Page 14 of Big Nick Energy

“No!” I shoved her playfully, and she took my hand. We moved to the kitchen table and sat next to one another. “I loveyou, but I wouldn’t risk jail time to get you a dress. No matter how much you loved a dress.”

“That’s good to know,” she mumbled. “So?” she prompted for to get me on with my story time.

“So, I was there, and then he was there.”

“Mr. Marsh?” I nodded.

“Nick,” I corrected and didn’t miss the smile that graced her face. “Anyhow, we started to talk, and he offered to buy the dress, well, one for you and one for me, and so I let him.”

“And what did you have to do for them?”

“What?!” My eyes widened so much I was shocked they didn’t pop out of their sockets. “Libby!” I scolded. “When did you become so dirty-minded?”

“I don’t know! You’re telling me you’ve been talking to your ex-boyfriend’s dad for over a year?”

“No!” I shook my head.I am making a mess of explaining.“I hadn’t talked to him since that day. I mean, he’s always at the movies when I work. And I noticed he started to go to my gym a bit ago. And sometimes I see him out and about, like at the coffee shop with the really good banana bread?” She nodded. “But he hadn’t said a word, not a hi… until last night.”

“Last night!” Her brows bunched. If it didn’t feel like my heart was about to burst out of my chest, I would have giggled at how funny she looked. “Wait, so you spent Thanksgiving with him? You weren’t at work?”

“Lib, breathe!”

“Then tell the whole story!” she whisper-shouted.

“I worked yesterday. I closed, actually. When I was walking to my car, he was parked next to me.”

“Like out of nowhere?” she asked, obviously on the edge of seat listening to me. I nodded.

“He said he wanted to say hi.”

“Hi,” she repeated, and I nodded again. “I got in his truck, and we talked a little. He brought me this little mini apple pie––“

“That’s your favorite,” she noted because of course, she would know it was my favorite.

“And he remembered that from a conversation I had with Noah when he was around,” I shared.

“Wow,” she whispered.

“Right?”

“So, wait, what happened after?”

“He asked if I’d go out with him, and then I said yeah, but I couldn’t today because I was working and then coming here.”

“Okay,” she sounded slowly. “You could have cancelled,” she suggested because she knew. Libby Irwin knew everything about me. I had told her how hot I’d thought Noah’s dad was when I first met him. She was my person, the one who knew all my secrets.

“And you think my mom would have been okay with that?” I challenged. Libby knew I wasn’t wrong. My mom had already been bummed I’d miss Thanksgiving dinner because I was working, but she had understood and been flexible about having a second Thanksgiving today. “If I missed today, last minute, she would have lost her crap.”

“Maybe. Okay, so what did he say after that?”

“I told him I’m off tomorrow, and he said he’d be at my place at eight. In the morning.”

“You gave him your address?” she gasped.

“No. I didn’t.” My shoulders slumped forward. “I didn’t even get his number,” I groaned. “For all I know, he got nervous. I did, too, and… it’s… now it’s not going to happen.” I watched her for a moment while she processed everything I’d shared.

“I don’t know, Blanca. This is Noah’s dad we’re talking about here.”

“Yeah.”

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