Page 69 of The Love Dose

My eyes tear up.

Evie hands me a tissue. “Don’t cry.”

“I miss him so much.” The tears flow down my cheeks and I wipe them away.

Evie’s expression is filled with compassion but she knows me better than to dwell on my compromised state. “My advice? Get to know this newer version of Calvin. Get to know his child, slowly, over time. You might find it’s all pretty wonderful.”

I shake my head, hating in advance what I’m about to say but it needs to be said. “I’m too old.”

Evie squints at me. “In our grandparents’ day, fifty was considered over the hill. These days, it’s the new thirty-five.”

I’m pretty sure Barbie said it was the new thirty. I lost five years in the blink of an eye. I lower my voice in case someone in the next apartment can overhear me through the concrete walls. “Until recently, taking things a bit slower was an admission of aging but now it’s becoming more appealing and not just because I’m fifty. There’s something to be said for stopping and smelling the roses.”

Evie gives me a curious look once more. “Vermont really had an effect on you.”

“It’s a very special place,” I say, wistfully.

We each take another piece of chocolate and think.

Evie asks, “Do you believe in fate?”

“Sometimes.”

“Well, I do. If Calvin is your soulmate, you’ll work it out.”

The vagueness bothers me but I have no choice but to believe her. We’re not going to solve fifty years of issues on my best friend’s couch in one fell swoop. But there is something wecando.

“Got any board games?”

Evie looks at me like I’ve lost my mind.

“I’m getting into Scrabble,” I say.

She’s eyeing me like I’m pranking her.

“I’m serious.”

She moves her legs off me and stands. “I think it’s in Jeffrey’s room.”

She returns with a box and I go into her pantry where I find chips and salsa.

We’re flipping the tiles when Evie smiles. “Whatever it is that happened to you in Sugarbush Falls, I’m digging it, big time.”

I laugh, lightly. Evie has worked her magic once more.

Now it’s time to play.

And move on.

Chapter Forty-Eight

Calvin

THREE MONTHS LATER

Tomorrow is the big day. Gotcha day. When Chacha will legally become my son. I want to get a solid eight hours.

I tuck Chacha into his bed, He’s as excited as I am. I turn off the light in his room, head to mine and crawl under the covers.