Midlife Do Over

Valona snorted. “Now the music is all digital, and there are at least ten craft brews on tap, if you can believe it.”

“A lot has changed in twenty years.”

“It happened right in front of me and I’m still amazed.” Val grinned as if she was seeing the place for the first time. “My favorite is that the dart boards are all digital now, no more finger counting during five-oh-one.”

“You want to play?”

“No, but I am thinking about joining the dart league that meets up here once a week. It’ll give me a hobby, and maybe I’ll get a practice board for the garage.”

“Perfect!” I clapped excitedly. “We can get drunk in the comfort of your home and play darts horribly.”

“Speak for yourself, I plan to play perfectly,” she shot back with a playful smile. “Don’t look now, but two of the four Gregory siblings have just entered the establishment.”

My brows dipped in confusion. “Are they not allowed out?”

“Of course they are, why wouldn’t they be?” She whispered.

I shrugged and sipped my bourbon. “I don’t know, Val. Why are you talking like a spy from the sixties?”

She laughed, and I was pretty sure the bourbon had gone straight to her head. “They’re coming this way.”

I opened my mouth to ask her which of the two siblings were here just as Lacey appeared, Roman at her side. “Lacey. Roman. Good to see you both.”

Surprise flashed in Lacey’s blue eyes and she gave me a curt nod. “Glad to have you back in town, Pippa.”

“Yeah, Pip. Glad to hear you finally got enough of cold winters and wet summers.” Roman bent down and smacked a loud kiss to my cheek, wrapping me in his arms. “Looking like a million bucks as always, Pip.”

Strange enough, it didn’t bother me when Roman called me Pip. In fact, it brought back so many fun and exciting childhood memories of us swimming at the pond on the edge of town, drinking beers late into the night at Cranston Field, cruising for the sake of cruising. “Right back at you, rock star. You’re all grown up.”

His cheeks turned the faintest shade of pink. “That happens over twenty years, Pip.”

“Right.”

Roman turned his attention to Val, giving her a long perusal, his blue eyes filled with heat. “Hey Valona. Looking beautiful. You gonna let me take you out while I’m in town?”

She blinked in confusion that cleared quickly. “Roman,” she sighed. “I’m old enough to be-,”

He cut her off. “Old enough to be my sister or my date, I know how old you are. What I don’t know, is what night I’m picking you up.”

“Damn,” I whispered, watching the man I’d known as a little boy, put some smooth moves on my best friend.”

“Be serious,” she shot back, half annoyed and half angry for some reason.

“I am serious, Valona. If you’re not interested just say so. I’m a big boy. I can take it.”

“You certainly aren’t a boy anymore,” I mumbled with a laugh. Valona shot me a look that told me to shut my mouth. “What? He’s hot and fun, and only looking for a good time. Exactly the kind of fun you need.”

“Yeah,” Roman agreed. “All of that.” He winked at me and I rolled my eyes. “So?”

“You are hot. Really hot.”

“I think I’m gonna be sick,” Lacey said, adding a gag for good measure.

“But I can’t,” she said with true regret. “Bridget has three posters of you on her wall and that would be weird and unsettling, and it would probably make her hate me.”

Roman nodded with a hint of disappointment that I was sure he would shrug off quickly. “Well your daughter has excellent taste. Too bad though, because you look like quite the snack, Val.” He shrugged once again and sauntered off.

“Well that was appropriately awkward.” Lacey took a sip of her margarita and I realized in that moment how much I’d missed our friendship.

“That’s Roman for ya,” I added with a grin to ease some of the tension. “Congrats Lacey, I hear you run the paper now.”

“Thanks. If I can increase readership and ad revenue, I’ll be happy Dad has finally retired.”

A loud whistle sounded from the back of the bar and then Roman spoke. “Get your butt over here Lacey, or I’m gonna have a belly full of your potato skins.”

She rolled her eyes. “Baby brother calls. It was good to see you both, maybe we could have lunch or dinner, or just a bottle of something expensive together?”

“That sounds wonderful. Girl talk and booze, two things I’ve sorely missed.”

That got her shoulders to relax before she hurried off with a loud warning to stay away from her potato skins for her brother.

“That was nice of you, to break the tension with Lacey. She thought you hated her after you and Ryan broke up.”