Page 88 of Can We Skip to the Good Part?
Max grinned. “First of all, stand down. Don’t do that because you’re having a killer hair day. Second of all, I don’t know whatit is, but I have more energy lately.” She shrugged. “Not as many things bother me.”
Sonya nodded. “You have a girlfriend you like.”
“I’ve had that before.”
“No. You’ve had girlfriends you’reinto. This is different. You actually want to talk to her on the phone. In the middle of witching hour, which is so off-brand for you, it’s shocking.” Around their office, all of the clients seemed to want something around 3:30 p.m. That’s when one spouse violates a custody agreement, or the other changes their mind about everything and wants to head to court, abandoning mediation. It’s when all the fires had to be put out. Max had always had Sonya hold all personal calls during witching hour, but she’d changed that rule for Ella.
“Yes, I do like her. I like everything about her.” She turned sideways in her chair and found herself drifting back to their quick breakfast on the go this morning in her kitchen. Ella’d had that kid’s cereal she loved, and Max had toasted an everything bagel. They’d eaten standing up and swapping details about their days ahead while Max packed her attaché. Ella had walked her to the door, and they’d shared a lingering kiss in the hallway. It had been so ridiculously domestic and mundane that Max couldn’t stop thinking about it. Without realizing it had happened, Max was now imagining house shopping, figuring out who was covering dinner that night, and heading to their favorite restaurant on the weekend. That could be their life. “I’m doing things I never thought I’d do, Sonya, and I can’t decide if I should be concerned or not. I might need an intervention. Head and heart are not recognizing each other.”
Sonya narrowed her gaze. “I admit that I like the more relaxed version. You smile for no particular reason. You eat yogurt. Love looks good on you.”
“There’s been no declarations.”
“But you’re thinking it.” Sonya held up a hand. “No need to respond. Just sit with it for a little bit. And you need to get back to your mother.”
Max sat up straight. She’d forgotten that she’d called during a session. “The Johnstones were so agreeable today, I was thrown off and my morning was weird.” Sonya stepped out, giving her privacy, and Max waited for her mom to pick up. But she didn’t.
“Heyo.”
She frowned. “Dad? You’re picking up Mom’s phone.”
“Yeah. She’s here in the hospital, so I took the call.”
“Why are you at the hospital?”
“They admitted her this morning. We’re at Crescent Hill in the back. She has a nice room. What’s that? Oh, she said to tell you why we’re here. She fainted, and they had trouble getting her blood pressure to stabilize.”
“It’s standard procedure to admit,” her mother called. “We do it all the time.”
Panic flared anyway. “Dad. Why didn’t you call me?”
“Your mother called you. We were waiting for you to call back.”
She pinched the bridge of her nose. Her father hadn’t seen the gravity of the situation, as always, and her mother was still in everything-will-be-fine-even-if-I-die mode. Neither was helpful.
“I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”
Sonya shot around the doorjamb, eyes raised. Max hung up, explained the situation as she grabbed what she needed from the office. At the very least, she could get some work done from there. “This does mean you’ll have to reschedule my Zoom with the Normans. I can stay late on Monday if necessary.”
“Don’t give it another thought,” Sonya said with a wave of her hand. “I have everything under control here.”
“Don’t know what I would do without you, Sone.”
Max hurried to her car, put one AirPod in her ear, and called Ella as she pulled out of the parking lot. As always, they were planning to spend the evening at Max’s place. Ella had stayed with her fairly consistently for a couple of weeks now. Noteverynight, but close enough. Rachel had joked that it was her romantic headquarters, which wasn’t off-base.
“Hi. I know you’re working, but I wanted to let you know that I won’t be around tonight.”
“Oh, that’s okay,” Ella said. “I’m guessing you need to work late. I can stay at Rachel’s.”
Max appreciated the understanding tone. “Actually, I just found out my mother was admitted to the hospital. I’m heading there now.”
“Oh, God. Max. That’s not good news at all.”
“I know,” she flipped her signal for a right-hand turn, “and I’m guilt-ridden because I should have kept a better eye on her.”
“Hey, slow down. You do a lot for your parents.”
Max shook her head because it didn’t feel like enough. “My mom casually mentioned feeling tired, but as a physician, she downplays her symptoms. Doctors aren’t the best patients.”
