I coughed and choked down my hysterical laughter. “Ahem. Hmm. So what can I do for you?”
She looked at me for a moment, then down at the rest of her donut. “First...I want to apologize.”
I quickly sobered. “For?” I assumed what for, but I wanted to hear her say it.
“For...running away, at the wedding. For....not talking to you?” Her voice pitched up at the end, as if asking a question.
“For...completely ghosting me?” I added, mocking her questioning tone. I guess I was bitterer about what had happened than I’d thought. I sipped my coffee to avoid saying anything else.
She frowned, then sighed. “Yeah. That. I’m really sorry. I should have just waited for you to finish.” Her eyes widened as she heard her own words.
I leaned back and laughed. “I would have loved to have finished.”
She shook her head and averted her eyes. “You know what I mean. I’m sorry.”
“Not...really. Why did you leave?” I hesitated, then added, “You know I would’ve come back and eagerly finished the job.”
She sat up a little straighter and swallowed. “I mean...what would you do if someone just left you there after you’d been practically begging them…” She trailed off and bit her lip.
“Ok. I get it. But I wouldn’t have left you like that if I didn’t have a good reason.” I sighed, glad for her apology, but not yet ready to forgive. “It’s fine, though. There’s no need to apologize, really. You had every right to do as you pleased.”
“Still...Cassie told me about your mom. I had no idea. Is she doing okay?” she asked, voice sincere.
I nodded. “Yeah, she’s getting better. She’s almost done with chemo.”
Her face broke into a smile, bright and earnest. “That’s great to hear.”
I popped the last of my donut into my mouth while Anna took another bite of her own. We chewed in silence for several seconds before I asked, “So was there anything else you wanted to talk about?” She seemed nervous, not horny. Not looking for an encore.
“Ah, yeah.” She hesitated, then sighed. “I actually need your help. I’d like to apply for a job at Stumpstash.”
I blinked. “You want to apply for a job there? Doing what? We don’t do music stuff.”
She took another monstrous bite of her donut, chewing a bit more thoroughly this time. I wanted to brush the sugary flakes of chocolate glaze off her pink lips, but her sweet little tongue beat me to it. “Cassie told me that there was an office admin role in the New York office. She thought it’d be a good fit for me because it’s the type of work I do—was doing at my previous job. Unfortunately, she’s not that familiar with the New York office so she suggested that I ask you about how it’s run. Could you...fill me in?” She casually picked up my coffee and took a sip, then held onto it, clearly not remembering whose it was.
I smiled into my fist as I cleared my throat. “Yeah, sure, I can tell you about it. Is this like a side job, while you work on building up your music following?”
She looked up, relieved. “Yes. I’m really organized and good with people. And I learn really quickly. I specifically want a job like this so that I can work 9 to 5 and then go home and work on my music writing.”
She pulled a piece of paper out of her bag and passed it to me across the table. I scanned the contents. English Major at NYU. Office Administrator at Lynd & Cannoli Law Firm. A slew of other odd jobs. While I skimmed the rest, I asked, “Why don’t you do something related to the music industry?”
She kept her gaze lowered. “I wanted to work on music right out of school, but paid gigs are rare and it’s hard to make ends meet in New York...especially with student loans from NYU.” She delicately nibbled her donut, then continued. “I lived with my ex for a few years and that helped a bit, but I didn’t want to depend on him. I had to get a job and do my own thing.”
“I see.” I noted that she hadn’t mentioned her parents or family or getting help from any of them. What was that about? But we’d just reached a tentative truce—probably not a good time to ask.
“Okay, I’ll help you.” Her face brightened, her dazzling smile only slightly diminished by the chocolate on her teeth. “I’ll send over some reading materials for you so that you can learn a little bit more about what Stumpstash does. They’ll want to see that you’re passionate about our mission. I’ll also talk to our facilities manager to learn a little bit more about the role. I’ll let you know what she says.” I glanced at my watch, then stood up—it was time to go.
She put her hand on my arm. “Wait. There’s one more thing.” She licked her lips and looked up at me. Damn, she was cute.
“What is it?” My heart beat faster. Did she want an encore?
“Would you...want to go climbing with me sometime?”
I grinned and forgave her completely.
◆◆◆
“Ba. What did you do today?”
“You won’t believe it. Your Ma found a feral hog in our garden.”
“What? Was it big? Did you call the police?”
“No no, it was just a small one. She got the rake and I got the shovel and we chased it out.”
I laughed, imagining my sixty-something-year-old parents chasing a hog around their garden. “How’d it get past the fence?”
“There was a hole in the ground! It was big.”
“I see. Sounds like you had fun.”
“We did. I haven’t seen your Ma so lively since...well, you know.” He sighed.
“I know, Ba. I’m
