day. “You know that this is bordering on obsessive behavior, right?” Jen tries to snatch Elyse’s phone away but is too slow.
“It’s just they said they would get back to me by the weekend and, hell, it’s almost the weekend!” Elyse makes a frustrated sound in the back of her throat and wills her foot to stop tapping impatiently.
“Well, it’s only three o’clock, you’ve still got a few hours, so I don’t know why you’re getting your panties in a twist.” Suzi takes a drink of her beer before she notices that Elyse’s frustration hasn’t eased.
“It’s three in Portland, but it’s six in New York.” Jen says the words as if they should mean something to her.
“And what’s in New York?” Suzi looks between the two women, none the wiser.
“Oh you know, the Empire State, Statue of Liberty, and The New Yorker .” Jen rolls her eyes. “Elyse has been submitting stories to them since she was in kindergarten, and after all the attention her piece on the club got, she reached out to them. They said they’d read a new fiction story she’s been working on.”
“Let’s just forget about it.” Elyse pockets her cell, waving away Jen’s words as if that will stop her from worrying herself sick over the email that she hasn’t yet received. “We’re here to enjoy ourselves, not to stare at a goddam cell phone.” As if to highlight her words, she takes a swig of her beer. She keeps stealing glances towards the room at the back of the bar, and her foot keeps on tapping.
Suzi gives her a frank look. “Are you more nervous about the New Yorker thing or the vote?”
Elyse smiles sheepishly. “I’ll take the Fifth on that.” She looks at the clock on the wall again, which has only advanced by a minute since the last time she looked. “What’s taking so long anyway? I thought this was pretty much a done deal?”
Suzi shrugs. “It’ll happen, don’t worry.”
It better, Elyse thinks. Today was the day that Dane was going to get patched. That morning, Dane had woken up so excited, like a kid who knew he was on his way to Disneyworld. It was the one thing he’d been working towards his whole life. It was such a big deal for him that Elyse had tried to persuade him to invite his mom to the Patch Party. Whereas once he might have railed against the idea, gotten mad, and told Elyse it wasn’t any of her business, he’d thought about it. He’d really considered it, but eventually he’d told Elyse that he wasn’t ready to share something this big with his mother, not yet. Elyse had told him that when he was ready, she’d be standing by his side every step of the way.
Elyse smiles as she thinks back to that morning when Dane had wrestled her back to bed. He’d swiped her hair away from her face and looked down at her oh so tenderly.
Suddenly, he’d turned serious. “If it doesn’t happen today…”
“It will! What are you talking about?” Elyse had nudged him, playfully wondering where this self-doubt had come from that was so unlike him.
“But if it doesn’t, then I want you to know that it’s alright.” His dark eyes remain trained on her.
“What do you mean, it’s alright? This what you’ve always wanted! It’s more than important to you; it’s everything. I know that already.” She’d traced the line of stubble that he always seemed to carry no matter how often he shaved. To Elyse, it just made him even sexier.
“It’s not everything.” He looked at her pointedly. “There’s something more important in my life now.”
Elyse had to swallow the lump in her throat before she could speak. “And what’s that?” She raised an eyebrow at him. “And if you say my car, then I’m going to seriously hurt you.”
Dane threw back his head and laughed, and Elyse thought yet again how lucky she was to have this
“It’s just they said they would get back to me by the weekend and, hell, it’s almost the weekend!” Elyse makes a frustrated sound in the back of her throat and wills her foot to stop tapping impatiently.
“Well, it’s only three o’clock, you’ve still got a few hours, so I don’t know why you’re getting your panties in a twist.” Suzi takes a drink of her beer before she notices that Elyse’s frustration hasn’t eased.
“It’s three in Portland, but it’s six in New York.” Jen says the words as if they should mean something to her.
“And what’s in New York?” Suzi looks between the two women, none the wiser.
“Oh you know, the Empire State, Statue of Liberty, and The New Yorker .” Jen rolls her eyes. “Elyse has been submitting stories to them since she was in kindergarten, and after all the attention her piece on the club got, she reached out to them. They said they’d read a new fiction story she’s been working on.”
“Let’s just forget about it.” Elyse pockets her cell, waving away Jen’s words as if that will stop her from worrying herself sick over the email that she hasn’t yet received. “We’re here to enjoy ourselves, not to stare at a goddam cell phone.” As if to highlight her words, she takes a swig of her beer. She keeps stealing glances towards the room at the back of the bar, and her foot keeps on tapping.
Suzi gives her a frank look. “Are you more nervous about the New Yorker thing or the vote?”
Elyse smiles sheepishly. “I’ll take the Fifth on that.” She looks at the clock on the wall again, which has only advanced by a minute since the last time she looked. “What’s taking so long anyway? I thought this was pretty much a done deal?”
Suzi shrugs. “It’ll happen, don’t worry.”
It better, Elyse thinks. Today was the day that Dane was going to get patched. That morning, Dane had woken up so excited, like a kid who knew he was on his way to Disneyworld. It was the one thing he’d been working towards his whole life. It was such a big deal for him that Elyse had tried to persuade him to invite his mom to the Patch Party. Whereas once he might have railed against the idea, gotten mad, and told Elyse it wasn’t any of her business, he’d thought about it. He’d really considered it, but eventually he’d told Elyse that he wasn’t ready to share something this big with his mother, not yet. Elyse had told him that when he was ready, she’d be standing by his side every step of the way.
Elyse smiles as she thinks back to that morning when Dane had wrestled her back to bed. He’d swiped her hair away from her face and looked down at her oh so tenderly.
Suddenly, he’d turned serious. “If it doesn’t happen today…”
“It will! What are you talking about?” Elyse had nudged him, playfully wondering where this self-doubt had come from that was so unlike him.
“But if it doesn’t, then I want you to know that it’s alright.” His dark eyes remain trained on her.
“What do you mean, it’s alright? This what you’ve always wanted! It’s more than important to you; it’s everything. I know that already.” She’d traced the line of stubble that he always seemed to carry no matter how often he shaved. To Elyse, it just made him even sexier.
“It’s not everything.” He looked at her pointedly. “There’s something more important in my life now.”
Elyse had to swallow the lump in her throat before she could speak. “And what’s that?” She raised an eyebrow at him. “And if you say my car, then I’m going to seriously hurt you.”
Dane threw back his head and laughed, and Elyse thought yet again how lucky she was to have this
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