Page 23 of Hope After Loss

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Anna.”

Anna

“No, ma’am. That’s just sad. You and I are going to go out and celebrate,” Brandee says.

“Celebrate what exactly?” I ask.

“Valentine’s Day.”

“Valentine’s Day is a holiday for couples. You and I are not a couple,” I protest.

“No. We’re two attractive, single women who deserve to go out and have a fun night on the town, and we don’t need a man in order to do that,” she insists.

“I have Kaela, and I’m not going to ask Leona or Sara-Beth to babysit when they do have men to spend a romantic evening with.”

“I already got that taken care of. Maxi is going to come over and stay with the baby.”

“Maxi has a man too,” I point out.

“She does, but he is on shift at the firehouse, so they aren’t celebrating until the weekend. She isn’t working tonight, so she’s more than happy to come spend the evening playing with the kiddo.”

Drat, she has everything covered.

I can’t believe I’m letting her talk me into going out tonight.

I’d be perfectly content with sitting in my pajamas with Kaela, eating the chocolates I received from the universe, and watching a sappy, old romantic comedy.

The pleading look on her face causes the next objection to die on my lips. I know that her single-friend pool is getting smaller and smaller by the minute.

“All right, but I’m not drinking a lot, and we have to come home early. I have to work tomorrow.”

“Yay!”

She does a little victory dance as she throws her arms around my neck. “I’ll run home and get ready and meet you back here when Maxi arrives.”

She trots out the door, and I meander into my room to find something to wear.

I settle on a pair of black slacks and a white turtleneck with black suede booties. I pair the outfit with black pearl earrings, a long silver heart necklace, and a few silver and black bangle bracelets.

When the doorbell rings, I pick Kaela up from her perch at the end of my bed, and we greet Maxi.

“Hi,” she says, reaching for Kaela as she crosses the threshold.

“Hi. I’m sorry you got roped into this,” I apologize.

“Are you kidding? I’d much rather spend the evening here with this cutie than at home alone.”

“But it’s Valentine’s Day,” I protest.

She waves me off. “Do I look like a girl who goes gaga over Valentine’s Day? It’s a Hallmark holiday. Just another reason for single women to get down on themselves.”

I plop down on the couch beside her. “Right?”

“I didn’t mean to piss in your cornflakes. You should go out and have a good time. Not because of a baby angel in a diaper, shooting arrows at you, but because you can,” she encourages.

The door flies open, and Brandee appears, wearing a tiny black dress and fishnet hose with red stiletto heels.

She takes one look at me and starts shaking her head. “Oh, no. That’s not gonna do. March back in there and find an outfit that will make the men drool,” she says as she points down the hallway.