Page 31 of Under the Ink

“I guess you have a point.”

“And, to be fair, I like what I see here. It reminds me a little of Winchester.” Maybe if she got deeper in the city, she’d change her mind—but, so far, she felt more positively than negatively about Albuquerque.

Seeing the McDonald’s in the distance helped with that sensation of familiarity. And even though it was a little hotter here than back home, she could get used to it. This wasn’t too hot for her—just more like a July temperature instead of June.

But that was okay. She could settle in here if she needed to…which made her question why she’d reached out to Ginny in the first place. Had she wanted her friend to “talk some sense” into her? Reason with her?

Butwhy?

She’d done nothing but dream of leaving that stupid town since high school.

Since what had happened that one night.

She couldn’t let her mind go back there, though…not right now. She had to focus.

More than that, she had to assure her friend everything was all right. “Anyway…I just wanted you to know I’m okay. And even though I kind of freaked out, I’m glad I’m doing this. Do I want to be a drum tech my whole life? No way. But it’s giving me an opportunity I’d never have otherwise. And it’s only a couple months.”

“Yeah.” Ginny spoke positively, but the tone of her voice gave away how she really felt.

Naomi knew a sure way to pull her out of her funk, though. “How’s the wedding planning going?”

“I just saw you yesterday morning. Nothing’s changed since then.”

“Oh, that issonot true, and you know it. Those wedding prep wheels are always rolling.”

Ginny laughed, her voice music to her friend’s ears through that little phone pressed against her ear. “True. I’m actually heading to the printer’s to give a final approval of the wedding invitations.”

“You couldn’t do that online?”

“Icould—and they looked good. But I want to see how they look on the paper…with the gold and black ink I chose. A digital version just doesn’t do that justice.”

“I suppose not.”

“I just wish Walker wouldn’t have bailed.”

“What do you mean?”

“He said he doesn’t care what the invitations look like, so he wasn’t coming with me to look at them live. He said the ones online look good to him and he’s okay if they’re not exactly perfect.”

“If you’re upset about that, let him know.”

“No way. Because when I complained, he said the wedding didn’t matter to him. He was marrying the most perfect woman in the world, so any invitation would pale in comparison.”

Naomi forced a tiny smile as she felt a tear form in the corner of her eye. What the hell was that all about? Swallowing the tiny lump in her throat, making sure her voice sounded normal, she said, “I don’t think you can argue with that.”

“I can’t…which is why I’m going there myself. Walker’s a keeper.”

“He is.”

“Hey, Nam. I’m really sorry. I gotta go. I just got here.”

“No problem. I hope they’re everything you hoped they’d be.”

“They will be. And, hey…holler if you need to talk again, okay? And I don’t care if you’re in freaking Florida—Iwillcome fetch you if you need it!”

Naomi laughed. “Thank you. Talk with you later.”

When she hung up, she realized her emotions were all over the place. Why was she remembering how, when she and Ginny were twelve, they’d fantasized about finding their own Prince Charming? More than that, why was she a little jealous of her best friend?

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