Page 36 of Happily Ever Laughter

This circle of friends has become so close that we are starting to read each other’s minds. It’s eerie.

“Okay, I do have a question.” Taking a breath, I force myself to spit it out. “Falling in love is wonderful and all that, but… how do you know it’s the real deal? I mean, when the sparkly new feelings settle down and life becomes life again, how do you know for sure that he’s the one, and you’re not just…”

“Terrified to be alone again?” Claire says softly.

I turn so that my back falls against the brick wall of the building. The truth hits me even harder. I really am terrified of being alone forever, even though I’ve always pretty much assumed it would be my fate.

“Yeah.”

She sighs heavily. “I guess it just drips into your mind slowly. A few drops every day, percolating in like coffee brewing. Every little interaction that reminds you that you’re better off with him than without him. Every time he puts you first, and remembers every detail.”

Claire laughs. “Or when he messes up and apologizes immediately, profusely, and in very cute ways.”

“I guess I’m kind of hoping that everything is perfect and never comes to that. “

“We all hope for that, but something is bound to happen at some point,” Claire says. I could practically hear her smiling.

“Thanks for the pep talk. I should get back to work.”

“Me too,” she says brightly. “See you Wednesday!”

Walking back into the office, Kevin, my manager, is hovering over my desk. “Smoke break?” he asks with a smirk.

“Yes, sorry. What can I help you with?”

His strange smile doesn’t look comfortable. Mind you, he never quite looks comfortable. His dated gray suits seem to wear him instead of the other way around, and he always seems to be picking at something – his tie, the edge of his pocket, his fingernails.

“Month end is on Wednesday, and we need all of the Feldman and Luther reports up-to-date before then.”

“Are you serious? Usually they are happy to get them a couple of days into the month.”

He shrugs his narrow shoulders. “Changing their system, I guess. You don’t mind working late Wednesday, if it comes to that, right?”

I shake my head. “Kevin, I’m sorry, but Wednesday is the first night in months that I really can’t stay late.”

His face falls. “Crap. You’re the absolute best at this.”

Kevin is right that I’m the only one with the patience to do the reports thoroughly. And months ago, I would have simply canceled anything else in my life and taken care of it.

But not now. There’s no way in hell I’m going to miss my very first arts event that I was involved with.

“Let’s make a deal,” I say, trying to sound smooth and collected. “If this work is being dumped on me, how about I pass a bit of my regular work along to make room for it? Perhaps Marla can take care of the Robson quarterly report, and Samantha can do the Durain files. That way, I can work late tonight and Tuesday, and make sure that everything gets to them by noon on Wednesday.”

Kevin blinks in surprise, then grins. “Good thinking. I’ll go speak to them immediately, and if you could send them the links, we’ll all get cracking. Great.”

As he leaves, I slump into my chair, genuinely surprised with myself.

How the heck did I just do that?

Maybe it came from watching Felix slotting differently timed pieces of music into different spots to create a balance, as if they were puzzle pieces. Or maybe I’ve finally grown a back bone. Or maybe, just maybe, when I have a mission, I can do anything.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

~ Felix ~

It’s annoying when I wake up twenty minutes before my alarm. I always feel like I’ve been somehow ripped off and cheated out of a bit of extra sleep that I usually desperately need.

But the smell of coffee and scrambled eggs has me pulling on shorts and a t-shirt and stumbling to the kitchen even before I know which way is up.

---