Chapter 40 Reagan
FORTY
REAGAN
Agrin splits my face as I go to answer my phone the following afternoon. “Hey, Mack. Happy New Year!”
“Happy New Year, bestie! Did you do anything fun?”
Smiling to myself, I remembered the night before. Something had changed with Riggs. At least, on my end, it felt real.
“Hello, Reagan Elizabeth Mills? Are you there?”
“Sorry. I spaced out for a second. I was with Riggs and his parents at their house. I ended up sleeping there.” I know she is going to have a reaction in 3, 2, 1…
“WHAT?!” she practically squeals through the phone. I have to pull it away from my ear to avoid the shrieking.
Then she starts the questioning. “Where did you sleep, young lady?”
“In a bed,” I respond. She hates that answer, I can tell by her huff into the phone.
“Whose bed? Please tell me you weren’t in a guest room.”
“I slept in his bed.” Cue more squealing. I am laughing as she goes in for the next question.
“And where, pray tell, did Riggs sleep? Please tell me his bed.”
I don’t answer for a moment.
“His bed.”
“Sister friend, are you telling me he slept in the bed with you? Or is it more like he slept in the bed with you?” I’m laughing at this point because she is ridiculous and messing with me. Thankfully, we aren’t on FaceTime because I would be as red as a tomato at her insinuation.
“Mack, you know a lady never kisses and tells.”
“Okay, Reagan. Was it just kissing or …”
Pressing my palm to my forehead a little harder than I meant to, I take a deep breath.
“Come on, Mack. You already know the answer to that.”
I can practically hear her smile through the phone. “I know, I know. You want to wait. I love that for you, and that he isn’t pressuring you into anything.”
Ready for a change of subject, I turn the tables back to her. “What did you and Trey do?”
After our talk on Thanksgiving, I wasn’t sure what she would do when she got back to California. It didn’t surprise me to get a call from her a few days later, saying that they had talked and were going to stay together.
“We had a night in. He didn’t want to go to a party or drink. It felt like the real us again.” She sounds happy, and I’m relieved for my best friend.
“That’s great, Mack. You know I will always support you.”
“That’s not all…”
I try to think about what she could be saying to me and gasp. “Are you engaged? Wait, are you pregnant?!”
She starts cackling into the phone. “No, you dummy! We are talking about moving in together after graduation. He wants to buy us a house on the beach.”
“Are you ready for that?” I know they’ve been together for almost eight years, but she always said she wanted to get married before living with him.
“Time will tell…” she responds with an uncertain tone.
Time is a horrible beast. I just didn’t know it was about to throw its worst my way.