Page 15 of Give Me a Reason

“Damn. That’s some view.” Tessa leaned on the railing of Anne’s second-floor balcony, which looked out onto the Pacific Ocean. At the moment, the sun was setting rather spectacularly over the azure water. “It pays to be a famous actress, huh?”

“You must’ve seen this exact sunset a million times.” Anne raised an eyebrow at her sister. “You practically live in Marina Del Rey with the amount of work you put in at the Information Sciences Institute.”

“We just call it ISI.” Tessa sighed. “Anyway, I don’t have a view. I am a lowly graduate student researcher, toiling away in a shared, windowless office. I barely get to see the light of day, much less the sunset.”

“And you love it,” she reminded Tessa.

“Yes, I love it to pieces.” Her younger sister grinned. “Even though I only get a crappy glimpse of the congested marina on my way into work.”

“Well, you’re welcome to drop by anytime. You already have an extra set of keys.” Anne tipped her head toward her living room. “Anyway, this view isn’t going anywhere, so let’s head inside. It’s getting cold.”

“It’s actually freezing.” Tessa gave an exaggerated shiver before following her into the living room. “I don’t know what’s going on with the weather these days.”

“It’s only in the mid-fifties. I would hardly call it freezing .” Even so, Anne closed the balcony door against the evening chill.

“Give yourself a few months,” her sister said with a knowing look. “Your body will readjust to California weather, and you’ll remember that anything below sixty is cruelly cold for us.”

Before Anne could roll her eyes, there was a knock at the door. She rushed over and looked through the peephole before throwing it wide open.

“Girls,” she squealed. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

“We come bearing fish tacos,” Coraline announced, holding up two bags brimming with take-out containers.

“And cold beer.” Bethany raised a twelve-pack, using both hands. “Now let us in. It’s freezing out here.”

“Right? Isn’t it freezing ?” Tessa rushed to take the beer out of Bethany’s hands, but not before smirking at Anne.

Coraline relinquished their dinner to Anne and walked into the condo with a low whistle. She spun in a circle, taking in the large, open space made up of the living room, the dining room, and the kitchen. “I like .”

“This place is just gorgeous.” Bethany headed straight for the gleaming kitchen as Anne set down the take-out bags on the dining table. “And look at the size of this island. You could host an entire dinner party just from here.”

“Speaking of dinner.” Tessa dug into the bags and pulled out box after box of food. “This is way too much food for the four of us.”

“Oh ye of little faith,” Coraline tsked with a slow shake of her head. “There is no such thing as too much tacos.”

“I couldn’t agree more.” Anne laughed.

They needed to make this girls’ night in a monthly deal.

The hardest part of living in Korea had been being away from her family—especially from Tessa, Bethany, and Coraline.

She loved that even after ten years apart, with the exception of odd visits here and there, they were as close as ever.

Anne was so relieved that her decision to work in Korea hadn’t cost her all her important relationships.

“Do you have lime for the cerveza?” Bethany asked as she pulled out bottles of beer from the cardboard container.

“I might have a couple.” Anne rummaged around her refrigerator. “Let me slice them up.”

“You will do no such thing.” Bethany hip-bumped Anne out of the way and grabbed two limes from the fridge herself. “You’re not getting lime juice on that cut of yours.”

“It’s practically all healed,” Anne protested.

“Nevertheless.” Her cousin made such quick work of cutting the limes that Anne didn’t have time to continue objecting. “Why are you still standing here?”

Bethany led the way and sat next to Tessa at the rectangular dining table, and Anne took a seat next to Coraline on the other side. Once the lime slices were handed out and squeezed into the beer, the four women raised their bottles. “To girl power.”

“We’ve been saying that motto since we were little.” Bethany giggled. “Maybe we should change it.”

“ To women power doesn’t have the same ring.” Coraline tore open the paper bag with the fresh tortilla chips and pushed it to the center of the table along with the guacamole. The rest of them began grabbing random take-out boxes and opening them to inspect their contents.

“How about to badass boss bitches ?” Tessa smirked, then leaned away from the container in front of her, crinkling her nose. “Ew, these are salmon tacos.”

“What? They’re good.” Coraline snatched the box from Tessa and handed her another one. “Here are your boring shrimp tacos.”

Bethany shook her head with a condescending moue. “It’s not a real fish taco unless it’s deep-fried.”

“I can’t argue with that.” Anne picked up her Baja fish taco and gazed lovingly at it.

Frederick was the one who’d introduced her to real fish tacos.

The last time she’d had them, she was still at UC San Diego…

still dating Frederick. She pushed away the thought.

She refused to get sad with delicious food in front of her. “Hello, gorgeous. Come to Mama.”

“I bet your fans don’t know how profoundly weird you are.” Tessa side-eyed her.

Anne shrugged and bit off half of her taco. She closed her eyes and moaned. “I made the right decision coming back to California.”

“And perfect timing, too.” Coraline sighed happily. “I’m so glad you can be in my wedding.”

“Me, too.” Anne pressed her shoulder against her cousin’s because both their hands were full.

“But I’m second chairing my first trial in three months. I have so much work to get done.” Coraline’s face fell, and she put her half-eaten salmon taco back in the container. “I feel like I’m dropping the ball on the wedding planning.”

“What’s Joe doing?” Tessa arched an eyebrow.

“More than his fair share,” Coraline said. “I can’t ask him to do more than he already is.”

“Don’t worry, Cora.” Bethany winked at her sister. “I got you.”

“You’re so busy with parent-teacher conferences coming up.” Coraline shook her head. “I feel terrible adding more on your plate.”

“I can help,” Anne offered. It made perfect sense for her to help. “I’m the only one in the wedding party without a job.”

“But I thought you were going Hollywood .” Bethany jazzed her hands. “Won’t you be busy with auditions?”

“Not for a while.” Her two-month reprieve had done Anne a world of good, and she was ready for a new challenge—not the kind where she saved her family from financial ruin but the kind where she pursued something that fulfilled her.

With that said, she didn’t want to rush into the first role she could find.

Not this time. “I want to wait for a role I fall in love with.”

“You should be choosy.” Tessa gave her a considering look. “You’ve had a successful, decade-long career. Act like a star, and they’ll treat you like a star.”

“Hear, hear,” Bethany cheered.

“I totally second all of that. And your help would mean the world to me,” Coraline said, biting her lip. “But only if you’re sure .”

“I am absolutely, positively sure.” Anne smiled warmly. “I would love to help with your wedding.”

“Thank you, Anne.” Her cousin squealed and tackle-hugged her. “You don’t know what a load off that is. Now I can really enjoy this meal.”

Coraline gleefully stuffed the other half of her taco into her mouth, then raised her beer to her lips.

But when her cell phone rang, she put the bottle down with a frown.

She swallowed her food after a few cursory chews, wiping her hands on a napkin.

Then she fumbled with the phone in her rush to answer. “Joe, what’s wrong?”

Anne understood Coraline’s reaction. Her stomach always dipped with unease when her phone rang, because no one called just to say hello. They had text messages for that. Something must be wrong for Joe to call. And if something was wrong with Joe… The food suddenly sat leaden in her stomach.

“Oh, Joe. I’m so sorry.” Coraline pushed back from the table and walked over to sit on the living room couch.

Everyone at the table stopped eating, exchanging apprehensive glances. By unspoken agreement, Anne was chosen to provide Coraline with moral support. She sat next to her cousin and put her arm around her.

“How is everyone else?” Coraline leaned her head on Anne’s shoulder and sighed. “I’m not surprised he’s taking it the hardest. Captain or not, he doesn’t have to carry the world on his shoulders.”

Anne’s fingers dug into her cousin’s arm, and Coraline shot her a surprised glance, leaning away slightly.

Sorry , Anne mouthed and withdrew her arm, her blood pounding in her ears.

Something had happened to B Shift, and Frederick was not okay.

She wanted to shake her cousin and ask her what happened.

Instead, Anne pushed off the couch and paced the living room, wringing her hands.

After what felt like hours, Coraline finally hung up the phone and heaved a long sigh. “Poor Joe.”

“What happened?” Anne fought for calm, reclaiming her seat on the sofa.

“There was a fire in an apartment building this afternoon. Joe said the crew was able to contain it and got everyone out safely. But…” Her cousin pressed her fingers to her lips for a second before continuing in a wobbly voice.

“An elderly woman died at the hospital due to smoke inhalation. She had a preexisting respiratory condition… but the team is taking it hard.”

“That’s heartbreaking.” Bethany sat on her sister’s other side and pulled her into a hug.

“And you know what makes me feel really awful? I’m relieved .” Coraline choked on a sob. “I’m so thankful that it wasn’t Joe.”