enjoyed the kiss. In fact, J.J. thinks Turner likes you.”
Candy sat ramrod straight on the bench. “What, are we suddenly in seventh grade again?”
Cheri laughed loud and long. Truly, it was a beautiful sound and Candy couldn’t help but join in. How could she not be thrilled that her friend was so outrageously happy? It had only taken Cheri a month to figure out she’d always loved J.J. and was destined to be the newest Newberry to serve as publisher of the Bugle . If Candy envied Cheri anything, it was how simple and straightforward the transition to happiness had been for her.
Their laughter eventually died down. That’s when Candy was suddenly hit with an appreciation for just how ridiculous her situation was. Last year at this time, her biggest dilemma was deciding whether to straighten her curls with a Brazilian blowout. And tonight she was freeloading in a retirement home, nine dollars and eleven cents in her pocket, talking on a cell phone that Cheri had paid for.
The instant Candy felt the tear hit her cheek, she wiped it away.
“How did we get here, Cheri?” she asked, her voice suddenly heavy with sadness. She knew her friend understood what she was asking, no matter how abrupt the subject change had been. And she knew Cheri didn’t mind answering her, no matter that they’d had this discussion a hundred times.
“We were on a roll, girl,” Cheri said with a sigh. “It was a thrill to buy and sell and watch our net worth skyrocket. We were smart and we acted decisively. It was like a game for us. It got to the point where it was easy to make money.”
“Too easy,” Candy said. She stood up and began to wander through the pines, her fingertips brushing against the cool, flexible needles. “It didn’t even seem real sometimes.”
“I know what you mean.”
“Like play money.”
“Yeah.”
“But we were good at it, weren’t we?”
“Damn good,” Cheri said.
“Then the rules changed, just like that.”
The two women were quiet for a moment, and the only sound was the crunch of Candy’s flip-flops on the pebbles and the chirping of nighttime bugs. She closed her eyes against the remembered pain of those awful months, where they could do nothing but watch as banks tanked, property values evaporated, and the market died on the vine. Candy heard the words burst from her lips before she even knew she planned to speak.
“I’m so sorry for my part in what happened,” she said. “I was always the one pushing for more, telling you about some new property we could flip or cookin’ up some deal. I know I can go off on a tangent sometimes, and I think my grand schemes—”
“That’s nuts and you know it.” Cheri cut her off. “We were a team. I made the numbers work and you had a knack for seeing the potential in properties. Whatever we did, we did together.”
“But the commercial deal—”
“Even that.”
Candy raked a hand through her hair and tilted her head back. The pines rose straight above her, piercing into the wispy night clouds and the stars beyond. She took a deep breath and wondered to herself once more—what would have happened if she hadn’t talked Cheri into moving from residential to commercial? If she hadn’t pushed to leverage their entire net worth on a single strip mall property? If she’d been satisfied with what they’d already acquired?
Sure, they would have suffered when the real estate bubble burst, like everyone else who owned property in southwestern Florida, but it wouldn’t have been total annihilation. Maybe they’d still have something left.
“I just … no.” Candy heard her voice break. “I think sometimes it’s my fault, that I got you into this mess.”
“Hey, Candy?”
“Yeah?”
“Everybody should be in the kind of mess I’m in.”
Candy sniffled. “I guess it turned out pretty good for you, didn’t it?”
“Uh, yeah .”
Candy began to laugh outright, and Cheri joined her, then said, “And it will work out
Candy sat ramrod straight on the bench. “What, are we suddenly in seventh grade again?”
Cheri laughed loud and long. Truly, it was a beautiful sound and Candy couldn’t help but join in. How could she not be thrilled that her friend was so outrageously happy? It had only taken Cheri a month to figure out she’d always loved J.J. and was destined to be the newest Newberry to serve as publisher of the Bugle . If Candy envied Cheri anything, it was how simple and straightforward the transition to happiness had been for her.
Their laughter eventually died down. That’s when Candy was suddenly hit with an appreciation for just how ridiculous her situation was. Last year at this time, her biggest dilemma was deciding whether to straighten her curls with a Brazilian blowout. And tonight she was freeloading in a retirement home, nine dollars and eleven cents in her pocket, talking on a cell phone that Cheri had paid for.
The instant Candy felt the tear hit her cheek, she wiped it away.
“How did we get here, Cheri?” she asked, her voice suddenly heavy with sadness. She knew her friend understood what she was asking, no matter how abrupt the subject change had been. And she knew Cheri didn’t mind answering her, no matter that they’d had this discussion a hundred times.
“We were on a roll, girl,” Cheri said with a sigh. “It was a thrill to buy and sell and watch our net worth skyrocket. We were smart and we acted decisively. It was like a game for us. It got to the point where it was easy to make money.”
“Too easy,” Candy said. She stood up and began to wander through the pines, her fingertips brushing against the cool, flexible needles. “It didn’t even seem real sometimes.”
“I know what you mean.”
“Like play money.”
“Yeah.”
“But we were good at it, weren’t we?”
“Damn good,” Cheri said.
“Then the rules changed, just like that.”
The two women were quiet for a moment, and the only sound was the crunch of Candy’s flip-flops on the pebbles and the chirping of nighttime bugs. She closed her eyes against the remembered pain of those awful months, where they could do nothing but watch as banks tanked, property values evaporated, and the market died on the vine. Candy heard the words burst from her lips before she even knew she planned to speak.
“I’m so sorry for my part in what happened,” she said. “I was always the one pushing for more, telling you about some new property we could flip or cookin’ up some deal. I know I can go off on a tangent sometimes, and I think my grand schemes—”
“That’s nuts and you know it.” Cheri cut her off. “We were a team. I made the numbers work and you had a knack for seeing the potential in properties. Whatever we did, we did together.”
“But the commercial deal—”
“Even that.”
Candy raked a hand through her hair and tilted her head back. The pines rose straight above her, piercing into the wispy night clouds and the stars beyond. She took a deep breath and wondered to herself once more—what would have happened if she hadn’t talked Cheri into moving from residential to commercial? If she hadn’t pushed to leverage their entire net worth on a single strip mall property? If she’d been satisfied with what they’d already acquired?
Sure, they would have suffered when the real estate bubble burst, like everyone else who owned property in southwestern Florida, but it wouldn’t have been total annihilation. Maybe they’d still have something left.
“I just … no.” Candy heard her voice break. “I think sometimes it’s my fault, that I got you into this mess.”
“Hey, Candy?”
“Yeah?”
“Everybody should be in the kind of mess I’m in.”
Candy sniffled. “I guess it turned out pretty good for you, didn’t it?”
“Uh, yeah .”
Candy began to laugh outright, and Cheri joined her, then said, “And it will work out
Similar Books
