“Tatum’s right,” Mum said, listening in on our conversation. “Finding a man has become your sole focus lately, and to be quite frank, I’m missing my Monroe time. We haven’t been to the spa in months. And do you remember the last time we went shopping together? I don’t.”
“Right,” Savannah said, joining in. “We’re hitting the spa this Saturday. All of us. No excuses.”
“I’m in,” Tatum said as she drank some of her wine. Her eyes sparkled with fun, which was odd for her, but then again, dating Nitro had changed her. She was all about the fun these days.
“Me too,” Nikita agreed, smacking David as he muttered something under his breath again.
Mum’s face lit up with happiness. She eyed Dad. “Looks like you’ve got some peace and quiet on the agenda for this weekend, Col. I’ll pick up a roast tomorrow. You can cook it while we’re all at the spa on Saturday. Family dinner twice in one week is exactly what Monroe needs.”
“And some shoe shopping on Sunday,” I said. “That’s the other thing I need.”
Dad chuckled. “Of course it is. I’ve heard shoes fix everything.”
They didn’t fix everything, but I didn’t tell him that. I didn’t want my family to know just how disappointed I was becoming over being single. I wasn’t the kind of person to get down, but lately I’d felt every bit of being single, and it sucked.
“Nitro’s been really busy with the club lately. Is everything okay?” I asked Tatum a few hours later at the pub after dinner.
Shaking her head, she said, “No, they’ve got a lot of problems at the moment. I’m hoping they can figure them all out soon, because he’s so tense and hardly ever at home.”
“How’s the wedding preparations going?”
“Don’t ask. We’ve got less than two months to finalise it all, and I feel like I’m drowning in plans.”
“That’s because your man was so bloody adamant that he wanted that ring on your finger fast. Maybe you should tell him you’re pushing the date out.”
She lifted a brow. “You think Nitro is going to go for that? I’d have more luck telling him I was knocking our house down and pitching a tent for us to live in.”
I smiled. “I love the way he’s changed you.”
“He’s changed me in so many ways. Which one are you referring to?”
“All of it. If there was ever meant to be a couple, it was you two. And I actually don’t know if you have changed each other or if you’ve just changed yourselves so you can love each other and yourselves better.”
She finished her glass of wine. “You’re just a big old romantic, Roe. I don’t know anyone else who loves love like you do. You’re going to find your man one day, and he’s going to love you so hard.”
“Yes, and until then, I’m going to buy shoes and hit day spas with my mum.” God help me.
Tatum laughed. “I do love your mother, but there is no way I’ll ever allow you to spend all your weekends with her.”
“Thank fuck. I was beginning to think I’d turn into a crazy old cat lady living on my own.”
She grinned. “With all your shoes. Don’t forget them.”
“Fuck. I need another drink. And then maybe I’ll just take a quick peek around the club and see if there are any men I wanna talk to.” At the shake of her head, I added, “Just a really quick peek. Like, five minutes max.”
“Five minutes!” She tapped her imaginary watch. “I’m counting those minutes.”
I left her and headed towards the bar, checking the pub out for men as I walked. It was Wednesday, not a busy night, so I lucked out on finding anyone that matched my list of requirements.
As I handed Tatum her drink a few moments later, she said, “That was quick. Let me guess, none of the guys in here were a fit.”
I ignored her sarcasm. She made fun of my list, but I held fast to it. And the longer it took me to find the one, the more items were added to it. “I don’t think there are any men in here taller than me, Tatum. That’s an automatic strike.”
“Yeah, I don’t blame you. I couldn’t imagine being with a man shorter than me.” She placed her drink down on the table. “Okay, enough talk about men. Tell me how the gym’s going.”
I pulled a face. “How the fuck do you think the gym is going? You know of my hate affair with the fucking gym.” I’d joined for the fifth time in my life two days ago in my latest attempt at shifting some weight. And it was still the home of horror as far as I was concerned.
“What are you doing there?”