Page 31 of The Love Bus

MISSED CALLS

O nce we finished our salads—surprisingly crisp greens, tangy vinaigrette, and grilled chicken that wasn’t overcooked (which was more than I could say for most hotel kitchens)—I allowed Babs to hug me goodnight.

After a few wrong turns and one awkward encounter with an ice machine that scared the life out of me, I finally found my room.

Alone, with no ghosts to bother me, I dropped onto my bed and reluctantly opened up my phone.

One of the calls was from Tay, time-stamped right around the time we’d have been on the swing. No wonder I hadn’t heard it.

A call from Ashley, and?—

My heart stuttered.

A voicemail from Leo.

I sat on the edge of the bed, chewing the inside of my cheek before tapping Ashley’s name.

She picked up after the second ring. “Looney! How’s Colorado?”

“Mountainous.” I stretched out on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. “How’s everything back home?”

“Good. Mom’s good.”

I blinked. “You mean she isn’t driving you crazy?”

I could practically hear her rolling her eyes through the phone. “She’s not that bad, Luna.”

I hesitated, feeling that pinch of guilt I’d gotten talking to Babs.

“Whatever… “ I didn’t want to waste our phone call arguing about Mom. “I must admit, though, I’m surprised she signed up for a trip like this. It’s not the kind of vacation I’d expect her to take.” Despite the rigid schedule.

There was a pause. Then Ashley said, “Well, maybe you don’t know Mom as well as you thought you did.”

I frowned. Maybe I didn’t. Maybe this trip wasn’t just about getting away but seeing things—her—from a different perspective.

After a few beats of silence, Ashley pivoted. “Anyway. How are you doing, seriously?”

“I’m…good.” Even as I said the word, I was a little surprised. Because this trip might have been just what I needed, so far anyway, even though I hated admitting to Ashley that she was right.

“Everyone here is basically Mom’s age,” I added.

“Makes sense.”

I hesitated. “Except for one guy.”

“What kind of guy?” Ashley asked.

I opened my mouth and then closed it.

Ashley sighed on the other end of the line. “He’s hot, isn’t he?”

“A little?” I pictured him sitting beside me on that swing. I could almost hear his voice, low, encouraging me.

Ashley groaned. “Luna. You can’t… I mean?—”

“You’re the one who insisted I take this trip,” I argued, even though, annoyingly, I agreed with her. “And I’m not an idiot.”

“I know.” Ashley’s voice softened, but I could feel her concern from a thousand miles away. “It’s just…you’re not yourself these days. The last thing you need is to get hurt again.”

I let out a slow breath, pressing my fingers to my temple. “I’m fine, Ash.”

“I know. I know, Loon.” My sister didn’t sound at all convinced, but she let it go. “Now, tell me how the trip’s going.”

I spent the next few minutes telling her about the places we’d visited—intentionally avoiding any details about Noah or how much fun I’d actually had.

Or the mini-identity crisis I was going through.

“Send me some pictures, yeah?”

The request brought me up short. When Leo and I had been, well, Leo and Luna , even the most ordinary moment had been a branding opportunity . A winery visit wasn’t about connection—it was content. A meal? A chance to post, promote, and perform.

Had any of it been real?

Here, though, I wasn’t curating moments for anyone. I was just…

Living them.

While the others on the bus were snapping photos, posting updates, tagging each other on Facebook, I’d taken exactly one picture the entire trip. Babs in the restaurant. That was it.

The rest of the time, my phone had stayed mostly forgotten.

“You there?” Ashley said.

“Oh, yeah. Yeah. I’ll send you some pictures.”

There was another pause, and then Ashley’s voice shifted—suspiciously cautious.

“Um.” She hesitated. “Leo called me this afternoon.”

My stomach dipped, all too aware of the voice message just sitting in my phone.

Like a land mine. Or wet laundry I’d forgotten in the washer. Not sure which, quite yet, but regardless, I wasn’t prepared to deal with him.

“He asked me why you were in Colorado.”

I sat up. “How does he?—”

“You’re still sharing locations with him.”

I froze.

I hadn’t even thought about that.

A sick feeling slid down my spine. “Why would he check that? You don’t think he—” wants to get back together?

My heart stopped for a second.

Ashley sighed, and when she spoke again, her voice was gentle but firm. “I have no idea, but Luna. You can’t. He cheated on you. And it wasn’t just a one-night thing. He’d been having an entirely separate relationship. With one of your so-called friends .”

I let out a shaky breath. “I know, I know…”

And I did know. No matter how much a part of me craved the comfort of the known, of the familiarity, there was no going back.

Because I was starting to believe it wasn’t just the cheating…

It was the enormity of his betrayal…and maybe…

more? “It’s hard, though, you know?” I glanced around my hotel room, feeling alone.

This wasn’t home. But it wasn’t as bad as I’d expected it to be.

“I know, Luna. You spent so long focusing on the show and on him. Maybe you just forgot how to prioritize yourself.”

I stared at the ceiling, trying to formulate some kind of response that wasn’t “ugh, you’re right,” when Ashley threw out?—

“If you do end up having a fling with this guy, be careful. You know?”

I snapped upright. “Nothing’s going to happen. We’re just friends.”

Ashley’s silence was loud.

I hated that my sister was worried about me. And I hated even more that she had reason to be.

“Okay, then.” Ashley’s tone softened. “I just want you to be happy, Luna.”

Before I could respond, Blakey’s excited voice chirped in the background, and I heard a childish screech of laughter.

“Sorry, the twins have a friend over tonight. So, I need to— Put that down! You’ve both had more than enough junk food. Hey, I gotta go. Just…if you do… you know …don’t go all in, okay? And…have fun.”

“Fine.”

“And don’t let Leo get to you.”

Oh my God! “ Goodbye, Ashley ,” I said.

“Hugs!” And then the line went dead.

I let my phone drop onto the bed, exhaling sharply.

Then, reluctantly, I flicked my gaze to the still-unread voicemail on my screen.

One message. I could ignore it.

I could delete it.

That was probably what I should do, honestly.

But instead, I just sat there, staring at it like it could detonate any second.

And then, against my better judgment, I pressed play.

“Hey, Lunatic, babe.”

The nickname curdled in my stomach.

“What are you doing in Denver? If you needed a vacation, I would’ve taken you.”

What on earth?

He would have taken me ? The last time we spoke, he was stuffing his two-thirds of our closet into a moving truck, more concerned about ruining his uniforms than the end of our relationship.

And that had been…the end.

And yet…

Leo’s voice was smooth, familiar, a voice I’d once loved and trusted. I drew in a choking breath—half shiver, half sob.

It made me sad and angry at the same time.

There was a pause, just long enough for me to hear him exhale, like he wanted me to imagine him sitting there thinking of me.

And then, “ I miss you, Looney. The show’s not the same without you. The set’s falling apart. Ed changed the color scheme, but that means reprinting all the graphics—idiot move. And the herbs? They’re dying. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. Probably everything. ”

I blinked.

He sounded so lost. So…defeated.

But I started shaking my head.

Leo knew exactly how to tug at my heartstrings. To make me second-guess myself.

And for one shameful second, it almost worked.

Until I remembered:

Those weren’t my herbs anymore.

And I wasn’t his Looney .

I closed the voicemail without listening any further and deleted it on the spot, my heart racing, hands shaking. Why hadn’t I deleted his message the second I saw it? Instead, I’d reopened a healing wound, like an idiot.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, I waited for the little storm I’d unleashed to pass. An emotional thundercloud, nothing more. Just breathe in…and out.

Once I found something close to equilibrium, I made sure to turn off the feature that had allowed my ex- boyfriend to track my every move and then headed straight for the hottest, longest shower I could take.

And much later, when I climbed into bed, I did my best not to think about any of it.