59. Jasmine

59

JASMINE

T he aroma of freshly brewed coffee drifting from the living room reminded Jasmine that her friends were waiting for her to join them.

When she entered the living room, Margo and Frankie were seated on the leather sofa with mugs of steaming coffee in their hands and a tray of cheese slices and crackers in front of them on the coffee table.

"Is everything okay?" Frankie said with a worried look on her face.

Jasmine sank into an armchair. "Everything is great. Why do you ask?"

Frankie and Margo exchanged looks, and then Frankie shrugged. "Ell-rom left without you, and we wondered if the two of you had a fight."

Jasmine chuckled. "We didn't. Ell-rom just wants to be more independent, and he doesn't like me hovering over him."

"He didn't have his walker, either," Margo said. "But he looked pretty steady to me. That's good progress, right?"

"It is." Jasmine reached for the mug of coffee Frankie offered her. "It's nerve-wracking, but I'm trying to honor his wishes and not to hover."

As she took a sip, the warmth spread through her body, helping to ease some of her tension, but then she caught Margo and Frankie exchanging meaningful glances.

She narrowed her eyes at them. "What?"

Margo shook her head, a small smile playing on her lips. "Nothing. It's just so nice to watch love bloom and the bond solidifying." She sighed. "It's so sad to see the opposite happening, but I have good news about Rob."

Jasmine felt bad for forgetting to inquire about him. The guy had looked destroyed the day before, and she hoped he'd left feeling at least a little better.

"How is he doing?" she asked.

"Much better," Margo said. "Toven and Mia came over, and Toven told him about him being a Dormant and everything that entailed. Naturally, Rob thought that he was tripping, but he ended up convinced and ready to embark on a new life. He didn't even want to go home to collect his stuff. He left with Mia and Toven to go to the village."

Jasmine's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "That was fast."

Margo shrugged, her fingers tracing the rim of her coffee mug. "He didn't want to have to go back to face Lynda. I think learning about his potential immortality gave him the escape route he desperately needed."

Jasmine nodded. "It must have been overwhelming but also freeing. To have a whole new world open up just when his old one was crumbling."

"Exactly," Margo said. "It has given him hope."

A thought occurred to Jasmine. "What about your parents? Did Rob tell them what happened?"

Margo shook her head. "He was in no shape to do that, so I did. Surprisingly, they were relieved."

"Really?" Jasmine asked. "They weren't mad about all the money they spent on the wedding that wasn't going to happen and the embarrassment of having to tell all their friends and relatives?"

"Nope." Margo took a sip of her coffee. "Turns out Rob paid for everything, so the only hardship they will have to face is the embarrassment of calling all their guests to cancel, but then our mother came up with the idea of using the venue to renew her and our dad's vows instead of canceling. I told her that they should go for it, even though Rob probably wouldn't be able to attend because he went away to a spiritual retreat to calm down." She smiled sheepishly. "I couldn't use the excuse of a witness protection program again, and I didn't know when Rob would be allowed to leave the village, so I used Safe Haven as an inspiration for the story I told them."

Frankie put her mug down and reached for a cracker. "I'm surprised that your mom didn't freak out. She is always so proper that I was sure she would rather Rob married a shrew than face the embarrassment of telling the guests that his wedding was off."

Margo shrugged. "I thought so, too, but as it turned out, I underestimated my parents. They were both relieved because they knew that Lynda was not good for him. They just didn't know how bad she really was."

"Neither did Rob," Frankie said. "I'm so glad that it's over, and I hope he finds a beautiful immortal lady in the village who will fall madly in love with him."

Jasmine pursed her lips. "I wish he could meet Gertrude."

Frankie arched a brow. "You think he will like the nurse? She looks nothing like Lynda. Is he even into brunettes?"

Jasmine hadn't missed the appreciative looks Rob directed her way, even in the midst of his breakdown. "He needs someone completely different from Lynda, and Gertrude is awesome." Jasmine thought back to all the little acts of kindness the nurse had shown her. "She is beautiful, funny, and kind."

Margo snorted. "That would be truly poetic. Negal and Gertrude had a thing before he came to my rescue, and I was so jealous of her, but then Negal dumped her, and I felt bad about it. Still, introducing her to my brother would be a little weird."

"Right." Jasmine took another sip of her coffee. "Maybe when Ell-rom and I move to the village, and Gertrude goes back to her home, I can introduce her to Rob and let them take it from there."

Margo grimaced. "I don't know if Rob should jump into a new relationship right after what happened. He's not in the best state of mind to engage with someone new. He will just want to get back at Lynda."

Jasmine wondered how Lynda was taking the breakup and whether she was upset about it all. Then, a sudden thought struck her. "What about the tiny spy drone? The one Negal sent to track Lynda? Is it still on her?"

"It doesn't have enough fuel to get back to Negal, but we have a plan. We're going to fly it to rest on a shelf in Rob and Lynda's house. When I go to get Rob's things, I'll retrieve the drone as well."

Jasmine nodded. "Smart. No loose ends."

Her phone buzzed, and she glanced down to see a text from Julian: Ell-rom arrived safely.

A smile spread across Jasmine's face as she read the message, and when she looked, she found Margo and Frankie watching her curiously.

"Good news?" Frankie asked.

"Julian texted me that Ell-rom made it to the clinic."

Margo raised her coffee mug in a mock toast. "To progress and new beginnings," she said.

"To progress and new beginnings," Jasmine and Frankie echoed, clinking their mugs together.