Of course she’d ask me that. Of course she would.

I sigh. “I don’t want to tell you that.” I realize immediately that I should’ve just made up a story, but I can’t lie to her. I never could.

“Why not?”

The question hangs in the air around us for a few seconds before I finally answer. “Because I’m afraid you’ll think less of me.”

“Impossible.” She says that word with such conviction that I’m sure she’s right.

“I met him at the airport on my way to Gabby’s wedding. There was a weather delay, and we…spent it together.” I don’t really want to elaborate, but my mom’s a smart woman; she understands what it is that I’m not telling her.

“Oh.”

“I didn’t think I’d see him again, which…yeah, I guess doesn’t make this sound any better. I just…I wanted to put something, someone between Ethan and me.”

Mom nods slowly, taking all of this in. “Why was he at the wedding?”

“Turns out he’s Ben’s brother.”

Mom’s not as shocked about this development as I would’ve thought she’d be. Instead of offering me a reply, she just looks at the picture, and a soft smile pulls at her lips. “You love him,” she says.

“I only knew him a week.” I don’t even try to deny what she said, because what’s the point?

“If you feel it, you feel it, Cal,” she says, squeezing my hand. “What difference does it make how long it takes?”

“Nate said the exact same thing.”

“He sounds like a smart guy,” she replies, smiling.

“How can I trust it?” I ask.

“Why is a love you feel right away more trustworthy than the one that takes time to grow?”

“Because that love is rooted in something,” I tell her. “I wouldn’t be worried about waking up one morning and not feeling it anymore.”

“Love is love, Cal. It’s not about how long it takes you to feel it, it’s about how much effort you put into it to make it last. Don’t act like it’s something that just happens. It’s something that you have to nurture.”

I sit back in my chair and think about what she just said. My relationship with Ethan fell apart because he wasn’t willing to nurture what we had. If I’m honest with myself, it started to die long before the cheating. But did I nurture it, or did I treat it like something that was just a given once it happened? I liked being with him, I put effort into that, but what did I do to make our love grow? Did I do anything to give it roots? I had list of things that I thought should happen once Ethan and I started dating. We’d get serious, move in together, get married, have children, and then spend the rest of our lives together. But I wasn’t really investing in a life with him, I was checking off a list. I’m not to blame for the way the relationship ended, but I am to blame for not putting more into it. Although now I’m beginning to realize that may be a blessing in disguise.

Maybe Nate was right. Maybe I needed to be with a person who didn’t fit in order to learn the lessons I needed to learn to find the person who does fit.

“I barely know him,” I say, voicing the one niggling concern that pulls at me, stops that bud of feelings I have for Nate from fully blossoming.

“So get to know him,” Mom says like it’s the simplest thing in the world. Maybe it is.

“Is that what you did with my father?” I ask.

Mom knows exactly what I’m getting at.

“Your father was an adventure,” she says a bit wistfully.

“An ugly one.”

Removing her hand from mine, she reaches over and touches my cheek. “Not so much.”

“You don’t regret it?” I ask, wondering how she possibly couldn’t. He left us alone, how could she not hate him for that?

“Not for a second,” she replies. “It was a learning experience. Besides, he gave me you.”

I swallow, somehow managing a smile. “But you’re alone.”

Mom stands, then leans down and kisses my forehead, cupping my cheeks with her hands. “I love you so much,” she says, smiling softly. “But when something bad happens, you retreat. You don’t give it another go, and that scares me. I’m worried that one day you’ll wake up all alone, regretting that you pushed people away and regretting the things you never did because you were afraid. We all fall down, we all fail. The strong ones get back up, and they try again. I raised a strong one.”

“Mom-”

“You only get one life,” she says, interrupting me. “You have to fill it up with all the love and laughter that you can. Run away from those things long enough and you’ll forget how to find them. I’m alone because I’m happy being alone. If you’re happy the way things are now, then keep being happy.” She looks over at the pic of Nate and me that’s still up on my laptop screen. “If you’re not happy, then chase that happiness. If you think you can find some of it with him, then do it. Life’s too short to deny yourself love, Callista.”

I close my eyes and let her words sink in.

She’s right. I know she’s right.

“I’VE GOT my sunscreen, my bikini, and my English-to-Greek phrase book. Saturday can’t get here fast enough,” Jasmine says, stretching her legs out in front of her as she leans back into the soft green grass. She, Gabby and I are eating lunch at one of our favorite parks, and the weather is perfect. The sun is shining and the breeze is warm; it’s enough to help a girl forget her troubles for an hour or two. The talk I had with my mother last night has been weighing on my mind all morning, pushing me to the brink of action. I’m just not sure exactly what to do now. Do I call Nate? It seems like the logical next step, but it also doesn’t seem like it’s enough.

“I don’t think you realize how long that flight’s going to be,” Gabby says, licking a dollop of mustard off the tip of her thumb. “It’s going to be the longest flight of your life.”

I look at Jasmine, who’s looking at me, and I know she’s thinking the same thing that I am. How long of a grace period does Gabby get to talk about her honeymoon before we all put a stop to it?

“Go to Europe once, and suddenly you’re a flight time expert,” I say, winking at her to let her know I’m teasing.

Gabby swats at me, laughing. “I’m sorry, I’ll stop talking about it soon.”

“You get another three days, and then we’re cutting you off,” I tell her.

“Be glad Callie’s your best friend. I’d cut you off two weeks ago.”

Gabby laughs, throwing a balled-up napkin at Jasmine as she stands up and brushes off the back of her skirt.

“I’ve got to get back to the office,” Jasmine says, gathering her trash into a plastic grocery bag. “I’m going to stress myself out to get ready for the vacation that’s supposed to de-stress me, so that’s fun.”

I sigh loudly. “Ah, being your own boss has its perks.”

“So does having company subsidized healthcare,” Jasmine replies with a wink. “I’ll see you ladies later.”

“Have a fun trip!” I yell after her.

She turns towards us, walking backwards as she holds out her arms. “You know I will!”

Gabby and I stand up, and I walk with her to the corner of the park, the one closest to her office.

“Hey,” I say, sounding more nervous than I actually feel, which surprises me. “I was wondering if you would feel comfortable giving me Nate’s number.”

Her eyes widen, caught somewhere between surprise and happiness. “You don’t already have it?”

I shake my head. “I didn’t think it would be a good idea,” I admit.

“But…” she says as she digs in her purse, pulling out a pad of paper and a pencil.

“But I’d like to talk to him.”

“About what?”

She’s so damn nosy.

“About things,” I tell her. Partly because I’m not yet sure what exactly it is that I want to say to him, and partly because whatever it is that I do say, I think he should be the first person to hear it.

Thankfully, she doesn’t press the issue. She just grins at me as she hands me the piece of paper with his number written on it. “He asks about you, you know.”