Page 45 of Sick of This Ship

CHAPTERNINETEEN

ZOEY

“One-hundred ninety-nine, two-hundred, two-hundred-and-one, two-hundred-and-”

“Isn’t that enough sit-ups, Zoey?” Anna stares down at me. She’s got two smoothies in her hands, one green and one orange. I sit up and turn around. She hands me the green drink.

“The studio let me push back filming my last few stunts to give my ankle time to heal, but they didn’t say I could slack off.”

“I don’t think two-hundred crunches is slacking off, sis.”

“That’s not the point.”

“You’re spending five hours a day at the gym. Don’t you think that’s a little strange?”

“Not for me.” I shrug. “I’m fine.” The gym is my happy place. A place I can forget about the cruise, and New Orleans. And how I thought Sebastian and I had connected on so many levels, but it was all a giant web of lies. Even our kiss had been nothing more than a way to find out if Anna would cheat.

Except why had he followed me to the waterfall in Jamaica? Why had he taken me to the cacao experience in Cozumel? And why had he jumped onto the stage to save me that last night on the ship?

“Okay,” Anna says, sitting on the rubber gym mat beside me. “I hope you’re fine for real because I have something important to ask you.” Her eyes flit between mine, reading me like a book. She knows nothing has been quite right with me since we got back to LA.

I wish she was coming on my RV trip up the Pacific Coast Highway in a couple of weeks. But traveling alone is nothing I can’t handle. Especially since it’s good to see Anna and Mike work on their relationship. Mike even agreed to go to couple’s therapy with Anna. How great is that?

“Mike and I are hosting a big dinner in two weeks. We want you to be there, but it means pushing back your road trip by a day, if you’re willing. The thing is, we’ve rented the deck at Geoffrey’s in Malibu, and it’s so last minute it was only available on—"

“Geoffrey’s? Are you serious?” That place is so fancy, the panoramic beachside view alone adds at least twenty-bucks a plate. Anna nods, biting her lip.

“It’s time to put the past behind us. We’re having a vow renewal ceremony in front of our closest friends and family, with dinner after. And we want you to be there.”

“Of course, I’ll be there.” This is huge for Anna and Mike. I put my smoothie on the mat and wrap my arms around my knees.

“We also want to ask if you’ll be a part of the ceremony. You know me better than anyone. You know what Mike and I went through and were a part of it all. It would mean so much if you could speak.”

My chest goes cold.

“Anna…” I tighten my grip around my knees. She looks hopeful and nervous. “It’s your night. Of course, I can push back my trip. But are you sure you want me to speak? What do I know about marriage, and vows, and… love? Having me speak is a bad idea. I’ll just ruin things.”

“You won’t.” She shakes her head.

“I might.” A cold grip wraps around my heart. Look how things have gone for me in the love department.

“Please, at least consider it. It would mean a lot to have both you and Mom say something.”

“You asked Mom to speak?” Heat flashes up my spine. “Is she bringing that boy-toy of hers too?”

“Jeremy is only a decade younger than her, Zoey, and he’s not so bad.”

“How would you even know?”

“Mike and I had brunch with Mom and Jeremy this weekend. It was something our therapist said we should do.” She says this like it’s reasonable. But welcoming Jeremy into our lives? That’s asking for trouble.

“You know Mom is the one who forced me to sing on board that cruise ship, right? She’s still doing all the invasive stuff she’s always done, acting like she knows best. Ignoring reality. You think she’s picked a good guy this time?”

“But if Mom hadn’t made you sing, you’d have never danced with Sebastian, and then you wouldn’t have had that amazing kiss, and then—"

“And then we might have talked it out like adults instead of having that huge fight in front of everyone at the Ritz, including Meghan Marconi and Zander Zane and about seventeen different Hollywood hot-shots attending that big wedding.”

“You can still fix all that.”

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