Page 11 of It Never Happened
“Well, which would you like to hear first? The fact Jack is taking Joey home with him to New York for a week, or the fact he asked me to try again?”
She sputters her coffee. “Shut the fuck up!”
I laugh at her outburst. “Yep. So how's that for drama?”
She shakes her head. “I don't know how you do it. What did you tell him?”
“Well, I said yes to Joe going to New York. I won’t be the bad parent. And honestly, he says it’s for a week, but I don't think he’ll make it three days before they're flying back here. He has no idea how to be a parent, let alone a parent that works.”
“And trying again?”
“I told him no,” I snap.
“No?” she asks in clear disbelief.
“No,” I say, but with a bit more hesitancy.
“You're lying.”
“January, I can’t go back there,” I whine. “He’s been the love of my life since I was ten years old, but he broke my heart. And what am I going to do? Remarry him? No one does that.”
“They do it all the time! How many stories have we heard about people divorcing and going back?”
“It’s a trainwreck waiting to happen. There is a reason we came to that decision to begin with.”
She shakes her head. “You guys were different then though. You were young, and no one makesgood decisions when they’re young.” She falls silent, and so do I, remembering all the things she told me about why I should leave him and move back to Montana. In the end, I did move back but she stayed, having found Sean. I knew he wasn’t the best thing for her but there was no changing her mind. In hindsight I should have stayed, if only for her. She may not have had the heartbreak she did. “I owe you an apology.”
“For what?”
“For making you leave him,” she says quietly.
“You didn’t make me leave him. I decided to.”
“But not without my help.”
“You were doing what any friend would do.”
“I’d like to think that, but I was also in a miserable state and probably didn't want you to be happy either.”
“That's what friends are for, right? Be happy together or miserable together.” I laugh it off, but she remains serious.
“No, Court, listen. I was wrong. I need to apologize for it, and I need you to hear me and forgive me. It’s been on my mind for some time.” She pauses, gathering her words before speaking. “I also think you should listen to what he has to say.”
My eyes are big as I study her. “Don't tell me you think I should go back with him!”
“No! I don't want you to move back to New York, but I think you deserve to see if there's something there. Joey deserves it. I won't ever get that second chance, so I need you to not miss out on yours.”
My heart breaks for her. Lily will never get to meet her father, and I know that is a regret January lives with every day of her life, even though none of it was her fault. I reach for her hand and squeeze it. “The only reason I'd try again is for Joey, but what if we just end up back at the same spot again? How good is it for Joey to see his parents fail twice?”
“I don't think you’d fail again. I think you’re both older and have lived a life that wouldn’t allow that to happen.”
We finish our coffees, make plans to go Christmas shopping tomorrow for the loose ends, and I promise I’ll think about what she said. When she leaves, I do just that, over and over. Jack was always someone I thought I’d end up with. We just took a messy turn where it all was lost. But what if we can find how to clean it up now?
Chapter 7
Jack
“Thanks for coming. It’s good to see you in person and not through that little square on the phone.” Lief greets me as I approach him at the bar. We shake hands and he pulls me in for a quick hug.
