---- Come morning, I got a lawyer's number from a friend to talk about divorce. Alice had been missing for three days since that door slam. I saw her again in a vacation snap Jenny posted. There they were, all smiles, Yoel cozying up to Alice in matching outfits. I gave the photo a silent thumbs-up. Alice, back from the void, rang me up. "T'll swing by later, take you to the beach, and introduce you to some friends." She hesitated, then said, "I didn't have to ask you, really. Consider it a reward for your decent behavior lately." "Sure." The divorce was in motion, no need to stir the pot. True to her word, Alice picked me up, and there was no sign of Yoel, the human wrench in our plans. At the beach, Jenny came up to me. "Sorry about the ---- other night, my bad for not giving you a heads-up. I owe myself a few penalty drinks later." Jenny stepped up to apologize, putting me ona pedestal in front of everyone. I gave a half-hearted smile and said, ''The office has been swamped lately. I've been up to my neck in work for days." "Theard you've got some of your top people on board to set up a new branch in Greenwood. That's awesome news." Jenny was doling out compliments like candy. I gave a small smile. "Yeah, we're looking into it, but it's all up in the air right now." Just then, Alice marched over, fixing me with a glare, " You're heading to Greenwood? And you didn't think to tell me? Since when do you make moves without my say-so?" I turned to face her, taking in her angry expression in silence. ---- The tension in the air was palpable. Alice kept grilling me, and Jenny, bless her heart, tried to smooth things over by suggesting we all hit the barbecue. The server had the grill going in no time, and Alice took a seat next to me, her face showing a rare flicker of panic. "I've got a deal with Yoel. Once his kids are out of elementary school, he's transferring the house back to me. "Don't get worked up. It's my house, after all. I didn't have to explain myself to you." "Okay." I nodded, unfazed. Before long, a familiar, dashing figure came into view, and my smile froze. A girl I had never met, but who seemed chummy with Jenny and Alice, jumped up and waved frantically at Yoel, 'Brother-in-law! Hey, Yoel, Alice is over here- hurry!" Everyone around sucked in a breath of cold air. Discover our latest featured short drama reel. Watch now and enjoy the story!