Page 97 of On the Rocks

“Doesn’t it?” Jennifer said. “When you were with Levi, you two barely saw each other. You worked completely different schedules. Sure, you were with the guy a long time, but that’s not the same thing as beinginvestedin the relationship.”

I sighed. “Sure, but isn’t that the way it goes?”

“What do you mean? The way what goes?”

“Love,” I said. “It doesn’t really last. For one reason or another, it all ends up falling apart in the end, and frankly, I’m sick of investing in relationships that are doomed to fail. I don’t see anything wrong with investing in my career. If I’m not meant for love, at least I can be happy with my job.”

“That sounds a lot like an excuse,” Jennifer said. “Love can and does last, if you’re willing to put in the effort to keep it going.”

“Can it though? In any capacity?”

She frowned. “I’m not following.”

“You work so hard at your job, but I can tell it isn’t making you happy anymore. You always look exhausted, you can’t wait for your days off, and I haven’t heard you sound excited about anything work-related in ages. It seems to me like you’ve fallen out of love with cooking,” I pointed out as gently as I could. “And that was something I never thought possible.”

For a second, she just stared at me. Then she started to laugh. “You thought I stopped loving cooking?” she said through chuckles, shaking her head. “That’s not it at all. I still lovecooking—I just hate myjob.The new management at Eastfield sucks. They’re the reason I’m not having fun with it anymore.”

I blinked, taken aback. That wasn’t what I’d expected her to say. “Wait, really?”

“They won’t let me try new things. They’re constantly trying to micromanage me while having half of my experience. I’ve tried to stick it out, but I think I’ve reached my limit. That’s why I’ve been asking around and looking for an opening somewhere else. I want to keep cooking, Cora. I just have to find the right situation to let that love thrive. And I think you should do the same.”

“Iaminvesting in what I love doing, just like I always have.”

“Okay, but when are you going to invest more in who you love beingwith?”

I rolled my eyes. “I think I’m done with dating for now.”

“There are other kinds of relationships, you know. You’re great at making work friends, but I’m the only one you ever kept in touch with when we stopped working together.”

“It’s hard when you’re a mixologist, with all the night shifts,” I defended myself. “When you keep weird hours, it’s tricky to find a good time to meet up with people.”

“It’s always hard to do a thing when you aren’t willing to put the work in,” Jennifer shot back, cutting me no slack whatsoever. “If you want to have relationships in your life that last, make them a priority. Put in the time and effort. You really liked your coworkers at Elixir,” she reminded me. “Have you reached out to any of them since you left?”

“I haven’t,” I admitted, and it made me feel a little guilty. I twirled my fork through my pasta, not hungry anymore. Jennifer was right. Just because Aiden and I hadn’t worked out didn’t mean I had to ditch Dot and Javeed and Chris. Maybe it wasn’t necessary to close the book quite so hard when I moved on from one job to the next. Itwouldbe nice to see the Elixir crew again. I liked having a group to talk drinks with. Maybe I could arrange to meet them outside the office—somewhere I wouldn’t risk running into Aiden.

Aiden

I stopped dead in my tracks, my hand halfway to the front door of the Red Lion. A familiar sound echoed down the street—Cora’s laugh—and goosebumps spiraled up and down my arms as I snapped my head around.

I spotted her across the street, surrounded by her former team from the Elixir lab.

My breath stalled in my throat at the sight of her. It had been weeks, and I still hadn’t been able to shake the image of her walking out of my apartment.

Go inside, some part of me urged.Don’t do this to yourself.

Despite knowing that I should walk away, I lingered, my body frozen, my ears trained on the voices that drifted across the street. I knew better than to eavesdrop on an ex-girlfriend. I knew how this would look if Cora and the team spotted me. But I couldn’t help myself. I just…I wanted to see her. To hear her voice.

“It’s not as good as the epic farewell party I would have thrown if you’d let me,” Dot said, “but it’s better than nothing.” Shehanded Cora a bag from that same electronics store she’d run out of that day she crashed into me on the sidewalk.

“You guys really didn’t have to do this,” Cora insisted.

“Of course we did,” Javeed said. “It’s your going-away present.”

“And this one is great for vlogging,” Chris added. “In case you want to get into more longform content.”

It sounded like they’d taken her out to buy her something to remember the team by. I’d heard from a lot of the employees that since working with drinks was their day job, celebrations or goodbyes never involved going to a bar.

My throat went dry as they drew closer. Cora looked amazing, as always, grinning at something Dot said. I was hit hard with a memory from high school, watching Cora come down the hall right after our breakup, looking perfectly put together while I still felt like I was sleepwalking through my days. Which was how I’d felt since our latest breakup, too.

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