Chapter 9

Harlow

After Scott left, I spent a couple of hours lounging in front of the television, wishing for the time to pass quickly.  The sooner I got through this day, the sooner I’d feel better.  Mum rang me just after twelve o’clock to see how I was doing and to tell me that she picked up some more catering jobs.  And then I remembered that Cassie had tried to call me earlier so I dialed her number.

She answered straight away.  “Did you just wake up?”  She sounded as awful as I felt.

“No, I was woken up by a visit from Scott earlier this morning.”

“Scott, as in the guy from the club last night? The one who you met at the vet?”

“Yeah, him.  He came to offer me a job, but I said no.  I don’t think I want to work in a strip club.  Do you think I should have accepted it?  We do need the money -”

“Stop second guessing yourself.  And no, Harlow, I can’t see you working in a strip club. We’ve known each other for what, six months now?  You’ve become my best friend, and I need to tell you that it’s time for you to chase your dreams now.  You gave up everything to move here to help your Mum, and you did help her, but she’s getting the café back on its feet now, so you should stop settling for any old job and go for what you want.”

“I’m your best friend?”  A warm sensation settled in my tummy.

“Yeah, you are,” she replied, and I could hear the affection in her voice.

“You’re mine too, girl.”

“Oh my goodness, I feel like we just agreed to go steady, dude.”

I laughed, but got serious when I said, “Cass, I haven’t had a best friend for a long time now.  Not since Dale cheated on me with Anna.  He stole my best friend from me.”

“No, they stole each other from you.  She was just as much to blame as him, that bitch.  Actually, I think what she did to you was worse.  Best friends don’t sleep with each other’s boyfriends.  First rule of best friend club.”

“What’s the second rule?” I teased her.

She was straight on it though.  “Second rule is, if you hate someone, I hate them too.  And third rule is, I’ve always got your back.  You need me, you call me.  I don’t care what time of day it is.  I live by that quote, it’s the friends you can call at four am that matter.”

“I think I love you even more than I loved you before I rang you.  And I’m even feeling better too.”

“Well, you just remember that.  And don’t forget that I’m a jealous bitch too.”

Laughing, I said, “I know.  I’ve seen you in action over Ben.  God forbid any woman that makes a move on your man.”

“Yeah, my husband knows how it is.  And I feel the same way about you.”

I sighed.  “Seriously, Cass, you’ve made my day.  You always manage to cheer me up when I’m feeling down.”

“That’s what I’m here for.  Now, back to your job situation.  I know you’ve always wanted to pursue your art, and you’re a damn good artist so I think you should look into ways to get your art out there.”

“I don’t think it’s something that can earn me a living.”

“You won’t know unless you try though, will you?”

“Mmmm...”

“Mmmm’s your way of fobbing me off, and I’m not letting you do that this time.  We need to get your paintings into a gallery.”

“Oh, God, you’re taking over, aren’t you?”  Memories of the time that Cassie had harassed a car dealer into selling a car to me for less than he wanted to came to mind.

“Think of it as me being your manager.  Christ, I need something to keep me occupied while Ben has me stuck at home being his Stepford wife.”

“You’re the farthest thing from a freaking Stepford wife.  Ben could only hope for you to be submissive but we all know that you wear the pants in that relationship.”

“Okay, okay, you’re right.  Anyway, leave it with me; I’ll get you into a gallery.  You just start painting.”

I could hear the excitement in her voice.  Cassie loved a mission.  “It’s all yours, but I may need to get a part time job in the meantime.”

“Do what you’ve gotta do, but like I said, get painting.”

“Yes, boss,” I promised, and we finished our conversation.

I spent the next few hours pampering myself, hoping it would negate the effects of the hangover.  I showered and gave myself a facial, pedicure and manicure.  At the end of it all, I felt a million times better.  So, it was on that high that I received a phone call from my mum that shot all my plans to shit.

“Harlow, honey, one of the fridges at the café died.  I’m rushing around trying to sort all the food into the other fridge, but I’m pretty busy and could do with a hand serving customers while I take care of it.”  She sounded frazzled.

“Sure, Mum.  Give me ten minutes, and I’ll be there.”

“You’re a lifesaver.  Thank you,” she replied, and hung up.

I quickly threw on a dress, grabbed my keys and bag, and drove the short distance to Mum’s café.  We lived about six minutes from it, which I loved because traffic and I didn’t see eye to eye.  There were way too many idiots on the road, and too many road rules to follow.