Page 34 of Falling Again
Ginny nodded sagely. “Max did mention it, but I didn’t want to bring it up unless you were ready to talk about it.”
Suddenly, Natalie was very ready to talk about it. “Alright, since the whole town knows.” She threw her arms in the air and got to her feet. Picking up her pacing again, Natalie stalked the length of Ginny’s office in three strides. “I don’t know what that was, but I’m not complaining. I feel like we’ve been trying to reconnect over the last week or so, but with that kiss we kind of—” She snapped her fingers to punctuate her point.
“Clicked?” CeCe offered.
“Yes! We just clicked.”
“Helen told Max that it looked hot. She said you literally stopped traffic,” Ginny supplied, sharing gossip like they were teenagers.
CeCe nodded. “I heard that too. Evan heard from Mrs. Sanders that it was bordering on indecent.”
Natalie wished it had been indecent, but she didn’t share that tidbit with her friends. “It was nice. More than nice. It was the first time we’ve kissed like that in ages.” Smiling wistfully, Natalie allowed herself a replay of the kiss before continuing her rant. If she squeezed her eyes shut, she could still feel Anthony’s arms around her and the taste his soft lips.
Pulling Natalie back to the moment, CeCe asked, “Why don’t you just talk to him?” The expression she wore was smug, and Natalie expected nothing less. A few months ago, Natalie had doled out enough relationship wisdom to CeCe to last a lifetime. She’d hounded her friend for weeks about the best way to get with Evan, and then the best way to getbackwith Evan.
“I won’t say anything about that advice, because you earned the right to be smug,” Natalie countered.
“Thank you,” CeCe chirped, clearly pleased with herself.
Ginny chimed in with her own advice. “I have to say, when Max and I finally got our heads out of our own asses and talked, it made a huge difference.” She held up her left hand. “Exhibit A. I wouldn’t be sitting here, remarried, without us finally talking.”
“You both make it sound so simple.”
“It isn’t,” Ginny said, while CeCe said, “It is.”
Natalie laughed and stopped her pacing. “You’re right. I need to put this trip to good use.” Both friends nodded and smiled. Natalie loved and hated them in equal measure. “I better go pick up the kids. I need to get them ready for a week at Steven and Donna’s house.”
“I heard Alice is back,” CeCe said.
“Is there anything that doesn’t get around this town?” Natalie asked, but she already knew the answer.
There were very few secrets in Buckeye Falls. Natalie just hoped the state of her marriage could remain one of them.
*
“Alright. Get out!”Trudy shouted from her desk.
Anthony startled, dropping the file folder from his grasp. “What?” he asked before crawling on the floor to retrieve the papers.
Trudy walked in, pointed to her watch, and reached out for the file. “Your vacation started ten minutes ago. I can handle whatever it is you’re working on.” She gave him a look that made him gulp.
“I need another few minutes,” Anthony argued lamely, but he knew he needed to get home. There wasn’t anything pressing that couldn’t wait. Mercifully, the town council agreed to postpone their next meeting until after he returned. From what he’d heard from James and Max, it seemed like Max was a shoo-in for the open spot. One less thing to worry about, thank goodness.
Trudy wasn’t having any of Anthony’s nonsense. Reaching out again, she yanked the file from his hands and pushed him toward the door. “You and your lovely wife need to get those kiddos ready for Steven and Donna. Then you need to promise me that you’ll enjoy this time away.”
Anthony was incredulous. “Enjoy packing up my parents’ house? Geez Trudy, you really know how to have a good time.”
Never one to back down, Trudy dug in her heels. “You can save that sass for your sister. Is Alice still causing a lot of trouble?”
“What do you think?” He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck where a tension headache was slowly taking over.
Trudy laughed, a hearty one that came from her belly. “Judging from the fact that your house was practically on fire when I stopped by the other day, I assume she’s in peak form.” Hesitating a moment, Trudy asked, “Is there anything I can do to help with her?”
Struggling to cover a grimace, Anthony shrugged. “I can’t think of what youcoulddo, but thanks for asking.”
“She keeps things interesting. I love that girl, but she’s always been a magnet for chaos.” Pointing to Anthony, Trudy said, “That girl needs to take a page out of your book. She could do a lot worse than emulating her big brother.”
Now Anthony was ready to go home just to escape their conversation. Whether or not that was Trudy’s intent, it was working. “Okay. You win. I’m leaving.” Anthony gathered his things and shoved them into his messenger bag. “I’ll have my cell on me, and we have Wi-Fi.”
