first try. Give some people a chance and see what you like and don’t like. Sixty years together might be unbearable if he consistently has bad breath.”
“You have a point there.” I open another screen on my phone. “Okay, what are we wanting for the wedding? Which venue did you choose?”
With hesitation I haven’t seen in a while, Hope leans over and says, “I’m actually hiring a wedding planner.”
I try to smile, knowing that as the bride, she’s allowed to make those kinds of decisions. But we’d always talked about planning each other's events, i.e. weddings, baby showers, etc.
“Okay. Who is it?”
“Her name is Dallas Cardon. She comes highly rated from The Bridal Barn and she’s great.” Hope squeezes my hand and says, “It’s not that I don’t think you can do this, Mags. I know you absolutely can and with all the glitter and glam I could imagine, but with everything going on with the business, I didn’t want you to develop insomnia to get it all done.”
“When you put it that way, I guess you have a point.” I would lose sleep and never relax if I was in charge of something like that. But I also feel like I’ve been punched in my gut.
The afternoon gets busier and I throw myself into work, grateful for the customers consistently coming in and the fresh faces that are amazed by our store. Hope and I have two people come in to interview when things get slow by dinner time. Sasha is a promising candidate. I’m not sure Abby would be a valuable employee after an outburst about her ex, Cooper. What does a pilot have to do with our candy business?
If only I didn’t have all this worry about my life changing now that Hope is getting married. And finding a date to it.