Page 44 of Tangled Up

“How is it possible this is the best movie ever made?” Jess stuffs a handful of popcorn in her mouth.

I pull my feet under me, careful not to spill my margarita. “I’m not sure anyone would considerXanaduthe best movie ever made. It’s simply the only movie we had on DVD when we were kids.”

“Because your aunt’s so cheap, she got it from the half-price bin at the Dollar Store.” Jessica sips her frozen drink.

I watch Olivia Newton-John, outlined in neon, roller-skating through a park, and I remember when I dreamed of roller-skating down the boardwalk to where Beck would be standing, looking absently out to sea. I’d bump into him, losing my balance, and he’d turn to catch me before I fell. As thanks, I’d cup his cheek in my hand, leaning in slowly, my silky hair blowing in the sea breeze around us. Our lips would touch softly…

“So what are you going to do?” My bestie snaps me out of my fantasy.

“About what?”

“Beck Munroe is not back in Eden to check on Mr. C. He’s back because you’re here, and the two of you are circling each other like hummingbirds on red.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Bullshit.” She takes another sip. “Are you going to give him a second chance?”

“Of course not.”

Jessica sits back and presses her lips into a frown. “Why not?”

“Because the secret to maturity is learning from your mistakes.”

“You were kids. You can’t hold one mistake against him forever. It’s not like he cheated on you.”

“He ghosted me, which is just as painful.”

The old feelings cramp my stomach, and a pain claws at my throat. First, I was afraid something had happened to him. Then Henry told me he was fine. He just needed his space.

Space.

Beck Munroe, who I’d shared everything with, who knew everything about me, who I’d promised to wait for forever. He neededspace?

I gave him his damn space. I stopped calling, texting. He knew where to find me…

And he never did.

I didn’t know a broken heart could hurt so bad. It was like my chest was actually being crushed under a heavy weight. I cried myself to sleep every night, and I prayed for him every day.

I finished school, but I was numb and broken. Still, I couldn’t lose my scholarships. Our aunt had invested so much in getting Henry and me to college, I couldn’t let her down.

One day Tyler asked me if I’d help him make posters for the Amnesty International club. Then he asked me if I’d ever heard of the Innocence Project. The rest was history.

“It was a long time ago.” Jessica’s voice is quiet.

“Not long enough.”

She sips her margarita and sits up, leaning forward to grab her phone off the table. “Either way, it’s time you got back out there. You haven’t dated anyone since… Well…”

“Since Tyler died,” I finish for her. “Seven years ago.”

“Seven years ago,” she repeats, nodding at me. “Seven years is a long,longtime to be alone. Your lady bits will dry up if you don’t use them regularly. You’ve heard the expression, use it or lose it.”

She has no idea how thoroughly I used it the last two weekends, and I’m not about to tell her. “I’ve heard the expression, the only way to get over a man is to get under a new one.”

My bestie’s eyebrows shoot up, and she nods. “Okay, then! Sounds like you’re ready. First thing we need to do is set up one of those dating profiles for you. Everybody uses dating apps now. It makes dating like a fun little video game. It lights up when you have a match!”

I roll my eyes. “I’m not a complete loser. I already have one.”

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