Page 129 of Like You Want It

“Hey girl,” Susie responds, heaving Nell up on her hip and walking over to give Carly a hug.

I hover awkwardly, though I end up gravitating in their direction.

“Off to my least favorite place in the world?” Susie asks, and they both break into laughter.

The sound of her laugh, so bright and happy, and the true joy on her face, fills my chest to a point where it hurts. A dull ache that is surprising, that I don’t know what to do with.

“You know it. Still on for coming over Saturday for the photo shoot?”

Susie smiles. “Absolutely.”

Then Carly’s eyes come to me, and I can see the light in them dim just slightly, though her smile never leaves her face. “Hi Fin. How’re things?”

I nod, tucking my hands in my pockets. “They’re good. Thanks.”

She blinks and gives me a nod, then turns to Susie. “I’ve gotta get going. Love you girl, and I’ll see you around, but definitely Saturday.”

She hops in the car as Susie waves Nell’s hand. Then we both turn and head towards the stairs to go to Susie’s apartment.

“What’s on Saturday?” I ask, before I can think better of it.

“I’m doing a photo shoot for Carly.”

“For what?”

Susie turns to look at me. “For her business.”

I unlock Susie’s door and step inside, holding it open for her as she lugs Nell in and takes her straight to her playpen.

“For the coffee shop?”

Her head tilts curiously to the side. “For her Etsy shop.”

“Huh.” It’s all I say in response, opting to head into the kitchen and grab myself a water from Susie’s fridge. But within a minute or two, I can’t help but let my own curiosity get the best of me. “What kind of Etsy shop?”

Susie sits down on the couch, plopping her feet up on the coffee table, scrolling through her phone. “It’s custom greeting cards with this character she’s been drawing since junior high.”

I bob my head.

Then suddenly, Susie is standing, her phone in my face.

I take it from her and scroll through the images that Carly sent to Susie, and I can’t help but smile. These are so her. Optimistic. Funny. Upbeat. Sassy.

“What happened between you two?”

I stop scrolling, clench my jaw. Then I hand Susie’s phone back to her. “What do you mean?”

She sighs. “Don’t play stupid. You guys are never in the same place anymore. No Sunday dinners. You showed up at her birthdaydinner and then left in the middle of it, dick. And just now, you guys could barely look at each other.”

I let my head fall back against the couch cushion. “It’s complicated.”

She crosses her arms and glares at me.

“What do you want me to say, Susie? We slept together and it didn’t work out. Big surprise.”

She shakes her head at me. “This was different. You can’t play this off like she was justsome girlfrom wherever. You guys were… something. And what, you just called it off?”

I don’t know what to say to her. “I’m not going to have any answers that make you happy, Susie.”