Page 60 of September

“But that’s just a rule with exceptions.”

“True,” Molly replied.

“I just figured with him moving up, especially now, with Andrew being gone, they’d put me in his place and backfill me.”

“They could still do that. I just don’t think it’ll be this December.”

“Well, fuck,” Juliet said as she pulled off the highway. “I don’t know if I can do this for over a year, Molls.”

“Because of Gwen?”

“No, because of all the travel. I miss Carly, but it’s not even that. I’m just not made for driving all over the place and eating fast food or terrible room-service rubber chicken. I’m a homebody. I like to be sitting in front of my TV, eating a somewhat healthy dinner while I watch something I’ve seen a hundred times already, and being in my own bathtub with my almond oil bubble bath.”

“Oh, that sounds nice. Where do you get that? I should pick some up.”

“I’ll send you a link when I get home,” she said, turning the corner.

“Can I help at all?” Molly offered. “I feel like he might have embellished about his promotion thing, which led you to sign an offer letter without knowing exactly what you’d be signing up for, and then Andrew was let go, too. I know it’s a lot.”

“It is,” she said. “I don’t know. I’ll figure it out, I guess. I’m about to turn onto my street. Can I call you later about drinks?”

“Sure. I’m kind of hoping you turn me down, though, because that means you’ll be out with Gwen.”

Juliet laughed as they disconnected and she turned onto her street and into the parking lot for her building. Just as she parked, though, she got a text message, so she went to check her phone, expecting it to be from Molly, a reminder to send her that link for the bubble bath.

Gwen Benedetti: Want to meet us at the dog park? I’ve got all her stuff in the car, but she wanted to go for a walk, so I thought I’d let her run off some energy for a bit.

Juliet replied and hurried to drop off her suitcase at the apartment before she quickly changed into comfortable jeans, a T-shirt, and a light sweater, and got back into her car.

???

“Wiggly Park?” she said.

“Hey,” Gwen replied, standing up from the park bench when Juliet approached. “And, yeah. Cool name, huh?”

“I didn’t even know this was here.”

Juliet looked around at the rectangular patch of grass with a short fence around it that was surrounded by a street and houses.

“It’s just a fun place where they can be off the leash and run,” Gwen said. “How was the drive?”

“Good. Long, but good. I got you a cookie.”

She held up the brown bag to Gwen.

“A cookie?”

“Yeah. We sell them. I got it yesterday before I left the store, but they’d made it fresh, so it should still be good.”

“They make cookies fresh there, too?”

“Well, they come in frozen, but we bake them. Does that count?” Juliet asked as Gwen took the bag.

“Depends on what kind of cookie you got me.”

“It’s chocolate chip,” she replied.

“Really? Those are my favorite,” Gwen said and peered inside the bag. “Cool. Thanks, Jules.”