Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 7

Naomi's harassed voice. "Oh my god, I need the night off from the kids, and the hubby has agreed to watch them for a few hours. Can we meet tonight? Maybe have a coffee and talk?" It seemed a bit of a coincidence to hear from both of them like this.
    They were both so busy in their separate lives that neither of them had spoken to her in almost two weeks. She wanted to be angry because they both had stated on Facebook they had received their wedding invitations months ago, but yet neither had contacted her. They both knew the festivities were drawing near, and hoped they were coming.
    So plans were set to go out and get drunk at Nine Lives, her favorite lesbian bar. While the original plan was to get together with Naomi and Leslie to talk, Ann was secretly hoping to get completely smashed and end up in the arms of a beautiful woman and not the porcelain god. She opened the shop in a rush and her day began.
    The Kettle Black started as Zach's idea. A coffee shop at the airport seemed a viable setup from the get-go, but as the planning got more detailed it stopped being just Zach's and started to become theirs. In helping him to build his dream, she became invested in making it a success. Instead of jumping through hoops and having Zach sign away his firstborn child to the bank, Ann became the financial backer for the business. Even when it struggled in the beginning she never regretted her decision. Her day flew by as travelers fueled up with sugary treats and coffee concoctions at regular intervals. Before she knew it, she was closing up shop and heading home to change into something a little more alluring.
    She was pulling into the parking garage next to the bar at 8:45 when she spotted Deanna at the bookstore across the street. Because she was early, she ran across to say hi and see how Deanna was. As soon as they started talking, Deanna started getting very emotional about a new guy she was dating. Ann figured she needed a drink and invited her to the bar to get drunk with her.
    Ann sat down at the end of the bar and pulled Deanna into the seat next to her. Then she let Deanna vent for the next ten minutes. She kept glancing at the door every few minutes to see if Naomi and Leslie had shown up. At 9:15, she called Leslie's cell phone and heard the phone ring right behind her. Apparently , Naomi and Leslie had gotten there earlier than her and had gotten a booth out of the way so Ann hadn't seen them.
    The way Naomi and Leslie were chatting when Ann approached the table, one casually observing would have thought that they were old friends, the way of quick exchange and private jokes already taking place. Which was bizarre in the pure and simple fact that their beliefs and personalities were so drastically different. Leslie was a full out tree hugger who followed the Pagan path and Naomi was as conservative as a fundamentalist Christian as you could get. They had their heads close together talking so intently that after standing there a moment waiting to be acknowledged, Ann finally cleared her throat to announce her presence.
    "Oh, hey Ann," Naomi said as she moved out of the booth to give Ann a hug, and Leslie did the same. As she slipped back into the booth, Leslie moved to the same side as Naomi, so that Ann was forced to sit awkwardly across from them, as if they were prepared to do some serious in-depth questioning, or she was being interviewed for a job she didn't want.
    As she sat down across from them, Naomi and Leslie had a conversation with their eyes. As if they had questions and answers to questions that they didn't want to reveal. They looked from one another to their drinks and alternatively at her several times before she finally interrupted their increasingly awkward silence. "Ok guys, what's up? It's obvious you have been planning this? What's going on?"
    Leslie spoke first, in a squeaking obviously nervous voice, "How serious are you about marrying Zach? I mean, we know you are serious, but how serious are you?" She asked looking at the table between them.
    "You're kidding right?" Ann asked incredulously, trying to understand where this was leading. "I'm marrying my best friend in two weeks. Why are you asking this?"
    "Because," Naomi chimed in, "we are worried that you are making the wrong decision. I mean, we both realize it is your life, but are you sure you want to throw it away—"
    "Wait a minute, throw it away? What do you mean 'throw it away'? Ann asked, anger now edging her voice.
    "We