She pinched my arm. “Don’t make fun of me. It’s my wedding; I get to make lists. And you’re on your own here for the next two weeks. I’m sure you’ve got things to do.”
“Yeah, like obsess over the house I can’t afford.”
Mia frowned. “Which house?”
“The one in Indian Village. I can’t stop thinking about it.”
“The old one? Coco, are you drunk? They’re asking over three hundred grand for that place! It’s huge! And it needs so much work!”
Fidgeting, I admitted, “It would be a project, I know. But I love old houses! And when I walked through it, I got a feeling.” I shivered as I recalled moving through rooms with high ceilings, creaky wood floors, lead glass windows. Maybe there were a few cracks in the plaster and some smelly carpet—not to mention a kitchen that hadn’t been remodeled since 1975—but there was an old newspaper covering a broken windowpane and it was dated September twenty-sixth, which was my birthday. It was clearly a sign.
“A feeling?” Mia asked dubiously, her upper lip curling.
“Like I was supposed to live there. Like it’s been waiting for me. And that newspaper in the kitchen—it was a sign!”
“A sign that that window has been broken since your twenty-first birthday.”
I held up my hands. “I know it sounds crazy, but I felt a connection to the place. I can’t explain it completely. I mean, we were in that neighborhood looking at another house entirely.”
“Yeah, one you could afford.”
“I know, but then I saw that one and fell in love. I think it was fate.” I clasped my hands over my heart and rose up on tiptoe. “I want it, Mia. And my agent just called and said there’s going to be an offer on it. She said I better be prepared to act soon.”
“Of course she did. They all say that.” She shook her head. “Don’t let her push you. Buying a house is a huge investment and you need more time to think it through. You need a plan.”
My heels returned to the ground. “I gotta get out of my parents’ house, Mia.”
“I can understand that.” She shrugged. “You could stay with me and Lucas for a while. We have a spare room.”
I gaped at her. “What? You’ll be newlyweds! No way.” Not only would it be a gross intrusion on their privacy, it would serve as a painful reminder that everyone else on the planet was having sex and I wasn’t, even if the drought was self-imposed. I wasn’t looking to get married, much to my grandmother’s chagrin, but it would be nice to meet someone attractive, fun, and fucking stable to hang out with.
The last couple guys I’d dated either had prior records, vicious exes, or Mommy Issues. I was done with that.
“Fine, then with Erin.”
My chin slid forward and I stubbed the toe of my red wedge sandal into the floor. “I want that house. I need it.”
“Coco…” Mia’s voice held a warning note.
“What?”
“You can’t afford that house. Promise me you’re not going to do anything rash while I’m gone.”
My eyes shifted to the left. “I’m not, I promise.”
“Coco!”
“What?” I leaned down and fussed with the straps of one shoe to avoid meeting her eyes.
“You are the worst liar in the world. Listen to me.” She grabbed my arm and brought me up to eye level. “I know how you get when have a feeling about something. But you can’t buy a house with a feeling.”
“I had a feeling about you and Lucas, remember?” I asked brightly. “Look how well that turned out!”
“Coco.” Her voice was stern and her grip tight. “Yes. You are a very intuitive person. But you’re also very impulsive. We just got your finances in order. Your credit card balance is down and you have a good amount of cash saved up. You just need to stop the crazy spending.”
My eyes slid left again. “I don’t crazy spend.”
She let go of my arm. “Oh no? What about the four-hundred-dollar sets of Le Creuset cookware you bought for all of us last year?”
I twisted my fingers together. “Well, it was Christmas…almost.”
“And the two-hundred dollar Beachwaver curling irons?”
I threw up my hands. “That was a limited time offer on QVC! I can’t be expected to pass those up.”
“Uh huh. And the trapeze lessons?”
I opened my mouth but nothing came out. Yeah, I couldn’t really defend that one. Exhaling, I shook my head, my spirits wilting like a week-old wedding bouquet. “But this isn’t like that—this feels different!”
Mia spoke in a calmer tone. “Look, after the wedding, I’ll sit down with you and we’ll make a list of all the other houses we’ve seen and discuss pros and cons of each of them.” Either she didn’t see me wrinkle my nose or she ignored it. “And if you still don’t feel like one of those is right for you, we’ll keep looking, OK?”
Grimacing, I tried to resign myself to the fact that she was right, and I was stuck living with my parents for the time being. Endless nights of cribbage and criticism loomed in front of me. My shoulders slumped. “I think I need another drink.”
She patted my head. “What you need is a little boost. Tell you what. Any business that comes in while I’m gone is all yours—the entire twenty percent commission.”