CHAPTER 30
India opened her door and saw Maisie standing there, holding out a bottle of wine and a six-pack of beer.
“I thought we could compromise.”
India laughed and took the wine and beer from Maisie, who looked about as tired as India felt.
“Come in,” she replied.
Maisie walked in, closed the door behind her, and said, “I’m sorry.”
“I’m sorry,” India said at the same time.
Then, they both laughed for a moment.
“Glad we got that out of the way,” India added. “You know, we could not drink any of this tonight and just have coffee, water, or tea. I have tea.”
“I made sure to buy the most expensive red wine in the liquor store,” Maisie noted.
“It’s a good red,” she replied, glancing down at the label. “And I appreciate the gesture, but it’s late, and you’re sleeping over, so…”
“So, you don’t want me to snore again?” Maisie teased, glaring at her playfully as she dropped her backpack to the floor. “I see.”
India laughed and asked, “Coffee? I have decaf.”
“Sure,” Maisie said with a little laugh, and they headed to the kitchen.
“Do you want to drop that in the bedroom?” India asked, referring to Maisie’s bag.
“Sure.”
India went about making two decaf drinks: a cappuccino for herself and a caramel latte for Maisie. By the time she was done, though, she turned to see that Maisie still wasn’t back from the bedroom, so she carried their coffees down the hall and found her just leaving the master bathroom.
“I just wanted to set my toiletries on the counter. I hope that’s okay.”
“Of course,” India said. “Here’s your coffee.”
“Thanks,” Maisie replied.
India handed it to her, and they stood there awkwardly as if they’d just met and had no idea what to say to each other. India was about to begin rambling about the weather when Maisie sipped her coffee and smiled.
“Caramel,” she said.
“That’s your drink, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Maisie, I really am sorry.”
“You didn’t actually do anything wrong. But so am I,” Maisie told her.
India set her own cup on her bedside table and lay on the bed, leaning back against her pillows. Maisie appeared not to know what to do, so she held her cup in her hands but sat down next to India, facing the bathroom door.
“I think I needed to walk away today just to have some time to process what I was feeling. Sometimes, it’s hard for me to know what’s going on inside my head right away, but I’ll walk through it or be at the bookshop, and somehow, it comes to me.
I’ve been alone for a while now. I love Lainey, but when we were together, I never really felt like I could talk to her.
I think that’s more about me than it is her.
Now that we’re friends, I don’t feel that way very often, but outside of her, I’ve had very few relationships.
I had a girlfriend for a few months when we were in college, but she wasn’t from here and didn’t plan on sticking around, and I–”
“You had the bookshop,” India said.
Maisie nodded and added, “And I love it here. I don’t want to ever leave this city.
Vacations? Sure. But living somewhere else is not for me.
It’s hard to explain to people sometimes, the gravity of having something like Chapter something that might hurt me, depending on how they react or respond.
It takes me a while to climb that hill, but other people don’t have a hill at all.
They have this, like, field or something in front of them, so they can just run right up to someone and tell them all their deepest, darkest secrets. ”
“I get it,” India replied. “I don’t know that I have a field or a massive hill, but maybe something in between. For years, though, I think I got rather used to getting my own way and not needing to reveal much. Finley let me.”
“I don’t,” Maisie said with a smile.
“Oh, I know. I also think that I’m used to fixing things because that’s been my role in relationships.
And I’m not just talking about romantic relationships.
Part of my job is often fixing things, and the few friends I’ve had that I can call true friends have needed me to fix things a time or two.
Colter, as you know, has had people fixing things for him for years.
I think I’ve been part of the problem there, too.
Our mom is no help, and I get this from her.
His father is aloof and just likes the money.
I think my sister is probably the only normal one among us.
She lives a low-key life, doesn’t care about the money, has her family, likes spending time with her kids, and has actual hobbies.
” She laughed. “I have no idea what that’s like. ”
“Wine is a hobby,” Maisie suggested.
“Yes, but it shouldn’t be my only one. I do like reading, and I’ve now finished both of those books I got from the shop. There’s a third in the series, you know?”
“I’ll make sure to set a copy aside for you tomorrow,” Maisie replied, smiling back as she set her cup on the table next to India’s. “But you said something while on the phone earlier that I was hoping we could come back to.”
“I did?”
“You said you wanted to more specifically define what we’re doing.”
“Oh, yes. I did say that,” India replied.
“So, I thought maybe we could start with some promises before we do that.”
“Promises?”
Maisie turned a little to face her, took India’s hand in both of her own, and said, “I promise that I’ll do a better job communicating what’s going on before I need to take a walk, try to talk to you more, and maybe take fewer of those processing walks.”
“Maise, if you need a walk, you walk. That wasn’t what bothered me. I wasn’t mad at you. I thought it was my fault. I worried I’d lost you because of something my brother had done, and so my mind went immediately to kicking his ass.”
Maisie laughed and replied, “I don’t blame you for your brother’s actions, India. I know you wouldn’t have put some parking garage over my bookshop, and I also think that if, for some reason, you felt like you had to in order to save your job, you would’ve told me.”
“I’d just quit,” India said.
“What?”
“Maisie, I work because I want to, but I don’t have to.
I’m lucky. So, I’d find another job. If I ever felt like Southern was about to do something I disagreed with morally or ethically, I’d make sure they heard what I had to say, and if they still wanted to do it, I’d quit, and I’d try to find a way to stop them if it were that bad.
That was the case before I met you, but yes, had that happened after, I would have told you first. We would’ve figured it out together. ”
Maisie smiled and replied, “I think we’re both capable of growth, then.”
India laughed and said, “I hope so.”
“Think we can try growing together, maybe?”
“I think that can be arranged. Now, any chance you’ll kiss me sometime soon, or do you have more of those promises you want us to make?”
“I feel like we’ve had a few of these bumps in the road since we met.”
“Yes, but that’s all they are, Maisie – they’re just bumps. Easily dealt with, and we move on from them. I mean, I went to the batting cages for you. You went through an entire wine lesson for me.”
Maisie laughed a little and said, “But I think they’re good. It’s good for us to be able to get through these now, right? When it’s new, it doesn’t mean it has to be perfect, and maybe perfect isn’t what we want anyway.”
“I thought I had perfect with Finley, and look how that turned out,” she offered in response, sitting up a little.
“It was only perfect to me because she gave me everything I wanted, and I didn’t give her much back.
Hell, even the ring I bought her wasn’t actually for her.
I got a massive diamond because I wanted her to be able to show off the ring I got for her. ”
“What ring? You two were engaged?”
“No,” India said quickly. “And she doesn’t know about it.”
“That you got her a ring?”
“I bought it and arranged this trip to propose after we’d been together about a year.
We had to cancel the trip, though, and I never gave her the ring.
I never told her I was going to ask her to marry me, either.
I kept it in my safe and kept waiting for things to, I don’t know, settle for us, but every time we’d take two steps forward, we would take three back, and it never got there. ”
“I didn’t know that,” Maisie said.
“Not much worth knowing, I suppose. I’m telling you now because that was what perfection was to me then, and I don’t want the same now. Growing up, I wish I could say that I had to work for things, but I didn’t. Not just because I grew up with money, but because I also happened to be smart and–”
“Beautiful?” Maisie guessed.
“I was going to say that I had great teachers.”
“Well, you’re still beautiful,” Maisie replied.
“Thank you. But when all that happens, things tend to just fall in your lap, and that meant I never had to study hard. Even with dance: I worked hard because you have to train for hours for ballet, but my body type was right for it, and I had the best facilities and teachers. They told me I was a natural, so while other girls worked for five hours, I only needed to put in three. Eventually, that becomes ingrained in a person, I think, and I’ve carried that into every one of my failed romantic relationships as well.
I don’t want to carry that into this one with you, Maisie.
” She cupped Maisie’s cheek with her free hand.
“I want to work for things, and I want to give you things and figure them out with you. For the first time in my life, I’m actually excited at a partnership with another person, and I think that has to mean something, right? ”
“I think so, yeah,” Maisie replied.
“So, can we talk about what this is?”
“Where’s that ring you bought for Finley now, exactly? Still in the safe?”
India laughed and said, “It was until very recently. Now, it’s with a jeweler I know, who’s going to sell it for me.”
“You don’t want to save it for someone else?”
India shook her head and replied, “No. If I buy another engagement ring, it’s going to be perfect for the woman I’m going to give it to.” She moved her hand out from between Maisie’s and entwined their fingers. “Maybe she’ll even help me with the design.”
“Design?” Maisie asked.
“Yes, with the designer.” India looked at her, confused. “I designed Finley’s on my own, but–”
“It was custom-made?”
“Of course,” India said.
Maisie laughed and said, “Oh, babe… If we’re talking about you and me one day, in the very far-off future, you can just take me to a store somewhere, and I’ll point at a few to try on.”
India shifted until she was standing in front of Maisie and said, “I will compromise on most things with you, Maisie.” She moved into Maisie’s lap, straddling her, and Maisie’s hands moved to her hips, holding her in place.
“But this isn’t one of them. If we ever get there, you’re getting a ring that no one else on the planet will have. ”
“Oh, I am, huh?” Maisie teased.
“Yes. There’s also one more thing I’m unwilling to compromise on.”
“What’s that?”
“You need to kiss me now,” India said.
Maisie smiled up at her and replied, “I can accept that.”