“I saw him with one. From the back. It was entirely by chance. I was in town, and so was he. Only...he was with her.”
Gen was sarcastic, so she didn’t show her pain from that moment. It still stung.
Seeing him with her was so unexpected. It had sent her into a literal physical shock. Her mouth had gone dry, her vision blurred, she’d gotten cold and clammy. She hadn’t suspected a thing until that moment. She’d been such a fool.
“He was a dumbass,” the bartender told her, although he didn’t know her or her ex personally.
“Yes,” she answered. “And soon, he’ll be out of my life for good.”
The divorce would be final just a few weeks after she mailed the papers. They were tucked safely in her bag right now.
Her phone buzzed, and she glanced at it to find texts from her sister. Meg was already in the hotel in New York City, anxiously awaiting her.
I hope you packed lightly. We’re gonna buy all new clothes for you. I can’t wait!!!!!! Hurry up and get here!!!!!
Her sister’s excessive use of exclamation points was a direct comparison for her personality. Meggie was a walking exclamation point. Honestly, she was the one who seemed like a romance author, expressive and passionate, and Gen was the one who seemed like a physician, meticulous and careful.
Over the intercom, Gen’s flight to LaGuardia was announced.
“Can I get my bill?” she asked. “My plane is boarding.”
He shook his head. “Go ahead. It’s on me today. Have fun with your sister.”
“Oh! Thank you,” she said, surprised. “It’s been a long time since a man has bought me a drink.”
He smiled. “I’m lucky to be your first. Oh, and here’s a tip. You might want to take your wedding ring off.”
Her head snapped back, and she looked down at her finger. How could she have forgotten that?
She twisted it around and around while she waited to board, and decided to take it off when she reached the hotel. She’d stick it in her suitcase and decide what to do with it later. It was a four-carat diamond.
She slept on the flight, and when she arrived, she actually felt good.
She was energized as she headed for a cab, and the bright lights of the city bounced off her skin in the back seat of the taxi. She texted her sister that she was close.
I’ll wait for you in the lobby, she answered. Hurry up!!
The cabdriver let her out, and she hadn’t even turned around before Meg grabbed her in a bear hug. “I thought you’d never get here,” she exclaimed. “I’m starving!”
Like usual, she was wearing three-inch heels and looked perfect in her highlighted hair, slim suit and red lipstick.
“Let me at least drop my bag off in the room,” Gen complained as Meg tried to hail another cab. Her sister grumbled but stepped back, and they walked to the elevator and rode to their two-bedroom suite on the top floor.
“Nice,” Gen observed, as they walked in. There were glittering chandeliers, marble counters, a spectacular view.
Meg shrugged. “Nothing but the best for my big sis.”
Gen dropped the bag. “I’m hungry, too,” she said. “Let’s go.”
They chattered all the way back to the main floor in the golden elevator, and were still chattering in the cab. As they glided to a stop outside a steak house, Meg’s stomach audibly growled and they laughed.
They tipped the driver and got out.
They were seated inside the glittering restaurant within a few minutes, and the waiter knew Meghan by name. After she’d ordered wine, Gen stared at her.
“How often do you come here?” Gen demanded, an eyebrow lifted. “I didn’t even know you were in New York that often.”
Meg smiled slightly, her fingers wrapped around her water glass. “I’m here a lot ever since I took my new role. It involves a lot of travel. New York is one of the cities I don’t actually mind.”
Gen rolled her eyes. “That’s the price you pay for brilliance, I guess. If you didn’t want to hustle, you shouldn’t have invented a new method to...” She paused. “What is it again that you figured out?”
Meg sighed. “Using robotics, I figured out a safer method to perform a coronary artery bypass graft. It’s literally called the McCready Method.” She stared at her sister, and Gen grimaced.
“Sorry. I’m not a doctor, so I don’t remember all of that...jargon. Also, I don’t know why you kept your maiden name.”
“That one’s easy,” Meg answered. “Meghan McCready sounds like a rock star. Meg Harris sounds like a housewife.”
The waiter returned with their wine, took their steak orders, and they were left to drink in peace.
“There’s nothing wrong with being a housewife,” Gen pointed out.
“Of course there isn’t. If that’s your thing. It’s just not mine. My mind races all of the time. It’s hard to explain. I’ve got to have a challenge, Gennie.”
Gen didn’t bother pointing out that running a household full of children was probably an incredible challenge. It was one she hadn’t had the opportunity to find out. Thad hadn’t wanted kids.
Meg lifted her glass. “Sisters forever.”
Gen nodded. “Sisters forever.” They clinked glasses, then drained them, in an almost identical way, each setting their empty glass down with a thud at the same time.
They chuckled, then poured a second glass.
After their second glasses were empty, Gen’s phone buzzed with a text. She glanced at it.
Have you signed the papers yet? They were delivered.
She ignored it, and her sister looked at her questioningly. Gen rolled her eyes with a sigh.
“Thad. He wants to know if I’ve signed yet.”
“Have you?” Meg asked, sipping her third glass of wine. By this time, her lips were starting to have a slight purple hue from the merlot, and her cheeks were flushed.
“Not yet. I will, but I’m gonna make him sweat a little first. He certainly took his time coming to an agreement about them.” Gen dripped a bit of wine on the table, and the waiter came immediately to blot at it.
“True,” Meg agreed. “But what did you expect? You married a lawyer.”
She screwed up her face and then laughed. Her own husband, Joe, her high school sweetheart, was a contractor, and Joe didn’t have a contentious bone in his body.
The appetizer and salads they had ordered came, and they stopped talking as they attacked the brie drizzled with pesto and oil with wolfish vigor. By the time the steaks arrived, they had graduated from red wine to Long Island iced teas.