Usually, she relished the special feeling of being an only child, but not when the time came to dream up a perfect gift for a couple of great parents. For such an occasion, a sibling sure would be handy. She gulped skim milk—no skim milk in Amish kitchens, probably—and licked chocolate residue from her thumb. Maybe she could ship her parents a ten-layer cake made of whoopie pies.

On to her second message. “Hey, it’s Jenn. I’ve got some good news and some bad news. Well, it’s all kind of the same news, actually—”

Something in her roommate’s voice brought her out of her confectionary reverie.

“Tessa, Adam asked me to move in with him.”

The whoopie pie turned to sawdust in her mouth.

“And I said yes!”

The phone slipped from her fingers and fell in her lap. No New York City.

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Minutes later, Tessa held her breath and listened to the sound of her well-made plans being dashed to smithereens on the rocks of Jennifer Sweet’s love life. Ensconced in her bedroom, she shifted the phone from her lower lip and clenched her belly. No use. Her breath fluttered high and trembly in her chest. “I’m so happy for you.”

“I couldn’t believe it. He took me out to this fabulous Indian restaurant in the East Village and asked me. He was so nervous—he might have cried a little. His eyes got all teary. Then again, he had a lot of curry.”

“When do you move in?”

“Next week!” Jennifer uttered a squeal, which turned into a laugh, which turned into a full-bodied snort.

She slumped against her closet door. She missed that snort—that infectious, totally unexpected, often utterly inappropriate snort. Usually, it made her laugh, too. Today, she just wanted to weep.

“I never thought he’d make this kind of commitment. You know Adam. He’s such a guy.”

She did know Adam. She knew the whole string of guys who came in and out of Jennifer’s life over the course of their friendship. This one seemed different, though. This one seemed likely to stick around. “Totally. This is a big deal for him. For both of you.”

“So, you don’t hate me?”

Jenn’s voice crept up an octave. The fact that she wasn’t completely cavalier about ruining their plans helped. Somewhat.

“You aren’t furious?”

“No, no.” Tessa picked at a loose thread in her sock. The sound of a televised baseball game cut through the silence. Jenn was with Adam that very moment. She had already lost her.

“You can still come over every night for popcorn.”

“Long drive for a bowl of popcorn.” She tugged the thread, and her big toe emerged through a new hole. “Not that your popcorn isn’t worth a couple of hours in the car—”