Page 100 of Opposites (Never) Attract
I smiled, but said nothing. I was confident, but I wasn’tthatconfident. Too many things could go wrong. But none of those things were what I wanted to be thinking about right now. I’d told them to trust me and they were. So, I had to believe I could deliver on my promise, otherwise I might freeze up with indecision. I’d felt pressure before, but nothing like this.
“You got a ride home?” he asked.
“I do,” I said, hopping out of the truck. I looked back at him and took note of his somber face. It just meant he cared. About Tag, about this town. But most of all, about Harmony. “She was smart.”
He looked over at me.
“To not let you go,” I told him. “You’re a good guy, Ethan McGraw.”
“Thank you sis-slash-sis-in-law,” he said, with a salute.
I closed the door and he took off in the direction of the clinic at the end of town.
When I looked across the square I could see my mother was already waiting for me at the gallows statue. She lifted her arm and gave a big wave as if I couldn’t see her. I waved back and was walking in her direction when Darryl H. started up his weed whacker so he could clean up the hedges around the sidewalk. When he saw me, he dropped the whacker and jogged over to me.
“Hey, Ms. Calloway. Just wanted to let you know we’re rooting for you. I took some books about bitcoin out of the library. I haven’t read them yet, but if you need me to help with some research, I can do that.”
Darryl J. suddenly appeared, coming from the opposite direction. Because where one Darryl went, the other Darryl followed.
“Hey Ms. Calloway. Yeah, Darryl and I’ve been thinking about it, and maybe it’s time we start investing for the future. I’ve been reading stuff online about stocks and stuff and-”
“Be careful with that,” I said, cutting him off. “There is a lot of misinformation out there. Sure, read everything you can, but before you invest actual money, if you have questions you can come to me.”
“I can?” he asked.
“We can?” Darryl H. asked, nudging the other Darryl in the ribs as if to suggest they were an investing duo.
I stopped myself for a second. Did I really want to be advising Darryl and Darryl on their investment prospects? I only had clients with multi-million dollar portfolios. Two with billion dollar portfolios.
This would be…less than that.
But, maybe more important.
“You have your phones on you?”
Darryl H. reached for his first. I took it and typed in my contact information.
“Text before you invest,” I said, with my best broker tone.
Darryl J. chuckled. “That could be your catch phrase, Ms. Calloway.”
That stopped me for a second. “Do either of you call Harmony Mrs. McGraw?”
They shook their heads. “Nah, she’s just Harmony,” Darryl H. said.
“What about Amity or Bliss? What do you call them?”
Darryl J. shook his head. “Bliss scares me, so I don’t try to call her anything. But Amity’s just…Amity.”
“Well, I’m in your phones as Sunshine. So, please feel free to call me that.”
Because that’s how I felt today.
Sunshine Calloway.
“Thanks Ms….uh, Sunshine,” Darryl H. said.
I left them and headed toward my mom, who was standing next to the bulletin board near the gallows statue.
