Page 52 of Resilient Rhythms
“Are you back in Boston?” I answer Allegra’s call. She and Derek flew to LA for a conference.
“Miss me?”
“Always.”
“I wish I was but we’re still in LA. I just wanted to check in on you.”
“I’m still at the kitchen table, studying,” I admit, fixing myself a latte.
“In ten days from now, this will all be behind you,” she says soothingly.
“That’s one way of looking at it,” I admit. “What’s up?”
“Not much. Derek and I are trying a new restaurant tonight that Ivy recommended.”
I smirk. “Is the chef the hot guy she’s social media stalking?”
Allegra laughs. “Correct! But I didn’t tell Derek that part.”
“Naturally.”
“How’s all by you? Besides studying, how’s…life? Mav?”
I take a sip of my latte and consider Allegra’s question. “Things are…good,” I admit. “I’ve been avoiding campus since I saw Bran.”
“I can’t believe he’s back in town.”
“I know. But studying at home relieves the anxiety of having to think about what I would do or how I would react if I ran into him.”
“Fair.”
“And with Mav being either here or next door, I still get out of the house every day.”
“Any news from the lawyers?”
“Nothing yet. Mav and Dad have been navigating the initial talks until I’m done with the bar. Honestly, Mav’s been a godsend. I don’t know how I’d get through this without him.”
“You’re stronger than you think, Kenny. But Mav will always be there for you and it’s okay to lean on him.”
“I know. And I am.”
“Good,” Allegra says. “So, I guess it’s safe to say you’re not coming back to LA?”
“I was always planning to take the Massachusetts bar first.”
“Yeah, yeah,” she quips.
Sighing, I admit, “I’d like to get a job here and stick around Boston.”
Allegra cackles. “Trust me, I always knew that. Ivy, Nova, and I bet on it.”
I roll my eyes. “Who won?”
“Ivy,” we say in unison. That girl can’t resist a bet and her instincts are good.
“She said you’d be back with Mav before the exam date,” Allegra shares.
“Seriously? Ivy’s slipping. Mav and I got back together way before the bar.”
