Chapter Twenty-Eight
Ten minutes later, Aggie met Meemaw at Vinos and Pinots for a happy-hour dinner before Meemaw went to work.
“I had a nice little chinwag with Officer Bobby and lost track of the time,” Meemaw said.
Aggie sighed. “Were you speeding again?” Officer Bobby had pulled Meemaw over at least once a week ever since she won a convertible at a poker game, and so far, Meemaw had been able to talk herself out of every ticket. The guy never gave her anything but a warning.
“Just a smidge. Anyway, I hope you don’t mind, but he and his lovely fiancée will be Grace’s and my new bridge partners.”
“You guys are firing your grandchildren?” Surprise but not relief swept through Aggie. She hadn’t hated being Max’s Bridge partner. “Why?” Did this mean the grandmothers had given up on matchmaking the two of them?
Meemaw leaned across the table and gazed intently at Aggie.
Oh God, could she see Aggie’s happiness?
“Sugar, Officer Bobby practically invited himself.”
Aggie laughed. She very much doubted it happened that way. Poor Officer Bobby was probably still wondering how he’d come to agree to learning the game of Bridge.
“Why are you so darn happy?” Meemaw asked.
Aggie startled. She could lie and say she was just super relieved she didn’t have to play Bridge anymore. Or she could tell Meemaw the truth. At least part of it. The part that didn’t include her kissing her boss. “Max complimented me today.”
“Really. On what? Leg compliments don’t count.”
“It wasn’t on my legs. It was on an idea I had to help him bring in more of the younger crowd’s business.” Just saying it made her grin like a Mega Millions lotto winner.
“I knew you had it in you to impress him. What else happened?”
Damn, she was sharp. “Nothing else. Isn’t that enough?”
“I don’t know. I don’t have my glasses on to properly analyze your smile. My gut’s telling me it’s more than an I-made-the-boss-proud smile.”
Aggie picked up the menu and held it in front of her face. “That’s all it is. Now, what do you want to order?”
“Something easy to digest. Grace’s country club is voting on my becoming a member tomorrow morning, and I’m already too nervous to keep food down.”
Aggie dropped the menu. “What? Why is this the first you’ve spoken of it?” She had heard her right…right? “My meemaw is up for membership at a swanky country club?”
“I am, and I didn’t tell you because I may not get in. I’m sure Grace bullied her way into getting my name on the list, but that doesn’t mean she can bully anyone to vote for me, especially since the votes are secret.”
“Even if you don’t, just getting recommended is a big deal. Let’s go out tomorrow night and celebrate both our good news.”
Hazel shook her head. “I don’t want to count my chickens before they hatch. There’s a fine chance I won’t be invited. Not that I care a lick if they say no.”
“There’s a finer chance you will be invited.” Aggie believed in putting out into the universe what you wanted. And she very much wanted this for Meemaw. It might be just the thing to heal her low self-esteem. “There’s a saying, if you plan to celebrate it, it will happen.”
“I don’t think that’s a saying, but if it makes you happy, we’ll boldly plan a celebration for tomorrow night. And we’ll invite Grace and Max to join us because that’s what we’d do if we knew for certain I was going to get the elusive invite.”
“Exactly.” Surely if the grandmothers had uninvited their grandchildren to play Bridge, that meant they’d give up on their matchmaking idea. She and Max would just have to be careful not to rekindle that hope over dinner.
Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out and read the message.
Her heart rate jacked up, and her stomach clenched. The message was from the private investigator Richard Harris had loaned her. She dropped her phone back in her purse. This could be it. She could finally reunite with Mom.
If that happened, she would deal.
Nothing could be worse than the not-knowing hole inside of her.
Once she talked to Mom, the hole would heal. Her heart might not mend, but the hole would be gone, because she would have answers.
Then again, how foolish was it to chase after a woman who didn’t want you in her life?
“Everything okay?” Meemaw asked. “Was that Max telling you to get back to work and impress him again with your brain?”
Aggie tried to give her a smile, but gravity made an example of its optimism. She couldn’t tell Meemaw. If Meemaw found out, she’d fret her love for Aggie hadn’t been enough. And that wasn’t true. And never in a thousand years would she hurt Meemaw.
“You nailed it. Max wants my ass back at work.” Luckily, Meemaw would leave for work from here and would never know she went straight home afterward. “He said when he hired me, our hours would sometimes be untraditional.” She pulled her phone out and sent a text.