your shit out and is still there once you get your head on straight.”
I put my cup down and stared at my mom. I was getting love advice from Fourth Marriage Barbie now? What next? Was my estranged father going to waltz in and lecture me on the importance of family?
“I know what you’re thinking,” she continued, her eyes moistening. “You’re thinking that I’ve been married so many times, and been with so many men, that my opinion doesn’t count. But it does. The reason I spent most of your life chasing love was because I wasn’t capable of working for it. When your father left, I thought that finding love again would be easy. But every time a challenge arose, I was the first one headed for the door. It wasn’t until I met Curtis that I learned what it meant to really love someone.”
“What does it really mean?” I asked, my voice hoarse.
“It means the person you’re with is worth fighting for.” She blinked a few times and sniffled. “It doesn’t matter what they do or say, it just matters that when you look at them, you know that you’d be willing to go anywhere, do anything, or wait forever for them. They’re worth it.”
I pictured Gabe standing in the rain, his shirt blood-spattered and soaked through. His eyes rimmed in red and his lip swollen. So much betrayal to process, and I’d sent him away for needing more time. Regret pressed down on me, and I was invisibly strapped to my seat. I could only sit there and wallow in the realization that I’d done the very thing I’d accused Gabe of. Not fighting for him.
My mother plucked her purse off the floor and pulled out a twenty. She slid it underneath her coffee mug, then leaned forward in her seat. “Violet, you’ve loved Gabe since you were six years old. Go find him. Work this out. Don’t let Cameron destroy what you guys have a second time. I don’t care if you move to Portland or Boston or Paraguay. Just don’t do it to get away from Gabe. You two are meant to be together.”
I was surprised when emotion swelled in my throat. “Thanks for the coffee, Mom.” I gestured at my empty cup but meant so much more.
She nodded knowingly. She knew what I meant. “Would you like a ride home?”
“No. My apartment’s only a block and a half away. I think I’ll walk.”
“It’s beautiful out.” She stood, then bent to kiss my head. “A good day for a walk. I love you, Violet.”
“I love you, too.” She put on her sunglasses and walked out, disappearing into the crowd outside of the shop. The evening sunlight hung low in the sky, casting an orangeish pink glow over the sidewalk. Sighing, I fingered the rim of my coffee cup. I needed to decide what I was going to say to Gabe. I wondered if the erotic bakery down the block sold humble pies. Clearing my throat a few times, I pulled my BlackBerry out of my pocket and dialed the number I’d had memorized for years.
“Hi, this is Gabe Parker. Not around right now. You know what to do.”
I pressed end and sat there for a few minutes. Where was he? I dialed the Parkers’ number. My throat tightened when Nora picked up.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Nora. It’s Violet.”
“I’m so glad it’s you! Guthrie and I were going to call you on our way to the M’s game tonight to wish you a happy birthday. Are you going to join us?”
I squeezed my eyes shut. How I wish I were on my way to a Mariners game with them tonight. “Actually, no. I’m sorry. I’ve been…preoccupied.”
She sighed. “I know, dear. Your mom said that you’ve taken a job in Portland.”
“I…well, yes.”
“Oh, Violet, we’ll miss you so much.”
“I know. Me, too.”
“It’s going to crush Gabriel.”
My breath caught in my throat. “That’s why I got back to you. Is Gabe going with you to the game?”
“No. He has a work party tonight. He wasn’t going to go because of the wedding, but now that it’s canceled, he decided to appease his boss.”
The lightbulb went off above my head. Gabe had dropped a flyer in my living room on the night he’d read the journal. There was a formal awards banquet being held downtown. “Thank you, Nora. I appreciate it.”
“Are you going to try to catch him before he leaves?”
“No. I think I’m going to meet him there.” I couldn’t control the