Chapter 3

Evie

Ihook my purse onto the back of the chair and peruse the menu. I would have loved to meet the ladies at Le Marais, but Roger did not get the message, leaving me no choice but to break up with him. If that's even the term when you've met someone only twice. Still, my actions come at a steep price. I have essentially banned myself from the best restaurant in New York City.

Barbie, Sam, and Monique were already here when I arrived, each pausing the furious phone tapping to give me a hug and birthday wishes. Last to arrive, Caroline walks inside looking fit and exhausted. I stand, giving my friend a kiss on each cheek.

The habit started out as a joke fifteen odd years ago and since then has become a natural greeting. Of the five of us, Caroline and I are the closest.

The other three women offer a friendly wave. They are still adjusting to Caroline, the newest member of the club. It may take a while longer.

Caroline removes her dark sunglasses and settles into the chair across from me, taking in the bistro's hip décor as if she's landed on a new planet. She runs a manicured hand over her perfect blonde coif. Her plastic surgeon did an outstanding job with her eye lift.

"Hmm, interesting," Caroline says, her gaze settling on the bun-and-beard-wearing guy dressed in a silk vest tending the well-stocked bar. "What are we getting, other than wine, of course?"

"How about strawberry mojitos?" Barbie suggests.

We all cheerfully murmur our agreement.

Barbie is gorgeous and looks exactly like her namesake, only the Japanese version. Glossy, stick-straight ebony hair and the body of a woman half her age, she built her company from scratch, claiming to never have the time to meet someone.

When a server comes over, Barbie orders the cocktails and Caroline adds, "I'll have the chicken salad and my friend will have the salmon tartar."

I take this in stride. Caroline is the only person on the planet allowed to order for me. She is the biggest and best foodie this side of the Mississippi.

"Did you confirm the hotel reservation?" I ask.

"Yep. All set. So is the car."

Originally, all five of us were planning to go to Yosemite together but then the ladies began dropping like flies. Prior commitments, work, kids' schedules. Which is honestly fine. I love all these ladies but they're not exactly the hiking types.

The last woman standing is Caroline who refuses to allow me to be involved in the planning—or the paying—for the birthday trip. We could be staying in a yurt or glamping for all I know.

Who am I kidding?

Knowing Caroline, she booked a luxury suite in the middle of Yosemite. If such a thing exists. Which it does not.

If you look up ‘high maintenance' online, you'll find Caroline's duck face, her plumped lips pouting into the camera. To be fair, I let her talk me into using the latest eyelash serum and I'm thrilled with the results.

Maybe she booked a tricked-out RV or a five-cabin yacht.

I laugh to myself. If anyone could reserve a yacht in a national park, it's Caroline.

"What's so funny?" Caroline asks, her eyes still frozen on the bartender.

"Nothing. Just amusing myself."

Caroline's attention turns to me. She studies me like I'm a specimen squirming around in a Petri dish. "So that's what old people do."

"What?"

"Laugh at jokes only they can hear."

Monique and Sam chuckle at that, Sam covering her mouth daintily, instantly apologizing. How the sweet woman ended up living in New York, surviving the dog-eat-dog environment, is a miracle. A soft-spoken Midwesterner who moved to the Big Apple to support her husband's dreams, she's the quintessential plain Jane.

Only Sam is not plain. She's a very pretty woman who chooses to hide behind frumpy clothes and unstyled hair. The only time I saw her with makeup was at her ex-mother-in-law's funeral. She wanted to dress up for the occasion. She had hated the woman who in Sam's words, "Drove my husband away."

"You're five months younger than I am," I protest to Caroline.

"That's like one hundred and fifty days. Makes all the difference."

I roll my eyes but am entertained as usual. Caroline is the absolute best. All these ladies are.

"I rented a Porsche convertible," Caroline says, casually.

"Oh?" Monique says, wistfully.

Mo is the most elegant one in the club. Tall, sexy, discreet, and second generation French, she dresses to kill. Right now she was wearing a gorgeous Versace ensemble. If I heard she was a spy for the French Foreign Legion, I'd believe it.

"It's her fiftieth. Evie needs to harken in the new decade in style."

"I couldn't agree more," Mo says. I'm glad they're on the same page. There's a not-so-subtle competition between these two women I haven't had the energy to analyze.

The server comes by with our food and five fruit-adorned cocktails.

I take a long pull from the striped straw. Delish. "We're going hiking, not to Rodeo Drive. Maybe a Jeep would be a better choice."

Mo looks like she sucked on a lemon and Caroline scrunches her nose at the notion. "I'll see if I can switch it to a Range Rover or Porsche SUV."

As great as Caroline is with food, she is awful with money. Her much older, now dead husband left her with a bundle. More money than she could ever spend in two lifetimes.

When the club suggested I pick the place I'd want most to go for my birthday, she did her best to cover up her disappointment when I chose Yosemite National Park for a hiking trip. Caroline is more the Bergdorf's and Van Cleef's high-heeled type. The polar opposite to my outdoorsy personality. A pair of broken-in Timberlands would make me far happier than a new pair of seven-thousand-dollar snake-skin Manolo pumps. Like Caroline's.

Yes, seven thousand.

"What about skiing in the Andes or a beach trip to St. Barts?" Caroline had pressed when I waxed poetic about Half Dome and El Capitan, two of Yosemite's most challenging hikes.

"Nah, I'd rather show the universe I'm still active."

Hiking the national parks has always been my favorite activity. Even if I have the rare occasion to do so. At least not since having kids, or a demanding job.

"Fine. It will be fun!" Caroline said with a bit too much optimism.

I appreciated the attempt at excitement. Truth is, if I had another close friend who loved hiking, I'd still go with Caroline. She is my sister from another mister.

My phone buzzes, scooching across the tabletop. Caroline glances at the screen. "Roger is still calling? I thought you dumped him."

"I didn't dump him. Dumping only fits if you've gone out on more than three dates and we have not."

Sam says, "Debatable."

Barbie purses her lips. "Evie's right. Two is not enough to call it dumping."

We all turn to Mo for the tie breaker. She shrugs. "I'm the last one to give dating input."

She's not wrong. Actually, the five of us are the walking wounded when it comes to men.

Clearly though, Roger and I left the last communication with vastly different take-aways.

"He gets points for perseverance, though," Mo adds.

"That, he does."

"So, will you give him another chance?"

I shake my head. "He's nice but nice isn't enough at this stage in my life."

"You mean old age?" Caroline interjects.

"Yes. And besides, I have no time to date him or anyone else. We're going out of town and then I'll be overloaded at work."

Caroline frowns. "Have you given any thought to leaving that firm with the jerk of a boss? You could start your own practice."

The wild ideas of a woman with no money worries. "It's too late in my career for that. I make a good living where I am and get to see you regularly after work."

"That was when we were still allowed inside Le Marais."

"This place is nearly as close to my office. We can move our club meet-ups to here."

Sam says, "This place is actually better for me." She doesn't say why but we all know. Le Marais is pricey and while we'd be happy to help her, the risk of offending prevents us from doing so.

Caroline eyes the bartender, seeming to consider my suggestion. "I see your point. But still, life shouldn't revolve around work."

"Says the trophy wife set for life."

"I work hard. I just clocked three miles walking from Park Avenue."

We all laugh, Caroline joining in.

We eat and chat until I need to head home to pack. I pull out my credit card, happy to pay for my share of the bill. The others insist this is their contribution to my birthday celebration. After a bit of back and forth, I give in. "Thanks, ladies. This is going to be the best birthday ever."

Everyone hugs, wishing me and Caroline a great time. Once Mo, Barbie and Sam leave, Caroline says, "I'll have my driver pick you up at eight and we'll head to LaGuardia."

I feel a prickle of excitement. My epic birthday trip is about to begin!