Page 14 of Wild Love

Marigold waved me to the back where she was already seated in a booth.

"Thanks for meeting me," I said as I slid across from her.

Marigold smiled. "Of course."

I grabbed the menu. "It was hard to talk in the bar."

"It was loud," Marigold agreed. "And there were a lot of men vying for your attention."

"For our attention," I automatically corrected.

Marigold raised her brow. "If you say so."

"What's good here?"

"Any of the sandwiches."

I scanned the section until I settled on a grilled chicken with mozzarella and tomato on a ciabatta roll.

When the waitress came, we ordered our sandwiches and iced teas.

With the menus out of the way, I didn't have any other choice but to face my old friend. "I'm sorry I didn't keep in touch over the years."

Marigold shrugged like it was no big deal. "People drift apart. It happens."

"Yeah, but you were my ride or die." My lips twitched.

Marigold laughed, looking more carefree than I'd seen her since I'd been back. She was the good girl to my bad. The light to my dark.

"I missed you." I couldn't contact her when I was gone because I'd feel bad for leaving everyone behind, and I had to keep moving forward. But I couldn't explain it to her. Most people didn't understand my wanderlust.

"I missed you too."

I clasped my hands together on the table. "Tell me what you've been up to. I know you're a librarian at the local library but not much else."

"I'm content working in my hometown library. I'm living my dream. Not that my parents understand that."

Her parents were the academic type, always traveling from one country to the other to find material to write about in their next research papers and books. They were always disappointed that Marigold didn't follow in their footsteps and work in academia.

"Not dating anyone?" I asked, eager to hear more about her personal life.

"I was dating one of the teachers at the elementary school, but it didn't go anywhere. He wanted to get married and have kids."

I scoffed. "That sounds terrible."

Marigold sighed. "I'd like to get married. I'm not getting any younger, but there was no spark."

"I can't say I've had that with anyone." I've been attracted to people but nothing electric. My mind wandered to my exchange with Eli the other night. That had been something. I'd felt alive after talking to him. My skin actually tingled. If he wasn't my brother's friend, I'd definitely pursue something with him, knowing I'd be leaving soon anyway.

Eli didn't seem like a guy looking for something long-term. He probably hooked up with a new tourist every weekend. That shouldn't bother me, but it made me uneasy.

"I feel like there's something bigger out there," Marigold continued. "Something better for me. But I'm not sure how I'm going to find it here. We know all the guys. We went to preschool with them."

"Have you thought about moving?"

Marigold shook her head. "Not at all. But there aren't many single guys here who we didn't grow up with."

"Tell me about it." I wanted to ask her if she ever did anything about her crush on Chance, but I wouldn't embarrass her by bringing it up. I could see Marigold with an accountant or a teacher but not my brother.

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