Page 14 of Wrong Number

“Fine,” I huffed. I’d figure out a way to help her out later. “Just make sure you let her know you have an end goal, so she knows you’re not a permanent hire.”

Not that I thought Jenna would.

Lana and Jen knew each other. They were both small business owners, and I looked up to them.

“Thanks,” she whispered, almost like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. “I’ll call her tomorrow.”

“Okay, sounds good. Everything else okay?”

“Other than Mom freaking out because my car’s a wreck? Yeah.” Even though it wasn’t the best of news, I could still hear Lana’s smile in her voice. “Everything will be okay,” she reassured me, but I could hear the worry in her voice.

“It will be,” I promised. “I know you said no, but you ever change your mind, the money is there, Lan.”

“Viv—“ she started to say, but I quickly cut her off.

“I know. And I get it. But it’s there. I know how busy you get with your business, and I don’t want you to get behind when I can help you.”

“Viv—“

“How many times have you helped me?”

“That’s not the point.”

“But it is. We’ve been friends forever, Lana Banana,” I whispered. “If I can help, I’m here. Not hesitations or ifs or buts.”

“Vivian Delacruz, you are too sweet for your own good.”

“You helped me with the deposit for this place and didn’t blink an eye when it took me three months to pay you back.”

“We’re family,” she pointed out, and I smiled because Lana had just made my point for me.

“Exactly. We’re family. And family helps each other out. Plus, it’s just money.” And I meant it. I knew Lana would pay me back eventually if she took the loan, and it wasn’t like I needed it right in that moment anyhow. I still hadn’t really decided what kind of car I wanted or if I should actually do it. I liked the idea of owning my own vehicle, but it came with a lot of expenses I wasn’t sure I wanted to take on.

“Do you mind if I think about it?”

“Nope. Either way, it's just sitting there.”

“Okay. Thank you. You know I love you, Viv.”

“I love you, too. Talk soon?”

“Yeah, sounds good. Maybe we can get together next weekend for dinner at Mom’s?” she suggested, and I agreed because I loved having dinner with Lana and her mom.

We hung up, and just as I was about to head to the bathroom, my phone rang again. I answered immediately thinking it was Lana.

“Make up your mind about the money?” I laughed, assuming Lana had dialed me back.

“What money?” a deep voice asked, and just like that, my heart skipped a beat.

“Oh, umm…” My face felt hot, and other parts of me felt hotter. “Sorry, I thought you were Lana.”

“Your best friend?” he asked, and everything inside me turned to mush. All because he remembered my best friend's name. I am that easy.

“Yeah,” I confirmed, and he grunted.

“How was your day?” he asked, and I shrugged even though he couldn’t see me.

“It was…” I didn’t want to complain. He probably had a rough day, too. “A day.” I smiled, suddenly feeling a little more energized. The exhaustion of the last twenty-four hours started to slowly fade away.

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