24. It’s Complicated

TWENTY-FOUR

IT'S COMPLICATED

Dessa

Ledger calls to tell me the penny machine is working. Immediately, I race over to his garage with a roll of quarters to test it out.

Upon entering his shop, Ledger and Jay are off to the side, huddled around the penny machine. Ledger's signature man bun holds his dark hair in place and tattoos peek out from beneath the sleeve of his navy work shirt. Olivia certainly lucked out with him. The clacking of my boots on the cement draws their attention.

"It should be in working order," Ledger says. "Jay's been making pennies all morning."

Jay pulls out a handful of flattened pennies from his pocket and shrugs.

I laugh. "This is amazing! Thank you!" I run my finger over the front plexiglass still in awe that he got it working .

"So I was able to rig it?—"

Jay clears his throat.

Ledger rolls his eyes. "Jay was able to rig it so it doesn't need quarters to work. Give it a try." He passes a penny to me.

I place it in the slot and push the tray in. Slowly, I turn the crank and the gears inside rotate meticulously together until it spits out a flattened penny. "This is the best. How much do I owe you?"

"Don't worry about it. I think Jay had more fun playing around with it than anything," Ledger says.

"Do you mind if I keep it here for a little bit? Maybe until after Christmas, then I can figure out a place for it."

"Absolutely."

"Thank you." I place another penny into the slot and turn the crank.

A roll of pennies later, my phone chimes with an incoming message. I unlock the screen and my lips curve into a smile. We haven't talked since the wedding, so the message is a surprise, but a pleasant one.

Georgia

Want to meet me for lunch?

Dessa

Lunch sounds amazing.

Georgia

Great! Want to meet at the Lakewalk Café?

Dessa

Sounds perfect! I'll meet you in about fifteen minutes.

Georgia

I'll see you then .

As I walk into the quaint café, I spot Georgia sitting at a table near the windows overlooking Lake Superior. I inform the hostess I'm meeting someone and stroll into the dining room. When I'm halfway to the table, Georgia's head lifts, a smile on her bright red lips. I offer a smile of my own. Once at the table, I shrug out of my coat, hang it on the back of the chair, and take a seat.

"Thanks for coming out to lunch with me." She crosses her hands on the table.

"Thanks for the invite. I'm starving."

"Being new in town, I don't have many friends, and dining alone isn't as fun. But also, I don't want to assume that we're friends after one wedding invite and now lunch."

"No." I wave her off. "We're friends. I mean, the friendship has to start somewhere." Both of us giggle.

"Why is it so hard to make friends as adults?" she asks over her menu.

I nod. "It really is, isn't it."

Her shoulders drop in relief. "I'm really glad you came to the wedding too. It was nice to finally meet Tony's friends and family."

Carefully, I place my menu on the table, my mouth going dry. "I won't lie. I was a little apprehensive about going. The thought of attending my ex-boyfriend's wedding gave me hives. Not literal hives, but close." I swallow a sip of water. "Even though I've known Tony for so long, we spent so many years not talking, so it was a surprise more than anything. But it's nice to have him back as a friend and now you too, of course. I wasn't sure if my history with Tony would be awkward between me and you."

"No. Not at all" She shakes her head. "Tony told me everything, especially how much he misses your friendship. So, I'm happy you came. Plus, it was years ago. "

I nod. It feels like a lifetime ago. "Me too. Everything turned out good. Really good." I smile mostly because I spent my night with Garrett and that made going to the wedding worthwhile.

A slow smile spreads across her face. "And I saw you cuddling with Garrett."

Heat creeps up my neck. "Yeah. We've known each other for such a long time. It was nice to have a friend there."

"From what I saw, I would have guessed more than friends." Her brows raise.

What did everyone see? I thought we kept our hands to ourselves, for the most part. "It's complicated." I repeat Garrett's words.

"I hope I'm not overstepping by saying you two looked cute together."

I smile because I don't know what else to do. Garrett and me as a couple? I never imagined it would be a possibility, especially after the last ten years. Luckily, the server makes an appearance to take our order. I order the vegetarian falafel while Georgia orders a smoked salmon, avocado, and tomato salad.

I use the extra few minutes to put all my thoughts back together. Once the server leaves, I link my fingers together and rest them on the table. "Enough about me. How did you and Tony meet?"

Her eyes sparkle with love and adoration. "He was working as an assistant recruiter for the Chicago Thunder, a Double-A minor league team, and they hosted an event at one of my father's hotels that I was also attending. From there, the rest is history." Her eyes crinkle in the corners at the mention of Tony. I'm happy he's found love.

I take a sip of my water. "What brings you to Harbor Highlands? "

"Tony said he wanted to move back. When he got the job for the Harbor Highlands Agates team, it was the perfect opportunity."

"I'm glad he's been able to stay within the baseball organization even though playing didn't work out for him. He's always loved the sport."

In high school, their lives were consumed with nothing but baseball. That's all they did, and they dragged me to all their games. While Garrett found success playing the game, Tony veered off in a different direction.

"Now that the wedding is over, what's the plan for the honeymoon?"

She unclasps her hands and sits up straighter. "Tony's taking me to Hawaii for two weeks." She squeals with delight. "We'll leave after Christmas. He thought it would be too chaotic to do it after the wedding, but before Christmas. Plus, we get to spend New Year's in Hawaii."

"Oh my god. Jealous! That sounds amazing."

For the rest of lunch, we enjoy our meal, and Georgia tells me she designs and sells custom handbags, purses, and wallets online. Currently, she's working toward building a physical storefront. Then she asks me about bartending at Porter's and how I create custom drinks. The entire conversation is light and fun. It's exactly what I need after all the heaviness surrounding Garrett.

Once we're finished eating, Tony saunters to our table and pulls out the chair between Georgia and me. "When you said you were going to lunch, I knew you'd be here." He leans over and presses a kiss to her cheek. He turns his attention to me. "Dessa. It's always a pleasure." A warm smile forms on his lips. It's a friendly smile, but the way his gaze lingers, it may be too friendly. With his eyes still locked on mine, he asks, "What's today's topic of conversation? "

I sit up straighter in my chair. "Georgia was just telling me how you're taking her to Hawaii for your honeymoon."

"Yes. That was a fun surprise. It was my wedding gift to her. Have you ever been, Dessa?" Tony asks.

I shake my head. "I haven't. But based on the pictures I've seen, it looks gorgeous. I've never been outside the Midwest."

"It's beautiful with the lush rainforest and pristine beaches. You should go sometime," Tony says, his gaze locked on mine.

"I'll put it on my bucket list." I give him a tight smile.

"I was telling Dessa that it was so great to see her at the wedding," Georgia chimes in.

"Absolutely. It was wonderful you could attend." Tony smiles at me. "Now that I'm in town permanently, we should hang out more often."

"That would be great. I'd love to hang out with the two of you. It'll be like old times."

"Yeah. The two of us. Of course." Tony nods.

Georgia rests her hand on Tony's. He glances down, and his eyebrows twitch, almost in displeasure. "I was telling Dessa that she and Garrett looked really cute together at the wedding."

Tony's gaze snaps to mine. "Are you two dating or something now?" A sharp bite stings his tone.

Georgia squeezes his hand to get his attention, and she scowls at him.

"What? It's just a question." He pulls his hand away from hers and drops it in his lap.

"We're friends," I say.

"Are you going to stay in contact now?" His voice grows heavy. "You know he has a busy schedule, especially once spring training starts."

Am I being interrogated? Where's the steel table and two-way mirror? Tony seems more invested in my relationship with Garrett than I am. "I'm well aware of what his schedule will be like," I grit out through my teeth, my irritation growing exponentially with every question he asks.

"Remember, he's the Home Run Playboy. He has women falling over him left and right." He picks a piece of salmon from Georgia's plate and tosses it into his mouth.

"Tony," Georgia scolds. He shrugs a shoulder as he continues chewing.

"I'm well aware of who he is." I lean against the chair, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Good." Tony nods before peering over at me. "I'm sorry if I'm coming off a little assertive. I just don't want to see you get hurt. Again. And Garrett's exactly the type of person to do that."

Tony and I were dating when Garrett left after high school. He was by my side to brush away the tears. At every opportunity, he made sure to distract me from Garrett. He did it with no questions asked. I'll always appreciate that he could be the person I needed when I needed it most.

His phone chimes. After glancing down, he turns to Georgia. "We better get going. We have that appointment with the realtor."

Tony flags down the server for the bill. When he arrives at our table, Tony passes him his credit card. "You can put the entire meal on that."

I reach for my wallet. "Let me pay for mine."

Tony waves me off. "I got it. That's what friends do."

"Thank you," I say softly. I turn to Georgia. "It was great having lunch with you."

"It really was. Hopefully, we can do it again sometime. "

A bright smile takes over her face, and I can't help but give her one in return. "Definitely."

Once Tony gets his card back, they both rise to their feet and exit the restaurant.

What the hell was that?