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“Right,” Evelyn said, her throat tight. “But I don’t want things to be over.”

“Did you tell her that?”

“No,” Evelyn admitted.

“Then how was she supposed to know?”

Evelyn considered her sister’s words. “I don’t know,” she said. “I guess I was thrown off by her complete lack of emotion.”

Jasmine reached over and took her hand. “Evie, you’re not moving to Thailand,” she said. “You’re not disappearing into the jungle. You’re going to be on the road, sure, but you’ll still be based here. You’ll still have a home.”

Confused, Evelyn’s brow furrowed. “Of course,” she said. “But so?”

“So,” Jasmine said, squeezing her hand. “Maybe Jo doesn’t have to be part of the life you’re leaving behind. Maybe she’s part of the one you’re building.”

Feeling a hint of relief for the first time since Dr. Wong told her about the promotion, Evelyn’s chest relaxed a little. “You think she would be open to that?” she asked, and Jasmine nodded.

“I think that if you talked to her like you were planning a future instead of saying goodbye,” she said with a shrug. “She might surprise you.”

“A long-distance relationship,” Evelyn said slowly, letting the idea sink in. “I mean, that’s what it would be.”

“Yeah,” Jasmine said. “Exactly, you’ll have weekends. Holidays. Time between trips.” She laughed. “Come on, you both have phones. You can text. Video chat.”

Evelyn nodded, starting to process how things would work. “I don’t want to lose her,” she said. “We could make it past this. Dr. Wong said it might be only for four to five months.”

“Even better,” Jasmine said with a smile. “It’s not like you’re asking her to do this forever.”

“You’re right,” Evelyn said. “This is only temporary, and it shouldn’t stop us from getting to know each other.”

“Then talk to Jo,” Jasmine said. “Not about what’s ending, but about what’s possible.”

Sitting in silence for a while, Evelyn sipped her wine, her thoughts racing.Could this really work?she wondered.Will Jo be willing?Suddenly, everything felt clearer. She looked at her sister. “Thanks,” she said. “For the sweatshirt. And the wine. And the wisdom.”

Jasmine raised her glass. “It’s what older sisters are for,” she said as they clinked glasses and drank. For the first time, Evelyn felt like things didn’t have to be over, and maybe they were only changing. She simply had to explain it to Jo.

Twenty-Three

As the morning light filtered through the newly repaired windows, Jo stood in the center of her garage. The shop smelled like oil, rubber, and the faint remnants of the cinnamon rolls Mica brought in an hour ago. Everything was as it should be, and yet, Jo wasn’t happy. She hadn’t slept again. Blowing out a frustrated breath, her eyes wandered to the covered Mustang and frowned. Mica was across the bay, standing under a Volvo, pretending to work on a simple oil change, but she took longer than necessary. Jo knew her friend was sizing up the situation.

“You know,” Mica said without looking Jo’s way. “You’re staring at that car like it holds all the answers.”

With arms crossed and her jaw tight, Jo didn’t answer. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mica glance at her.

“You thinking about selling it again?”

“I don’t know.”

Mica sighed, pulling out the drained oil filter. “That’s not a no.”

“It’s a maybe.”

“You said you’d only sell it if there was no other choice.”

Jo looked at Mica. “There might not be another choice,” she said.

Mica set the filter aside. “Okay,” she said. “You want to talk about what’s really going on? Or should I keep pretending that we’re actually worried about the Mustang right now?”

Keeping her expression unreadable, Jo didn’t blink. “What do you mean?” she asked. “What else is this about?”