Chapter 3
When Willow woke up the following morning, there was still no sign of Charlie. He hadn’t called or texted to even say that he was alive or okay. Out of sheer concern, she tried calling him, but his phone went straight to voicemail. After calling a few more times, she finally gave up.
Screw it. I’ll leave a note to let him know where I”ve gone… he’ll call when he finally decides to come home. If he doesn’t, then I guess I know where we stand.
She paced around the kitchen for a while, wondering if going to Sanibel was something she really wanted to do, or if she had just had too many drinks the night before. As always, she nearly talked herself into sticking around and waiting for Charlie to come back, but after she thought about how nice it would be to lay out on the sand with her best friend since forever, she decided it was time to do something for herself for once.
Willow packed her suitcase, stuck her note on the fridge where she knew he would find it, got into her car, and hit the road. As promised, Brandi sent her money to cover her trip, so she had no excuse not to go.
“I’m on my way. I just left the house, getting ready to get on the highway.”
“Yay!” Brandi cheered. “I can’t wait to see you! Drive safe and call me if you need anything.”
It had been a long time since Willow took the drive to Sanibel, and she couldn’t get there fast enough. Half an hour down, six more to go.
After gassing up and grabbing a few snacks for the road, Willow cranked up her radio, opened the windows and cruised. While she did, she focused on all the fun she would have spending time with Brandi, instead of wondering about Charlie. It didn’t matter where he was or who he was with, she was determined not to think about him for a change. He clearly didn’t think about her, so why should she worry about him?
With all the thinking she did on the road, her trip didn’t take as long as she thought it would. It was six hours, but it didn’t feel like it. Her mind was so wrapped up in thinking about her life that she barely paid attention to the time.
Willow punched in the key code when she arrived at the cottage. Knowing her friend was probably still up to her eyeballs in work, she thought she’d get settled in and cleaned up before saying hello. Thanks to Brandi, the place was already set up for her stay. There was a sweet little welcome basket, her favorite wax melt scents, and a bottle of champagne already chilled on ice for her. The thoughtfulness of the treats made her heart instantly full.
Now this is how a woman should be treated, she thought.
After she settled in, she called to see where Brandi was. She’d just left her office and was already on her way to the cottage to give Willow an even warmer welcome. Willow couldn’t wait to see her after so long. They’d been best friends since their college days and nothing had changed since then, apart from not seeing each other every day.
“You’re finally here!”
Brandi squealed as she made her way into the cottage.
“Hey there!”
Willow gasped and rushed over to hug her.
“Look at you! I can’t believe you let that schmuck keep you away from me for so long.”
The two women hugged for what seemed like a long time before they finally let each other go. When Willow got a good look at her friend, she realized just how long it had been since she’d seen her.
“You look so good,” she said. “Not a day older since the last time I saw you.”
“Oh, please.”
Brandi waved her off as she fetched glasses for their champagne.
“I feel like work is making me look older by the day. You would be surprised by the kind of clients I get. There are truly some crazy people in the world.”
“You love it though,” Willow laughed.
They plopped down on the couch to formally catch up on each other’s lives. Willow was surprised to hear that Brandi had gotten a bigger office and hired more people to work at her firm. She was also recognized as the most sought out lawyer on Florida’s west coast.
Listening to Brandi brag about her success made Willow wish she had an important story to share too, but there was nothing that came to mind. When she thought about it, it was pretty sad. She had no career. She wasn’t using her degree. The only thing she did was stay home and be a wife to a distant man.
“So, things are still bad at home?” Brandi asked.
“They’re not good,” Willow replied softly, feeling embarrassed by the thought of having a failed marriage under her belt. She hated the idea of being a divorcee, but she hated being in an unloving marriage even more.
“You know it doesn”t make you any less of a woman if you file, right?” Brandi asked. “You’re not the problem here, your husband is. People get divorced and start over with the real love of their lives. It’s nothing to feel ashamed about.”
She knew Brandi was right, but it didn’t make her feel any better about getting a divorce. Her marriage meant a lot to her. She actually wanted it to last a lifetime. She wanted kids, the family home with a dog and white picket fence.
“I know,” Willow said. “I have to really get that through my mind and stop feeling so sorry for myself. I’ve known for a long time I should probably start thinking about letting this marriage go. It’s just hard, you know? Once you get used to being with someone, loving them, them loving you, it’s hard to just throw it all away.”
It was still early enough in the evening for Sanibel Island and Willow was still lively enough after her drive to get out and see the things she missed. So, her and Brandi finished their glasses of champagne, threw on their shoes and took to the streets to walk around.
The sun was setting in the sky as the clouds hovered high above, and Willow felt the balmy breeze on her skin. She took in a long deep breath, the salty air filling her lungs. For some reason, it felt like freedom. The freedom to do whatever she wanted. Like impulsively taking a road trip to see her best friend, or getting dressed up, drinking a Cosmo and talking to someone who actually appreciated her company.
“What are you smiling about over there?” Brandi asked.
“Nothing,” Willow blushed. “I just thought of something.”
“Something, or someone? Because that smile has a whole lot of admiration in it.”
Willow rolled her eyes. Although nothing happened between her and the bartender from the night before, she still felt a touch guilty for lusting over him.
“Well, if you must know, I met this guy at a bar last night. He works at this lounge I took myself to after Charlie refused to go with me. Nothing happened or anything. We just talked. He even gave me free crab cakes. My favorite.”
“Was he cute? He had to be good looking if you, Mother Mary, are still thinking about him.”
“He was very cute!” Willow laughed, knowing how much Brandi would eat it up. She was the only person she would ever talk badly about Charlie with. Anyone else looking in would think Willow was in a perfectly happy relationship.
The more they walked and talked, the more Willow thought about the fact that she had been gone the whole day and Charlie still hadn’t called or texted her. She checked her phone once again to make sure she didn’t miss something, but there were no notifications for her.
When she left Tallahassee, she had no return trip planned. Since Brandi said she could stay for as long as she wanted, Willow decided to stay until Charlie got mad and demanded she come home, or she got homesick. And with Brandi, there was no way she could get homesick.
“I wish you would let yourself love someone other than Charlie,” Brandi said. “I don’t know what it is about that guy that has your head so in the clouds. Ugh! Sure, he’s handsome, but you can do so much better, Willow. You just have to believe you deserve better.”
If there was ever a moment for Brandi to lecture Willow about her marriage and what she deserved, it never slipped away. Every chance she got, she told Willow how she deserved more than what Charlie was giving her. How beautiful she was, and how there were other men out there who would love and cherish her more.
“Anyway,” Brandi sighed. “Let’s not ruin your time here talking about him. I bet he hasn’t even called to see if you made it.”
“You’re right. Let’s forget about him for a little.”
Willow suggested they grab a drink from her favorite tiki hut on the island and walk to the sand. It was her favorite because of the fresh conch and crab cakes, while Brandi loved it because of how strong the drinks were.
After getting her favorite treats and being reintroduced to the people she once knew, she and Brandi headed out to the beach. The greatest thing about Brandi’s home and cottage was that it wasn’t too far from everything. A ten minute walk here, ten minute walk there, and Willow could go anywhere she wanted to go.
Sometimes, she thought about moving closer—finding her own little cottage to rent out so she could be closer to the things she loved the most. But anytime she opened up about moving to Sanibel, Charlie talked her out of it.
“Wow, I can’t believe I”ve been away from here for so long.”
She sat down on the sand and crossed her legs. Brandi did the same. The two of them sat knee to knee while they looked out over the water and wondered about Willow’s life. She wondered if she was truly ready to give it all up, and Brandi wondered if Willow was being forced to stay where she wasn”t happy.
“Is everything okay, Willow?”
“Yeah,” she replied. “Why? Does it look like there’s something wrong with me?”
She gave herself a quick scan to make sure her clothes were still fitting and fixed her hair in case that was the problem.
“You look fine,” Brandi assured. “I’m just saying, I hate seeing you so secluded and stuck in the house all the time. You look so happy and content right now and that’s the girl I miss seeing. The smiley, loveable, friendly, and social you. Ever since you married this guy, that’s all changed. You know you can tell me if he’s holding you against your will.”
Willow couldn’t help but laugh. Charlie was controlling at times—and she did do a lot of things solely to keep him happy—but he wasn’t abusive toward her or forced her to stay with him. He was just very good at manipulating her into feeling like she had to.
“He’s not holding me hostage,” she said. “I just love him. Believe it or not, things weren’t always this way between us. I’m not sure what changed, but we used to be good in the beginning. I guess this is what you call a rough patch?”
“I don’t know about that.”
Brandi took a large gulp from her frozen coconut.
“I just want you to be happy. And safe.”