“Oh. Okay,” Olivia says. “So I take it she doesn’t know you’re calling me?”
“Correct,” I say.
“Would she be upset with you?”
“Yes. Probably. She really hates your father,” I say, realizing that there are nuances I haven’t explained, including that Lainey’s mother has passed away.
“Well, it’s hard to blame her for that,” Olivia says.
“How do you feel about him?” I ask.
“I love him. I love both my parents. But they’re problematic. I had to take a break from my whole family.”
“I get that.”
“Maybe you could tell Lainey that? It might make her feel better.”
“Maybe. I just need to think things through a bit,” I say, my mind racing. “Could I do that and reach out again?”
“Of course,” she says. “Anytime.”
“Thank you,” I say, feeling a rush of unexpected affection for this woman on the phone. Lainey’s sister.
—
When I get back to our room, Lainey is passed out on the bed, snoring with her mouth wide open, while Tyson sits a few feet away from her, reading a book. I ask him if we can talk, then lead him out to the hallway.
“You’ll never believe what just happened,” I say, then quickly tell him the whole story, right down to Olivia being in Italy. “Maybe Lainey would want to see her?”
He grimaces, then says, “Hannah, no. I don’t think this is a good idea.”
“But she’s so nice,” I say. “She’s nothing like Ashley. I really think Lainey would like her.”
“Maybe down the road. Way down. But for now, I really think we need to respect her feelings,” Tyson says. “If we tell her that her other sister is in Italy, she’ll lose her mind and go back to New York.”
I start to protest, but Tyson cuts me off. “Look, Han. I know your heart is in the right place, but trust me, we need to put a pin in this sister stuff.”
I sigh and nod. “You’re probably right,” I say, thinking of how my fairy-tale notions of love and family have contributed to my own problems, and wondering when I’ll ever learn.
Chapter 12
Lainey
Twenty-four hours later, we are boarding our flight to Rome. Our seats, booked late last night, are in the very back of the plane. But at least we got three together. As we approach our row, I call dibs on the window seat, feeling certain Hannah will give it to me despite my assigned middle seat.
Sure enough, she shrugs, declaring the middle seat “cozy.” She’s normally accommodating, but this is over the top even for her. Everyone hates the middle seat, especially on an international flight. I figure she must be feeling really guilty about the scene at my sister’s house.
As we settle into our seats, she kicks off her sneakers and puts on a pair of fuzzy socks. “I can’t believe we pulled this off,” she says with a contented sigh. “A trip to Italy! It feels like a dream.”
“I know,” Tyson says, almost smiling.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited,” Hannah says.
“Well, that’s a telling statement,” I say. “I wish Grady could hear you say that.”
“Facts,” Tyson says with a nod.
“C’mon, y’all. If you’re talking about getting engaged, that was sort of a given after all those years,” she says. “Almost more of a relief than anything else. This is so…spontaneous.”
I nod. The word spontaneous makes me think of Gus, who’s been texting me nonstop. I look at my phone now, seeing a new message, telling me that he signed up for Hulu just so he could watch my show.
I start to write him back, but I get distracted watching Hannah pull up Instagram on her phone, then type a DM. She angles her screen away from me, which only piques my interest. She must sense that I’m trying to read over her shoulder because she quickly swipes out of the app.
“Who were you just messaging?” I ask.
“No one,” she says.
“Yeah, right. I know a sneaky maneuver when I see one,” I say with a laugh.
“It was just a friend,” she says.
“As long as it’s not Grady,” I say.
“It’s not. He’s still blocked.”
“And he hasn’t tried to email you?”
“No. But he did Venmo me five dollars—”
