Free Unravel Me by Lynn Montagano

them but I sort of wanted this weekend to be all about vegging out on the couch. They usually took an impromptu vacation every summer to the west coast or Bermuda or somewhere that wasn’t Central Florida. I could only imagine why they were gracing me with their presence.
    I glanced up at the threatening black clouds. The second I stepped out of my car, the sky opened up and poured its wet bucket of sadness all over me. Grimacing, I ran toward the restaurant wishing a magical dome would appear and save me from the downpour. Nope. I ran right through a puddle instead. My feet squished in the now soaked sandals I thought would be so cute to wear today.
    “Stupid summer rain,” I grumbled.
    I saw Stephanie as soon as I walked through the restaurant doors. She sat at the bar, flirting mercilessly with a guy who exuded the casual air of a California surfer. When I first moved to Orlando we had flirting down to a choreographed science when we’d go out. She was a master. No man was safe when she turned on the charm.
    “Lia,” she called, waving me over. “Come sit.”
    Smoothing down my damp hair, I perched on the stool next to her.
    “This is Bradley.” She introduced us.
    Unassumingly handsome with shaggy blond hair and chocolate brown eyes, he was the poster-child for the type of man Stephanie drooled over. I leaned forward, shaking his hand.
    “Bradley just moved here from Maine,” Stephanie informed me, poking my side with her elbow.
    “Yeah. A really, really small town called Castine,” he said. “I was offered a job down here, so I packed up my car, threw the dog in the backseat and headed south.”
    “Maine, huh? I’m originally from Connecticut.” I smiled.
    He laughed. “A couple of displaced New Englanders in all this Florida heat and humidity. How long have you lived here?”
    “Almost six years.”
    “How about you?” he turned to my best friend, “Are you from New England, too?”
    “Oh God, no. I was born and raised here. I grew up in Oviedo.”
    “My first native Floridian? I didn’t think any of you actually existed.”
    “We do.” She laughed coquettishly and morphed back into full on flirt mode. The protocol was for me to remain nearby and only intervene if she flashed the signal. Catching the bartender’s attention I ordered a glass of sparkling wine and fiddled with my phone. Alastair’s invitation to live with him flitted through my mind. I would love nothing more than to be with him permanently.
    “Come on, Lia. Our table’s ready.”
    Looking up I saw Stephanie hug her new conquest goodbye before following the hostess. We were seated at a table by the window.
    “You two seemed to hit it off,” I remarked, raising an eyebrow.
    “What? Yeah. He was nice.”
    Stephanie was flustered. Unbelievable.
    “ Nice ? Who are you?”
    “Huh?” She blinked. “Oh. He was okay. We’re going out on Friday.”
    “Are you inviting him to your big new job celebration?”
    Her face brightened immediately. “I still can’t believe they hired me. And I’m moving to Glasgow in two weeks. This is crazy. You have to come with me.”
    “I just got back yesterday,” I laughed.
    “So?” she exclaimed. “You have to help me move and get all settled. It’s only fair. Tell Bruce this is more important than the show and writing thirty second stories and editing stupid video.”
    The panicked look on her face would have been priceless had she not been serious. Getting hired at Finley Marketing and Advertising as a graphic designer may be a dream job for Stephanie but leaving the city she loves and all her friends behind weighed heavily on her.
    “I’ll see what I can do. At this rate Bruce might tell me to stay over there.”
    “That would be the best news ever. Live with me, find a fabulous job and we will own that city.”
    “You make it sound so simple.”
    “It is.” She looked me up and down. “Besides, you’re still glowing from the weekend so I know at least one other person