Page 125 of That Time I Kissed My Beachfront Boss

“Yes,” she says. “The time difference makes it hard.”

Sure. That’s the reason.

“I’m going to call Dad next. Tell him about Liv. Anything you want me to say to him?”

There’s another stretch of silence. Then she says, “Tell him he did a good job with you. Please.” Now that I can do.

Chapter Fifty

Olivia

Well, folks, it’s Thursday afternoon, and I’m glad to be alive, but I almost wish I was back in the ICU.

Not that I remember much about that place. I do recall Natalie saying you’re only allowed one visitor at a time, however. And my private room on the third floor of the McCoy wing is the opposite of a one-at-a-time situation.

Mac, Darby, and Tess are standing next to each other taking up one entire wall, while my mom and Big Mama are seated on the other side of my bed. But five family members crowded into one small space isn’t the real problem. The real issue is that everyone’s talking over each other.

And there’s not enough lime Jell-O in the world to make the noise go away.

“Ahem!” I clear my throat loudly. Once they shut up, I arrange my face into a smile. “I love you all so much, and I’m deeply touched that you dropped everything to be here with me. But could we all just agree to speak one at a time. Please?”

Big Mama raises her hand, flashing me a gummy grin. So I call on her like a school teacher with a ninety-something student who forgot to wear her dentures.

“Doctor Markowitz sure is a snack,” she hoots. “Did I use that word right? Do you girls think he’s on Match-You?”

“The dating app?” Darby squawks. “How do you know about Match-You?”

“I’m not dead yet.” Big Mama wags her eyebrows. “I try to keep up on the latest dating trends for the sake of my grandchildren. So trust me. I know things. Like the fact that Darby and Angus are kaput.”

Tess rolls her eyes. “Everyone knows that by now. She won’t stop talking about it.”

“I’m totally over Angus.” Darby scoffs. “Did you all know that?”

Mac smirks. “You may have mentioned it once or twice.”

“Almost as much as you mention being a doctor,” Tess quips.

“Hey.” Darby splays her hands. “I only speak the truth.”

“I can make you a Match-You profile,” Big Mama offers. “But you’ll have to remind me if you’re supposed to swipe left or right. That part’s always a little sticky for me.”

Tess and Mac nudge each other, stifling laughter.

“Darby doesn’t need your help online dating,” my mother says.

Darby scoffs. “Maybe Big Mama’s help is exactly what I need. She’s the one who got Natalie and Brady together.”

“I did do that, didn’t I?” Big Mama crows. “And I was all set to play matchmaker with Olivia and Lincoln James, but she seems to have figured out how to land that hunk all on her own.”

My mother shakes her head and sighs. “Olivia’s not with Link, Mom.”

Big Mama frowns. “But I saw them together,” she says. “In her hospital room.”

“That was Hudson,” my mother says.

“The underwear model? Hubba hubba.”

I let out a snort, and my mom looks at me, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t laugh too hard, Liv. You’ll be having conversations just like this with me someday. And it might be sooner than you think.”

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