Page 43 of Cups of You

Sam raised an eyebrow. “Prickly? Prickly how?”

“Did our Benji fall for a mean girl?” Randy chuckled. “I don’t remember her being a mean girl when we were younger, but people do change.”

Benjamin shook his head as he searched for the right words.

“She’s not a mean girl, just a bit on edge right now. I mean, she did just find out that her ex was cheating on her for who knows how long. Remember how I was when I first found out about my ex-wife? I think we could extend a little grace.”

Sam nodded. “True. Though you were more mopey than prickly. Full on weeping willow at times. But yes, we will be on our best behavior and try not to set off any landmines.”

“Thank you,” he breathed out relief spreading through him. “I need to figure out what to make and I need to clean up. Shoot, I don’t have time to get a haircut. I’ll have to close the café a little early so I can get home to prepare.”

Randy and Sam laughed but Benjamin paid them no mind. His thoughts were already walking through a list of things he needed to get done before Friday night.

FOURTEEN

Amber sighed and pulled her shirt over her head. It was the fifth one she had tried on so far, but nothing looked right. She was starting to regret not asking Tasha to overnight her clothes from Chicago just so she could have something more to wear than yoga pants and sweatshirts. She hadn’t anticipated doing anything other than taking care of her aunt and maybe meeting up casually with a few classmates she felt no pressure to try to impress. She certainly hadn’t imagined she would be going to a dinner thing with a man that had her feeling a certain type of way.

She peered in the mirror and frowned. Pulling her shirt up so hastily had caused strands of hair to come loose from her slicked back ponytail she had been going for. Now she would have to redo that too.

“At least my damn makeup still looks good.”

With a grunt of frustration, Amber tossed the crumpled shirt towards the bed not caring where it landed. She pulled out a low-cut gold blouse and slipped it on. It was nothing special, but it was a flattering color against her skin.She stepped into a pair of black skinny jeans and decided to be done with it. She made an executive decision and pulled off the hair tie letting her hair fall in thick waves over her shoulders.

“Girl, you leaving yet?” Jackie called up the stairs. Amber rolled her eyes. Her aunt had been checking on her every ten minutes since she got out of the shower. Amber had originally worried that her aunt was feeling left out, but Jackie quickly put a stop to those thoughts by insisting she was excited to have the house to herself again for a while.

“I love you baby, but I need my damn space.”

Amber had chuckled and that was that. She couldn’t even be offended because she felt the same way. If Amber did stay in Millensville for good, she would more than likely find her own place for a while at least. She didn’t mind living with her aunt, but they had never lived together as adults and though Amber couldn’t speak for her aunt, she was sure they both needed some time to adjust to the changes.

“What am I even thinking about,” she muttered to herself. She was still within her previous timeline. Even without Josiah’s cheating ass getting caught, Amber still would have been here in Millensville, so she was going to continue to operate as if her original timetable was still there.

She put on her earrings and spritzed her neck and wrists with perfume. The woman looking back at her in the mirror seemed put together and ready to conquer the world. Amber felt far from that, but she knew how to push through until things fell back into place. Going out tonight was one step closer to that and she would play the part until it became the truth.

“Alright auntie. I’m getting out of your hair,” Amber said once she walked downstairs.

Jackie was sitting on the couch where she was normally, and the television already had the intro to Real Housewives playing. The plate that Amber had fixed her and popped into the microwave to keep warm was on the coffee table in front of her along with a couple muffins Amber knew had to be from Benjamin.

“You didn’t tell me there were more muffins.”

“That’s because they ain’t for you,” Jackie replied. “You’re going over there so I’m sure there will be more muffins for you to try.”

Amber snorted. “I don’t know how you’re going to convince me to stay in town when you won’t even share food with me.”

“I’ll share plenty of food with you, but these muffins here are me and mine alone.” Jackie waved off Amber’s snicker. “Ask the man to make you some muffins. I doubt he would say no.”

“Auntie, I’m not going to ask Benjamin to make me muffins.”

“Then I guess you will just have to deal with being muffin-less until you do.” Jackie smirked. “Have fun. Don’t drink too much.”

“Trust me when I say I have no desire to drink anything,” Amber insisted. She grabbed her coat and slipped it on. “Be careful getting back to bed. You can leave the dish there and I’ll get it in the morning. Call me if you need anything.”

“Go on child and stop fussin. I’ll be fine.”

Amber shook her head fondly before leaving the house. The drive to Benjamin’s didn’t take long, maybe twenty minutes, but it was still enough time for Amber’s nerves to build. This would only be the second time she had purposely hung out with Benjamin outside of his job or the random grocery store run in. She didn’t even know if Olivia would be there. Maybe she should have kept her sweatshirt and yoga pants on. She didn’t want to seem overdressed like she was expecting something other than a night with new friends.

By the time she pulled up to the house, a cute little cottage with two rocking chairs on the front porch, Amber was a bundle of nerves. She wanted this to go well despite telling herself this was just a casual thing.

“Be nice, not bitchy nice,” she mumbled to herself as she got out of the car. The air was cool tonight and a breeze had her sinking into her jacket to keep it from blowing into the fabric.

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