Page 47 of Can We Skip to the Good Part?

“You’ve been quiet, Max. What are your thoughts on the All is Lost moment?” Morgan asked as she popped the last piece of brownie into her mouth.

Oh, right, the participation part of this meeting.

She closed her eyes for a moment as if internalizing her very complicated thoughts.

Actually, she’d been pulling herself out of the fantasy she’d dipped into, which started with her pulling Ella into her lap.

She rolled her lips in, buying more time.

“I’m going to be honest and say that I understood why Marissa put up her hand when she found out about Laurelai making all of those career plans without including her.

I wish she hadn’t run away, though. I’m not a big fan of the author using miscommunication as a source of conflict. ”

Olive nodded. “Wouldn’t you say that many real-life conflicts are born from humans’ inability to have a simple conversation, though?”

Max grinned at the challenge. Olive was always thoughtful. “True. I see it every day at work. But can’t I escape real life every once in a while?”

Ella shrugged. “The drama kept me turning the pages. I don’t know how to argue with that.”

Ariana, who was on her stomach on the floor with her chin propped up on her hands, shifted onto her forearms. “Speaking of turning pages, I think we should read your first cover design next,” she said to Ella.

“You should know it’s a straight book. Are you all up for it?” Ella asked. “A brooding male MC. A hockey stick. Who knows what he does with it?”

“Gird your loins,” Stevie said with a smirk.

Ariana nodded solemnly. “I don’t know what that phrase means, but it sounds sexy. Is the book?”

Ella shrugged. “If you like rugged hockey players.”

“Hmm. That’s trickier. I want to support your first professional cover, though, so my vote is a hearty yes.”

“Bring on the straight drama.” But Max then remembered the night at the market when they’d spotted Olive with her possible male date and decided to ease up on the joking.

Instead, she decided to throw her an opening, just in case she wanted to grab it and dish a little.

“Olive, you’re quiet tonight. How are things? ”

“With me?” Her eyes went wide.

“Yeah, I noticed you texting a lot, and it made me wonder if you had a hot little situationship you’d like to share with the class. No pressure if you’d rather not.”

Ella passed her a look, but Max couldn’t help herself. She’d had a glass of wine.

Olive narrowed her gaze. “You seem like you know more than you’re letting on, Maxine.”

Max grinned and took a sip of wine. They were onto something.

“Well, is there something to know?” Ariana asked, taking the reins.

Olive smothered a smile and took a deep breath.

Oh, damn. She was giddy about this person.

“I suppose you want me to confirm if the rumors are true.” She looked over at Stevie, who seemed to give her a nod of encouragement.

Apparently, she knew all. Max sat taller, ready to be supportive and excited for Olive, whether she was expanding her sexuality to include cis men or maybe dating a nonbinary person.

Whoever it was, they had certainly made Olive happy, and that was huge. “Stevie and I are in love.”

The room went silent. “Stevie,” Ariana repeated, pointing. “Which Stevie?”

“Do you know a lot of them?” Stevie asked with a laugh. She reached over and took Olive’s hand, lacing their fingers. Right then and there, four jaws dropped.

“So, all that texting you do with the sexy smile on your face?” Morgan asked, attempting to keep up. They all were.

“Was to this one,” Olive affirmed. Her cheeks colored pink, and she looked around at the faces of her friends with such pride that Max felt a sentimental lump rise in her throat.

Stevie smiled. “I guess you didn’t catch the sexy smile on my face when I peeked at what she wrote.”

“This is downright scandalous,” Max said, slapping the arm of her chair.

Ella shook her head. “It’s downright romantic, too. Wait a minute. So, the guy we saw you with at the market was just a red herring?”

“At the night market? That was my cousin, Geoff,” Olive said with a laugh. “We get together a couple of times a year, and the market is a favorite of his. You thought we were on a date ? That’s hysterical.”

Ella turned to Max. “We were so far off base.”

“We’re going to have to turn our amateur detective badges in because we completely missed this,” Max told her.

“Gonna have to resign from the Scooby-Doo gang,” Ella said solemnly.

Max stared straight ahead. “Pretty sure they blocked our number already.”

“Okay, stop being so in sync with each other,” Stevie said, pointing at them one after the other. “It’s freaking me out how adorable you are.”

“Not as much as this new pairing is freaking us out,” Max shot back. “Stevie, when did all this crop up?” she practically shouted.

Stevie sent Olive a smile and turned back to Max with a lifted shoulder.

She looked absolutely demure, which was new and amazing on Stevie.

“Truth time. We’d been flirting for a few months before I realized that I felt more for Olive than I ever felt for Dom.

That’s when I decided to come out officially and end my marriage. ”

Max nodded. “I know that wasn’t easy.”

“No. But it was easier than it should have been, and that was telling.” She raised her shoulders in sadness. “It took another month before I admitted that all I wanted to do was be alone in a room with this one.”

Ella fanned herself. “I love this story more and more.”

“Our own personal romance novel,” Morgan murmured with a dreamy gaze. “And you!” she said, whirling on Olive. “You’re sneaky. I thought you had some secret life, but it was right here in front of our eyes. When did you know Stevie was endgame?”

“When she opened the door for the first time and invited me in for book club. I thought she was the most beautiful woman I’d ever laid eyes on.”

In that moment, Stevie blossomed like someone finally seen—her eyes shining, her whole body stilling as if she didn’t want to miss a single word. It was the kind of softness that comes when a heart hears exactly what it’s been waiting for.

The room went quiet as they took it all in.

“I’m so happy for you both,” Ella said, her voice laced with reverence. “That you were lucky enough in this great big world to find each other.”

One at a time, they each chimed in with their own words of sincere congratulations, and the evening shifted into more of a celebration, the book forgotten, at least for now.

They used the time to catch up, lounge, eat, and get to know each other even better than they had before.

It felt like they were stepping into a deeper level of friendship.

“Hey,” Stevie said, cradling her wineglass. “I’m just really excited about this group.”

Ariana slid a brown strand of hair behind her ear. “We’re an unlikely gang, aren’t we? But dammit, we work.”

“To working!” Max said, hopping up and extending her glass to the middle of the room. The others followed suit and clinked their glasses together, laughter bubbling up as Morgan nearly spilled her drink.

“To working and wine!” Stevie added, grinning. She cranked up the music that had played quietly in the background until now, and, just like that, the room burst back to life, full of voices, movement, and the easy joy of people exactly where they were meant to be.