Page 30 of Keep It Together

Once we started down memory lane, we couldn’t stop, and the bubbly feeling in my chest only grew as I watched Carmen laugh.

She pulled into her parents’ driveway and put the van in park. “We did it. Bingo night is in the books. Never again.”

“Until next week.”

“Isaac, no.” She turned and draped her arms across the console, resting her chin on them and looking up at me with her big brown eyes. “I have to because I’m family. Next time I’ll take Winnie with me. She lives a couple doors down, and she needs stuff to do. Plus, she owes me for eating all my snacks.”

I ran my thumb over one of her brightly colored nails. “If that’s better for you, take Winnie. Or go with Titan, although I have a feeling he actually is sensitive and Uncle G would eat him alive. But just know, you wouldn’t be inconveniencing me if you asked.”

Carmen buried her face in my jacket sleeves and mumbled something I couldn’t quite make out.

“What was that?”

She lifted her head. “I don’t want to take advantage of you.”

“What do you mean?”

“Make you feel obligated to help me with stuff. Tell you how things should be between us. Make you feel like you have to tread lightly.” With every word she got a little quieter. “I’ve just been burned before. I tend to jump in without…” She trailed off, and no matter how much I wanted to know what was at the end of that sentence, I couldn’t let her continue.

“Carmen, you don’t have to explain your boundaries to me. It’s enough for me that you have them. And if my teasing makes you uncomfortable, I’ll tone it down.” Though, that would be easier said than done. Teasing sort of spilled out of me when I was around her. It was the only way I had to express how I really felt.

She reached out a little further and poked my arm. “I don’t hate your teasing. In fact, I think every friendship needs a little bit, don’t you?”

Bless her. “Oh, I agree.” I lightly ruffled her hair and then jumped out, knowing I’d never leave if I didn’t do it now. “Text me when you get inside.” I shut the passenger door, and seconds later, Carmen slammed hers and ran after me, throwing her arms around my waist and burying her face in my chest. She was not helping me grow less attached. No, she was not.

After a few seconds, she let go and stuck her hands on her hips. “Bye, Isaac.”

“Bye,Princesa.”

“Oh, your jacket.” She started to shimmy out of it, but I tucked it back around her shoulders. “I’ll get it later. It looks better on you anyway.”

“What, this old thing?” She did a twirl and a half curtsy and then ran into her parents’ house, waving to me before shutting the door.

I stood there a long time, getting way too comfortable with the impending sense of doom settling in my heart. Carmen was going to be the death of me.

Chapter 15 - Carmen

I slept in Isaac’s jacket. It smelled that good. I may also have lounged around in it most of Sunday. But by Monday morning, I was ready to get back to my normal routine and stop doing things I couldn’t tell anyone about.

Brandon came in with our water delivery first thing, and I gave him my full attention without a particular florist hanging around in the background to distract me. Okay, so Isaac might have been hanging around in the background of my mind, but at least this time, I looked like I was paying attention. Brandon gave me the lowdown on micro-workouts, his new favorite hobby, and I made a promise to try to fit them into my day.

I sort of already did. My company encouraged dodgeball breaks, where we took fifteen minutes to stretch, occasionally throw balls at people, and catch up on all the workplace gossip. Since we were strictly banned from talking about the GoWithFriends app users, we compensated by getting in each other’s business. Case in point, the printout of Freddy Kruger in a chef hat taped to my computer when I came in this morning. Someone had supersonic hearing, and if that was the case, I did not want to know what they overheard when Isaac came over to my desk.

After lunch, I found Sadie in the dodgeball room and used her body as a shield while I buttoned up my teal sweater over my newly acquired mustard stain. Cardigans were endlessly useful like that.

“Are you and Denver stirring up trouble in data management again?” I asked her. “I heard a rumor you’re pregnant with twins, and one of them was holding up a peace sign in the ultrasound.”

Sadie snorted. “A peace sign? That’s how you know it’s a lie. I won’t have any peace-loving children. Only hellions like me and Denver.” She caught a low ball bouncing our way and threw it hard towards the marketing staff. Sadie had always reminded me of a Viking—strong, tall, blonde, and lethal.

“Pregnancy rumors, huh?” Sadie smiled. “Maybe you should rub my food baby, just to make things interesting. It won’t be hard. I had a burrito the size of a truck at lunch.” She smoothed her black T-shirt over her abdomen and stuck it out.

“This is weird, Sadie.”

“You’re making it weird. Just rub my belly.”

“Um, what is going on?” Denver walked up right as I placed my hand over his wife’s belly button. Through her shirt, I could tell she had an outie, which I had not needed to know.

“We’re spreading gossip,” Sadie informed him cheerfully. “Did you know I’m fake pregnant?”

---