Chapter 15 #3
She grabbed the hands and turned. Her ginger-haired cousin stood before her, in an expensive suit, his ruddy face flushed from the neck up, very much alive and well. She flung her arms around him, hugging him tightly, which caught him a little off guard, as they had never been particularly close.
“Man, it’s so good to see you!”
“Good to see you too, cuz! Wow, that’s a warm welcome.” He grinned at her, uncertainly. “Hey, so this is Zoe, my girlfriend.”
A petite girl with light brown hair stood behind him, seeming overwhelmed as she tried to avoid David’s increasingly inebriated friends and their sloshing pints. She smiled at Josie. “Hi, Josie. You might not remember me.”
“Hi. I’m sorry, I don’t . . .”
Charlie came to Josie’s rescue, telling Zoe, “Yeah, remember, baby, the timing of when you and I met, it’s all in the period Josie has lost. Right, Jose?”
Josie nodded, still trying to process seeing her previously dead cousin standing alive in front of her. This was the first time she’d seen him since Maui, the day after her wedding. Just two days before he and David died.
Josie turned to Zoe. “It’s nothing personal. Lots of friends, my job, my apartment, I can’t remember any of them.”
Zoe smiled forgivingly.
“I’m off to the bar,” Charlie announced. “Bottle of Sauvignon Blanc suit you ladies? Oh, man, check out David chatting up that girl. He’s in there.”
David was now in deep conversation with the redhead. He glanced up, noticed them looking at him, and flashed them a winning smile.
Josie and Zoe made small talk for a few minutes, but Josie’s lack of memory and Zoe’s shyness made for a stilted conversation. Charlie’s arrival with wine in an ice bucket and a handful of glasses broke the awkward moment. He poured generous servings and raised his glass.
“Happy 2018! And to David, and his remarkable ability to pull gorgeous women wherever he goes.” They all laughed and clinked glasses.
By 1.45 a.m., Josie and Zoe had become better friends, aided by the bottle of wine. Zoe and Charlie hugged Josie as they said their goodbyes. “How are you getting back to Waterloo?” her cousin asked. “You might be staying at David’s place alone tonight.”
Josie glanced over at her brother and the redhead. “No problem. I’ll wait for an opportune moment and ask him what he’s planning. You guys go. Nice to meet you, Zoe. Well, to see you again.”
She checked her phone after they left, a digital comfort blanket when alone in a busy pub. To her surprise, it was flashing with a text she hadn’t heard come in.
Peter
Hey, how’s the UK? I hope you’re having a good time with your family.
Happy New Year! It’s only 8 p.m. in NYC but I figure you’ve already had midnight.
Lisa told me about amnesia from your accident.
That totally explains why you didn’t want to talk, and I get it would have been hard to explain you don’t remember me.
But I hope you’ll have read our previous texts, so you can see we’re good friends.
I’m hoping you’ll come back to choir when we start back on the 17th.
We can get to know each other again. Until then, happy 2018! :P
Josie smiled in spite of herself. This guy did seem very sweet.
She glanced cross at David. At the bar, he was helping the pretty girl with her coat. Josie typed back:
Yeah, great time thanks, Happy New Year too. I’m out with my brother and his buddies, but we’re wrapping up now. I think I may have been ditched for a cute redhead, but we’ll see! Flying back Jan 2, and yes, I think I’ll come back to choir, so look forward to re-meeting you then. J
She hit send as David and the redhead came over to the high-top table. He leaned in toward Josie. “I’m walking Anna to her cab. You okay in here for two minutes?” She gave him a nod and smiled at Anna. They disappeared outside.
Josie flicked through her Instagram, posting a picture of the New Year’s toast earlier, and heard her text ping again.
Happy to hear it. Safe travels. :P
“What are you smiling at?” David asked as he came back inside, bringing the cold with him.
“Texting a choir friend. So, you liked the redhead, huh?”
“Yeah. Sorry to abandon you to my braying banker friends, but she was too lovely.” He waved a cocktail napkin in Josie’s face. “Like, totally got her number,” he added in a bad American drawl.
Josie laughed. “Well done, you. And thanks for your overwhelming concern, but I had a nice time with Charlie and his shy little heiress.”
“Zoe’s sweet, right? Much too good for Charlie.
Well, perhaps now I can join her and Charlie in the world of happy coupledom.
I’m telling you, Bosie — that Anna is something special.
I’m not kidding, she could be The One. Except she’s only here for another six months, then going back to Sydney, so . . .”
“Well, that’s your favorite city, right? It’s perfect. You should marry her and have redheaded babies that look like Charlie.”
He grimaced, then nodded. “I think I might. Come on, let’s go home, drink whiskey and binge-watch Stranger Things until dawn. No work tomorrow.”
“And then I have to fly back the next day.”
David frowned at Josie with a pretense of seriousness. “Yep, and go back to real life. Whatever that is.”