Page 14 of Hooked on Lane

“I’m glad you could make it. There will be plenty of food. Laura is going a bit overboard. She's in the kitchen. We are still cooking, but you can put those on the counter.”

I stepped into the kitchen and was surprised by how tidy it was. Especially when making a thanksgiving meal. Jennifer and I huddled around the sink, potatoes falling into the strainer from the boiling water. We sprinkled in heaps of butter and sour cream, topped with diced onion and bell pepper for a little color. We whisked it all together. And then it was on to the next dish. She worked quickly to mix the stuffing—tearing up bits of stray onion and celery stalks by hand.

Laura told us about the time she and her family spent Thanksgiving with her grandmother in Mexico, while Jennifer recounted her favorite childhood Thanksgiving memory. By the time the dinner was ready, I had almost forgotten how much I dreaded the evening. We put the finishing touches on dinner and the three of us stood back to admire our work.

We finally took our seats at the dinner table and soon plates were piled high with the most delicious dishes I had ever tasted. They shared stories about all the places they had visited.

“Have you ever played Cards Against Humanity before?” Laura asked.

I shook my head. “Can't say I have.”

She grabbed it off a shelf and plopped it onto the table, almost spilling my glass of wine. Laura explained the rules of the game while she was shuffling the white cards and gave us each ten. They did not know how badly I sucked at card games.

“So, whoever's turn it is to read the black card, the other two pick one of their white cards that fits the best.”

After picking up my white cards, I almost doubled over laughing. These were dumb.

Laura read the black card. “Having problems with blank, try blank. So for this one, you choose two white cards.”

I sorted through my cards and put my two down. Jennifer looked like she was struggling. “Oh, come on, it can't be any worse than mine.”

She laughed and put down two cards.

Laura picked up our two sets. “Having problems with your pet, try peanut butter.” She looked straight at Jennifer. “Having problems with the hiccups, try shutting up.”

Wasn't this supposed to be funny? Maybe we should play a different game, but I was just a guest. So, instead, I kept sipping my wine and playing along. The longer we played, the funnier things got.

Jennifer read the black card:The year is 2150. The president is____. I looked at my cards and put one down. These are ridiculous. She read out loud the cards we played.

The president is eating cat food and bingingLaw and Order SVU. The president is returning all its money to the rightful owner, Bezos.Literally neither of them made sense, but whatever. I guess that was the point of the game. For the next two hours, we played this game, and by the end, they crowned me the winner.

“Thank you for inviting me. This was much more fun than ordering in and binging some random tv show.” Jennifer and Laura both walked me to the door.

“We do this every year, so standing invitation,” Jennifer said.

“See you at work. Goodnight.”

It had been a while since I last enjoyed myself so much. As I walked home, my mind wandered back to the Cards Against Humanity game we played. We all laughed hysterically at some answers that were read out loud, but it wasn't just about the funny answers; there was something else as well. We were connecting on a deeper level than we usually did and it made me realize how much I needed this kind of interaction. As I walked, I made a mental note to take more time for myself in the future.

Chapter Fourteen

Jennifer

My laptop open with a half-finished spreadsheet when Laura stumbled over, her face glowing.

“So I’ve been thinking about what I’m going to do for Christmas this year and I’ve decided I’m going to go back to New Hampshire to be with my parents. They still have the old house in the countryside, and I’m sure they’d love to have me come home and spend a few days with them.”

So maybe I was a little jealous of her relationship with her parents. Here I was, stuck in the city for yet another holiday season. My mom had been on my case about throwing my life away, staying with the firm this long. She thought my job was useless and when they let me go, I wouldn't be able to find another job. Why didn’t she have any faith in me? So instead of going home and listening to that for a few days,New York City, here I stay.

Laura smiled and put her hand on my shoulder. “Hey, why don’t you come with me?” she suggested. “They’ll treat you like family. It’ll be so much fun.”

“That's okay. Your parents don't like me that much and if I wanted peering eyes on me, I'd just go home to my own family.”

Her parents came into the city three years ago for the holiday and thought I was the bad influence. It made me laugh because if anyone knew Laura, they would agree that it was the other way around.

Lane walked out and his eyes locked on mine. “Sorry to interrupt, but you shouldn't have to be alone during the holidays. This might be totally overstepping, but Amesbury is beautiful this time of year.”

“Amesbury? Like your hometown?”

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