Two to Tangle (A Tangle Valley Romance #2) - Melissa Brayden Page 0,104
least you can do is catch me up, though.” Joey placed a hand on her hip and regarded Gabriella expectantly with a raised eyebrow.
“Fair enough, only I have just as many questions as you do.” She stared at the glass as if it carried answers.
“Did you sleep with her?”
Gabriella’s eyes went wide. “With Maddie? No. I promise. We kissed. That’s all.”
Joey’s hand relaxed off her hip. “And how did that go? Because I have to be honest, I did not see that coming, and I worry. For you. For her. I mean, what’s going on here? The world feels weird.”
“With Madison and me, our differences always got in our way. We’d argue over the stupidest things—organizing a refrigerator, what time to leave for a party, how we approached our work-life balance. But you know what? I can handle stupid disagreements and the way we misalign if the important things are all accounted for. Someone who I respect and care about, who also feels the same about me. Someone who will be there through the good and bad.”
Joey held up a hand. “Maddie’s a rock. I completely agree. But in that entirely well-thought-out statement, you left out one very important word.”
“And what’s that?”
“Love. You can find an amazing combination of traits, put them all together, but they may not equal the most important sum of all.”
Gabriella reflected on the words, but only briefly. “There was a time when I would have agreed with you. But love stirs the pot. It confuses the larger picture, and I’m not sure love is at the top of my priority list right now.”
“Well, that’s the stupidest damn thing I’ve ever heard you say.” Their heads swiveled to Loretta, who’d moments ago been polishing wineglasses down the bar. She moved toward them with purpose, setting down the glass in her hand. She had her gray hair in a knot at the back of her head, which made her green eyes blaze more noticeably. “I’ve always thought you were a smart girl, too, but I can’t listen to you spout words that are, simply put, ridiculous.”
Gabriella was shocked but held her ground. “That’s because you’re caught up in it, too.”
“Love? Damn right I’m in love, and thrilled, because it changes life for the better.”
Joey’s eyes went wide, and she looked from Gabriella to Loretta.
“Told you,” Gabriella said, pointing at Loretta. “She’s a smitten kitten for your uncle Bobby.”
“And do you think I planned on falling in love with that baseball cap wearing fool?” Loretta asked with fire. “Absolutely not. I fought it with everything I had, just like I’m watching you do now, but when I finally came around and said, okay, I’ll do the scary part, it’s been the best time of my life.”
“You and Bobby are real?” Joey squeaked, still absorbing.
“Yes, they’re real,” Gabriella practically snapped. “I’ve been telling you that they’re a couple of make-out bandits for weeks now. They’re sneaky, too. The sneakiest of kissing bandits, and dammit, you need to listen to me more.”
“We do kiss quite a bit. I can admit.” Loretta touched her lips as if reliving one of those stolen moments now.
Joey blinked. “I just thought you had it wrong, mistook what you’d seen.”
“Trust me. I’m aware,” Gabriella said. “The bandits set me up.”
“Why not just tell us?” Joey asked Loretta, softening.
Loretta shrugged and grabbed a dish towel to twist for support. “Well, at first I wasn’t at all happy about it, so I didn’t want you to know. You’d think I’d lost my mind. Then, when I was happy about it, sneaking around felt clandestine.”
“She means hot,” Gabriella supplied, ignoring how sizzling her own love life used to be.
“Hell, yes,” sweet little Loretta said. “But I told Carly when she was here, and she was very much in support. She’ll be back for the wedding next year and is picking up the tab.”
Gabriella’s jaw dropped. Joey sputtered on a sip of water. “I’m sorry. What?” Joey asked.
“We’re getting married. Your uncle and me. He presented me with a real pretty ring last week. He said I could tell you.” She turned with purpose to Gabriella. “We had our issues, plenty of stumbles, but we hung in there, and now we’re getting hitched. Love is the secret ingredient, not the problem. I firmly believe that.” She leaned across the bar, feisty. “That means love is the one part of the equation that can’t be left out—do you hear me?”