Page 54 of Six Wishes

“Chloe, my dear,” Mary Boyd steps toward me with her arms out for a hug. “So good to see you. I can’t wait to meet your mom,” she laughs. “We’ll be Mary times two! How exciting!”

Right on cue, the front door opens and there’s my mom.

“Mary Montgomery?” Van’s mom’s voice gets all high pitched, like this is the best thing ever. “I’m Mary Boyd! Van’s mom,” she explains when my mom’s reaction is delayed.

“Oh my goodness, come in, come in,” and before long, all the commotion moves inside the house, leaving me and Van outside and staring at each other.

“Van…” I whisper, then clear my throat. I didn’t mean to sound so weak at the sight of him. “I’ve been trying to call you.”

“I saw that,” he nods and puts his head down, kicking at imaginary rocks. “I was with my mom.”

“I was with my mom, too,” I chuckle nervously. “Brian was just…” I dart my hand out, not quite sure what I am trying to say there. Again, I feel guilty for no reason at all.

“I’m not worried about that,” Van waves it off and I give out a sigh of relief. “But we do need to talk.”

My relief disappears. Every time someone says they need to talk, nothing good comes out of it.

What’s next for us?

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