Page 15 of Books and Hookups

“Nothing at all.” Our house came through fine, and it was just one more memory of my mom sheltering me during a quake. “What about you, Tessa?”

“I was still living out in the Sierra Buttes.”

“Why were you?—”

She shook her head, and I let it drop. Tessa was the mysterious one. I had a feeling there were layers upon layers of history to unearth, like the archaeological site at Troy. But it was up to her to reveal it to us.

The server returned, and we chose our meals. After the server walked away, I leaned toward Savannah. “How are things with you? Are you okay?”

Her smile was lower wattage than usual. “I’m okay. I started temping to get more recent work experience. But it’s boring, you know? I’ve been stress baking every night. In fact, I’ve got bags of treats for you all in my car.”

I lowered my voice. “Is it only the job that’s got you stress baking?”

Her smile wobbled. “I…I moved into the guest bedroom last month,” she whispered.

Carly reached across the table and gripped her hand. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay.” When Savannah shook her head, her hair hardly moved. “We’re going to go to counseling.”

“You think it’ll help?” Tessa asked.

“I don’t know.” Savannah looked down at her lap. “I need him to understand that I want something different now the kids are out of the house.”

“Like mutual respect?” I’d never met the guy, but from what Savannah said, he was a dismissive asshole. “Oops, did I say that out loud?”

“And we’ve come full circle,” Carly said, “with Lucie saying the quiet part out loud.”

“Hey, it’s why you love me. If I hadn’t said something at that god-awful seminar, we might all be Stepford Wives, worshiping some jerkoff instead of becoming fabulous goddesses.”

“It’s true,” Savannah said. “We do love you for it.”

“Mostly,” Carly muttered.

When our food arrived, I dug into my giant waffle. “Mm. I can’t get enough carbs these days.”

“Really? What’s going on?” Tessa asked.

“Do I need a reason?” I mumbled through a mouthful of crispy, sweet waffle. “I’m tired. Not sleeping again.”

Savannah frowned. “It’s too early for you to be going through menopause, but maybe you’ve got something hormonal going on.”

I rolled my eyes. “Thanks, Mom. I’ve been successfullynotsleeping for the past fifteen years. It’s nothing new. I’m pretty sure it’s because I’ve been writing like a fiend into the wee hours. And when I get tired, I eat instead of sleep.”

“Still,” she said, “you should go to the doctor.”

Doctor?Shit.

With the story in Sacramento, I’d completely forgotten about that emergency contraception. And now it was too late. Thankfully, my boobs ached, a clear sign I was about to get my period. Defiantly, I stuffed another bite of waffle in my mouth and shook my head.

“You’re just like my daughter,” Savannah said. “Stubborn as a mule. She’s dating this guy, and when she asked what I thought about him, all I said was that he seemed a little…excitable. And now they’re inseparable.”

“Stubborn and”—I pointed my fork at her—“excitable got me where I am in my career. So I’ll eat all the carbs I want, especially when I’m premenstrual.”

“You poor woman,” Tessa said. “Have my toast too.” She handed me the small plate. “Need a Midol?”

“No, it’s probably a day or two away. No cramps yet.”

“Maybe it’s low iron making you pale. Who’s got red meat?” Tessa looked around the table. “Savannah, fork over that sausage.”

---