Allegiance - Chiah Wilder Page 0,10
I get it, but there’s no point in worrying about it now. The moment’s gone, and I don’t have a time machine. I probably won’t see him again. But, I swear, the next time a delicious, gorgeous guy at an event wants to take me to bed, I’ll jump in on the action without question, and give you a full recap while he’s in the shower.”
Felicia pursed her lips and cocked her head, clearly thinking about her offer. “Add in some nudes of the guy in question and you have a deal.”
Lena burst out laughing, and Felicia joined in. After catching her breath, Lena said, “It’s a deal.” She checked the clock. “I gotta run. We’ll talk soon.”
“Wait! Can a visit from me fit into your busy schedule? I have some paid vacation time saved up.”
“I’d love for you to come visit. It seems like it’s been forever since we saw each other face-to-face. That would be amazing, Fe.”
“So you can spare the time, Ms. Business Woman Extraordinaire? I don’t want to rip you away from your spreadsheets and recipe developments.”
“I would love for you to come here. I’ll drop everything if I have to—you know I miss you like crazy. Just let me know as soon as you firm up the dates.”
“I was planning on booking the trip in the next month or two. It’s really not the same here without you, you know that. It’s been rough.”
Lena thought back over everything she had left behind in San Francisco to start her business in Santa Teresita. It had been a hard decision to leave her city, but looking back, she didn’t have many regrets. Moving to Santa Teresita was the fresh start she needed after what had happened—
A fresh stab of pain pierced her heart. She shook her head, not ready to dive into the past. She had a meeting with Mrs. Wright in less than five minutes, and she had to be on her A-game to secure the contract.
Felicia put her arms out, as if she were hugging Lena over the connection. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring everything up and make you sad. You’ve come a long way since your parents’ death, and I know it was hard. You needed this reset. It’s just that I miss you—we used to do everything together. And the rest of the group misses you too. We should all come and visit you one weekend. It’d be great to sleep in late, hang on the beach, and go dancing.”
“That would be fun. Let’s think about it.”
“We will—for sure. Again, I didn’t mean to make you sad.”
“I know, and it’s okay.” Lena blew out a deep breath and squeezed her eyes shut, forcing back the tears that still sometimes came unexpectedly whenever she thought about her parents’ tragic deaths. “Even though it’s going on four years, it still feels like it just happened.”
“I get it… well, as much as I can.” Felicia adjusted herself in her office chair. “No one expects their parents to die when they’re so young, and certainly not in a plane crash. I’m sure the idea of letting anyone else into your life must be hard. You know, the whole thing about not knowing if you could lose them like you lost your parents.”
Her best friend since grade school lapsed into silence, and they both sat with their own thoughts for a few seconds. There wasn’t anything Lena could add to the conversation. The truth was, there wasn’t a day that had gone by since the plane crash she hadn’t thought about her parents, and how much she missed them.
After the crash, she’d been in a heartbroken daze. After a couple of years of grief therapy, she’d been able to move forward. Settling in the place she and her parents used to vacation when she was a kid seemed like the perfect place to start over. As hard as she tried, there were days when the heartache and longing to hear her father’s laugh, or her mother’s sage advice, were overwhelming. Nothing had prepared her for her entire foundation to be rocked to the core for the rest of her life.
Sniffling, she offered Fe a weak smile.
“They would’ve been so proud of you. You know that, don’t you?” Felicia wiped a small tear from her cheek with her thumb and smiled back at her. “You’re everything they wanted in a daughter, and so much more, Lena. You just have to remember that they would want you to