A Tangled Weave (The Twin Planet Series Book 1) by Elaine Clark

Author:Elaine Clark [Clark, Elaine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science Fiction > Hard Science Fiction
Publisher: Elaine W. Clark
Published: 2013-12-30T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 23

It wasn’t until the day after Christmas that Cally saw Michael again. She hadn’t intended ever to see him again if she could help it. She avoided the JILA building where his advisor’s office was, as well as all of the physics labs and classrooms where she might bump into him. Then, on the last day of the semester, Tula called. Cally was avoiding her and Solon too. It was difficult to spend time with Tula without encountering Michael.

“I want you to be my maid of honor,” Tula said.

“You have other friends,” Cally responded. To tell the truth, she avoided anyone outside of her department. Friends were overrated.

Tula ignored what she didn’t want to hear, as always. “Solon and I are planning a small ceremony here at the house the day after Christmas. Please come and stand with me.”

“Do I have to wear a dress?” Cally asked.

“Do you own one?”

“No.”

“Slacks and a nice sweater will be fine.”

Cally stared at the screen on her phone. Tula just said she didn’t have to wear a dress? “All right. What time?”

“Ten o’clock. And get a haircut. A real haircut. Don’t do it yourself.”

“I guess I can fit that in.”

“Thank you, Cally. We’ll see you then!”

Cally did get a haircut – the cosmetologist clucking over her hacked hair most of the time he was cutting it – and she bought Tula and Solon a gift, a garlic press. Tula always minced the garlic by hand when she cooked, but Cally knew Solon would appreciate the ease of a press. Also, because she wanted to make amends to Tula for being so grumpy on the phone, Cally arrived fifteen minutes early. Unfortunately, Michael answered the door.

“Greetings,” he said, his expression neutral. He looked nice in black chinos with a button-down, teal-green shirt and a black tie. He still wore the stupid mustache though.

“Hello. Who else is here?” She craned her neck to look past the doorway.

“Come.” Michael stepped out of the way and waved her in. “The minister is here, and Georgina, who Tula knows from school. Alexi, Solon’s friend from childhood is to come.”

“That’s it?” This was not a large crowd. How was she going to avoid talking to Michael?

“This is all Solon and Tula invite.” He took her coat and hung it in the closet by the door. Cally thought about making a break, her gaze wandering longingly for the exit.

“How are you, Cally?” Michael asked as he closed the closet and turned to face her.

“I’m fine. Looks like the money may have really dried up for the cougar habitat restoration project. I don’t know what I’ll be doing this coming summer. My advisor suggested I apply for an internship to work on human habitat construction. They’ve been doing extensive work on this at the University of Arizona in Tucson. There is talk of building a new permanent settlement on Mars. If I can finish my dissertation this spring, I may apply for a post-doc position there.” Cally bit her lip. She didn’t have to blather on, especially at Michael, who likely hated her and was just being polite.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.