Page 81 of Faking the Book Boyfriend

She rubs my hair in her special, motherly way. “It’s going to be fine.”

“What am I going to do? I swore I’d never change who I am for a man.”

“You don’t need to change who you are, Gemma Morgan. You’re going to have to learn to be a little flexible.”

“But—”

“I know what you’re going to say. It’s okay to give yourself permission to bend. Don’t ever break, but bending is needed from time to time. Both in and out of the bedroom.”

I break out in a smile before she grabs my hand and pulls me into her house. “Come get changed. We’ll have lunch at the pool with my friends. They always put a smile on your face.”

Thirty minutes later, we’re poolside with Happy, Millie, and Mortimer. They’ve asked me a few questions about Trey before it slips out that he was here last week. I snap my head toward my grandmother at the unexpected news.

She scrunches her face. “He stopped by on his day off. You know their spring training isn’t too far away.”

“What did he want? He didn’t mention it to me.”

She rubs my hand. “Just to chat about you. He loves you. The separation is hard for him too.”

Mortimer smiles. “He sure does. He loves you almost as much as I love my Millie.”

Millie rolls her eyes. “Oh please. If something happens to me, all you’ll need is a cook, a cleaner, and a prostitute.”

I giggle. “Stop it, Millie. Mortimer loves you.”

She winks at me. I know she’s just joking with him.

I turn to Happy. “What about your love life? What happened with Samuel?”

Grammy Jane shakes her head. “He asked her to marry him, and she broke his heart.”

I gasp. “Why?”

Happy shrugs. “We had no future.”

“How come?”

“His name is Samuel Heiman. How could I ever marry a man with that name?”

I think for a moment and then start laughing. Hysterically laughing.

When I eventually calm down, I deadpan, “I think Happy Heiman is a perfectly lovely name.”

She quips, “For a hooker. Nope. Not doing it. I told him we can still have hoochie coochie, I’m just not marrying him.” She sighs. “But he wants all or nothing.”

“Happy, why would you deny yourself this for a silly reason? You’re only hurting yourself. You’re being very foolishly inflex—”

I stop myself before I finish the sentence. They all lean back in their chairs in satisfaction, giving me knowing looks.

This was a rehearsed setup to show me the error of my ways. God, I love these people.

I know what I have to do. It starts with me being a little flexible.I can’t imagine my life moving forward without Trey. It’s time to put my preconceived notions aside. I need to move to New York to be with him. I’ve got a good job, a place to live, and Trey.

It’s not far from Philly. I’ll still see my friends. I’m suddenly feeling resolute on this.

We’re going to his game tomorrow, but I don’t think I’ll tell him. I might move in secretly so I’m there when he arrives home next weekend. It will be his welcome home surprise. I can’t wait.

Grammy Jane gotus tickets right behind the Bombers’ dugout. Spring training games are different from regular season games. The stadiums are much smaller. It’s akin to the size of a college game.

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