Chapter 27 Audrey
Chapter twenty-seven
Audrey
If you'd asked me what I'd be doing the last week of June, I would've said I'd be lost in wedding planning bliss. Instead, I was planning my outfit for the county fair.
This was decidedly better.
Rhett and I agreed to not see each other during the week—not because we didn’t want to, though. I found myself counting down the days, tortuously sitting in my windowless office on Friday afternoon, daydreaming about his smile, his eyes, the way he says my name.
He was my refuge from the life I wanted to run away from, but his job kept him busy during the week, and I tried my best to focus on mine.
Not that you could say I was focusing well…
or being a good employee, either. It was obvious Ed noticed, too.
The way he paced in front of my office all week, asking me time and time again about unread emails, and meetings I pretended to remember.
I knew he was saving face, worried about looking like a fool for bolstering my promotion to New York.
This morning, the internal team had been notified I would be leaving in September, just over three months from now.
A handful of my coworkers stopped by my office, tight smiles on their faces as they congratulated me for a promotion they clearly coveted.
I wouldn’t receive the finalized offer until later this summer when they secured the details and finances, so I didn’t see the purpose of celebrating now.
Not that it wasn’t a big deal for someone at my age to get this offer.
It just didn’t feel as good as I imagined it would’ve.
Old Audrey would’ve been over the moon, shamefully using it as another reason to gain approval from Samuel and Evelyn Elson.
But now, every congratulation coming my way feels like an added tension in my already buzzing body.
Because time was a thief, and I knew I only had a few months to see how things panned out between Rhett and I.
The last thing I wanted was to string him along.
My heart is fragile, my wounds fresh. And though being with him makes me momentarily forget the chaos of this last month, I need time to understand what it is I really want.
Plus, it was only practical to keep my options open.
Rhett could break my heart and leave me stranded, the same way Jackson did.
He wasn’t Jackson, of course, but that didn’t mean I was ready to fully commit to something unfamiliar.
Protecting myself was the smart choice. The responsible thing to do.
Right?
The stir outside my office door jolts me out of deep thought, lifting my head to my computer screen.
A burst of fluttering energy tickles my stomach.
It’s 5 p.m., and in a few hours I’ll be with Rhett and Mabel.
I unceremoniously slam my laptop shut without even sending my last email and shuffle out of my office, faking pleasantries as I wave at coworkers, and briskly walk home.
“So, explain to me what you’re doing again this weekend?” Penny lays on my bed with her head in her hands, eyeing me as I pack my weekend bag.
“He is taking me to the county fair.” I shrug, unable to contain my smirk. “And then Sunday, he invited me to a dinner party at his mom’s house.”
“This is so Sweet Home Alabama of you, and I'm here for it.”
I throw a pair of shorts at her as she laughs, twisting her long hair around her fingers.
“While you’re stuffing your face with fried food, I'll be editing photos tonight.” She groans, rolling onto her stomach.
“You could take a break, you know,” I suggest, scrunching my nose at her, already knowing her answer.
“I don’t mind it. You know that.”
I’ve stopped hounding her for working day and night; it was just who she was. She doesn’t talk much about life before college, but I get the gist she grew up with very little. Penny is completely self-made, something I can't say for myself, and it only makes me respect her even more.
“I hear you,” I sigh, tossing down an outfit on the bed. “This is so out of my comfort zone.”
Penny makes a funny face at me. “Listen to me, this is what you need to do. Get yourself something horribly unhealthy to eat. Ride the Ferris wheel, play one of those rigged games. Stare into those baby blues and leave early enough to fuck under the stars. You’ll be fine.”
“Penny!” I scream, falling onto the bed next to her, laughing.
“When am I going to start feeling like an adult who is capable of managing my life?” I roll on my side to look at her.
“No one knows what they are doing in their twenties, and anyone who says they do is lying. That’s what makes it so exciting.
It’s not supposed to be predictable. It’s supposed to feel like magic.
Scary. But magic,” Penny adds. “But hey, if nothing works out for either of us, let’s just live in your love-shack mansion, throw outrageous theme parties, and never have to worry about men ruining our plans. ”
I laugh, but then get quiet, casting my eyes away from her curious gaze. “You know I’m selling it.”
“I know, but I still think it’s a shame we didn’t get to throw an outrageous party in it.”
I bite my lip, hesitating, but I owe it to her.
“Pen, I need to tell you something.” Anxiety grips my throat.
“What?” She props herself up on her elbows, and I take a deep breath because nothing about this is easy.
“Okay, so I was waiting to tell you until it was announced at work, but that happened today so…” Deep breath.
“A few weeks ago, Ed told me about a new position they are opening up at the headquarters in New York City. And they offered it to me.” I pause as her eyes go wide, understanding sinking in.
“It’d be a big step up, with a huge pay increase.
It would be idiotic to say no. This is the next natural step in my career. So, I told him yes.”
My best friend sucks her lips in, her eyes leaving mine, and goes silent. Then she taps my knee with her manicured fingers.
“Wow…Aud, I don’t know what to say.” She clears her throat and a heaviness blankets me. “You’re right, you worked hard for this, and you do deserve it.” Her tone was undeniably melancholy, but she offered me a tiny smile.
“I know this is life altering news. But after everything, I feel like I’ve outgrown this place.
I came here for school and only stayed for Jackson.
” She nods but I continue to justify this choice.
Like maybe if I said it enough out loud, I’d believe it.
“I don’t want to leave you, but you know no matter where in the world I live, you’ll always be my best friend.
” I tried to smile back at her, but my throat constricts with every passing second of this conversation.
“What about Rhett?” Penny whispers.
“What about him?”
“Does he know?”
“What we have is still so new, and technically, I made this decision before we ever got together. Who knows how long this will even last. It’s a summer fling, remember?” I joke, but as the words lace my tongue, they feel like acid.
“If this is truly what you want, I support you. You know what’s best for you better than anyone else,” she replies dryly.
Biting my cheek to prevent the tears from falling, I walk into the bathroom to grab my makeup bag.
“I’ll miss you like crazy,” Penny calls out and our eyes meet in the bathroom mirror as she sits on my bed.
“We have the summer, Pen. And it’s not totally set in stone until I get the final offer, okay?”
She nods but I can tell she doesn’t fully believe me.