Side Trip(88)
“Are any of the studios available in the morning?”
“No, they’re booked solid all day. We’ve got Catharsis coming back in and an indie band we recently signed.”
Dylan runs a hand through his hair. “I’ll go in tonight then.”
Chase’s eyes flash at the promise of a new project. The guy is always eager. “What are you working on?”
“Something I should have done a long time ago.”
Chase’s brows pull tight and he watches Dylan curiously. “I’m wondering if you should leave now before you change your mind.”
Dylan smirks. “That’s probably not a bad idea. Do you mind?”
“No, I’ll walk you out.”
Dylan extends another congrats to Dakota and says goodbye to his industry peeps and Uncle Cal.
“I have the strange sense this has to do with Joy,” Chase muses as he waits with Dylan for his Uber.
“I’m going to find her when I get to New York.”
Chase whistles. “’Bout damn time. When do you leave?”
“Tomorrow evening, unless I can get an earlier flight.”
“I’m happy for you.”
“Same.” His heart has been racing erratically ever since he made up his mind to reach out to her. He pulls up an app and Venmos Chase a grand.
Chase’s phone pings. His cousin looks at the screen. “What’s this for?”
“You won the bet. You and Dakota lasted. Make sure it lasts forever.”
“No worries there. I intend to keep her just as long.”
“Congrats. Enjoy your honeymoon. Your wife’s amazing.”
“Yes, she is.” Chase hugs him and fist pounds his back as Dylan’s Uber pulls into the parking lot. “Have a safe flight,” he says when Dylan opens the rear passenger door.
Dylan gives Chase a fist bump and a big grin. “Will do.”
CHAPTER 31
AFTER
Joy
Through the kitchen window of Taryn’s Brooklyn apartment, Joy watches Taryn load her last box onto the U-Haul. Joy’s last item, Judy’s hatbox, waits on the tile counter beside her purse. She doesn’t plan to pack it for their drive west. The box holds snippets from her life and Judy’s, treasured lists, article clippings, and photos that make her ache with regret. She’ll keep some, like Judy’s bracelet that she wore at her wedding, and recycle the rest, something she should have done before she moved to New York.
And now she’s moving back to California.
She and Taryn went in together on a condo in Manhattan Beach. Taryn quit her job and plans to start her own social media agency. Surfari Soaps & Salves’ online store has seen promising success, and Joy’s been making plans to open a brick-and-mortar store once she gets settled. Something she hasn’t been for quite some time.
Her divorce from Mark took three months from start to finish, but she’d moved in with Taryn the day she and Mark agreed to separate, which was the day after he’d walked out. Joy didn’t contest anything. They evenly split their assets, except the brownstone. The house was never theirs. It belongs to his parents.
After she and Mark signed the paperwork to finalize their divorce, Joy invited him to coffee. She worried that he’d be angry with her. Does he resent her for marrying him? But he seemed happy. He was dating a woman from his office. Andi. Joy had met her at a company function some years back and has run into her time and again since. She likes Andi, and she’ll be good for Mark. She comes from an old New York family, and she wants children. Lots of them. Joy doubts they’ll waste any time getting started on their first.
Once they finished, and before they parted ways, Joy turned to Mark. “I should have told you about Judy a long time ago. I wish I did.”
He looked past her into the distance, his face closed. “Me too.” He sighed, regretful, and looked back at her. “I hope you find a way to let go of whatever is holding you back.”
“I will.” She was already seeing a therapist who specialized in family trauma. “I do love you,” she said with sincerity.
“I know.” Mark looked at the ground, then lifted his head. “Goodbye, Joy.” He gave her a hug, then hailed a cab.
Joy turns away from the kitchen window and lifts the lid off Judy’s box. A waterfall of memories and emotions pour out. This will be the last time she goes through the box, yet she vividly remembers the first time. The day she lifted the box from Judy’s room.
She’d been standing in Judy’s bedroom doorway, stunned to find the door open. It was the first time she had seen the inside of Judy’s room since her sister’s funeral five months prior. She couldn’t bear going in there, not after what she’d done. Thankfully, her parents kept the door shut, that is, until that day.
Judy’s blinds had been opened to let in the morning light. Empty cardboard boxes sat open on the floor, waiting to be fed records, books, and other knickknacks. Dresser drawers had been pulled open, the clothes removed and stacked on the bed. A noise came from the closet, plastic hangers scraping across the wood clothes rod. Her dad appeared with an armful of skirts. He dropped them on the bed and returned to the closet.
“What are you doing?” Joy asked, going into the room.
Her dad laid another armful on the bed, a rainbow pile of blouses. He removed a handkerchief from his back pocket and wiped his damp forehead, blotted at the moisture in his eyes. “Uh . . . well, I guess we’re packing up Judy’s things.”