Chapter 20 Bragging Not Complaining

Two hours later, the ladies met at a café beside the gym. Adrianne had joined them for a chat and thought to check on Amy since she was not feeling well. While Stella and Adrianne settled on beverages from the café and cookies, Amy slurped on the protein shake she had made earlier. Stella shook her head when she saw it. 'This girl was really determined to leave the house', she mused.

p "Oh! When Enzo lifted his shirt to expose his abs while whining to the beat! HO-OT! The sinful things I would do to that man with my tongue!" Adrianne fanned herself dramatically.

"Jared did us all a favor by marrying you. Who knows what West Village would have been like had you exploited your whorish tendencies?" Stella gave her a disapproving gaze. Amy knew the two were joking but she watched on with amusement as she drank her shake.

"Yes, yes. What a selfless man my husband is." Her sarcasm was evident as she stared at her wedding ring with clear resentment. Amy chuckled and thought Adrianne was being too dramatic. Then the attention was directed on her all of a sudden. "How handsome is your husband, Emily?"

Amy almost choked from being caught offguard but she maintained her calm and decided to spin the same story she sold Stella, who was currently sighing as she knew the answer Amy would give.

"He's ugly."

"Hey, you just want to keep the good stuff to yourself. Show me some pictures, let me see." Adrianne was not buying it.

"I'm serious and I don't have pictures. He's very ugly I tell you. We didn't even take wedding photos."

Adrianne: "..."

Stella: *helplessly sighs then sips on her beverage.

Seeing Amy say that with a straight face, Adrianne's lips twitched. "Just how ugly is he? What exactly is wrong with him?"

Zachery's face flashed in her mind making her stomach twist in a knot. Her ears became red and she tried to conceal the giddy feeling within. "His eyes are too piercingly blue, his nose is too straight, his lips are more pink than mine, his jawline is too sharp, he's too tall, he's quite muscular, his hair is much shorter on the sides than the top, like dude make up your mind! He's too ugly I tell you!"

"..."

"..."

Why did it sound like she was bragging instead of complaining? And don't those sound like descriptions of someone who's good-looking? 'That sounds like a very handsome man to me', both women mused silently. While Stella was confused by Amy's definition of ugly, Adrianne's lips twitched before she burst in annoyance.

"Do you take us for fools? Might as well just brag to the world using a speakerphone about how handsome your husband is. What a show-off!" She clicked her tongue in disapproval.

"Hey! If Emily says her husband is ugly, then he is. Stop bullying the girl."

Adrianne looked at Stella like she had grown two heads. Whats with the biasness when she was as befuddled as she when Amy was 'degrading' her husband? What the two ladies failed to notice was the sadness in the girl's eyes as she concealed it by slurping on her shake. She didn't like entertaining thoughts of Zachery but being put on the spot like that, she could only think of him when describing her 'husband's ugliness'. Adrianne was about to complain when Stella's phone rung.

"Hello.... Oh hey Allan..... Oh? Oh! This is good news!... Don't worry about it! We'll manage just fine.... I'll visit you both soon. Take care now... Bye." She placed her phone back on the table and was greeted by two curious gazes the moment she looked up.

"Oh! Katherine has gone into labor. Allan was calling to inform me about her maternity leave."

"Oh! That's great news! About time though. She still persisted to go to work despite how heavy she was." Amy shook her head. She had never met this Katherine but she could picture it with Adrianne's statement. "Wait, did you find her replacement?"

"Ah! It slipped my mind. I guess I'll manage with Ian for now while looking." She sipped on her drink as she fell into thought. She had really slacked off. She was so relaxed with having Katherine around that the thought slipped her mind. As she mentally scolded herself, a soft voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"I can help you", Amy offered. Stella immediately shook her head in refusal.

"No, dear. That won't do. You need all the rest you can get."

"What was Katherine's job?" Amy probed.

"Basically what a Librarian does", Adrianne replied.

"I can do it. Besides, I love the library."

"It sounds perfect for Emily, she won't have to move around much. And you can watch over her as much as you want since you're so worried about her. You've really gone all mother hen on her. I can't believe you personally enrolled her into Pedro's Pilates class", Adrianne chuckled along with Amy.

"I felt like a child being accompanied by their parent to class."

Adrianne and Amy sniggered at Stella's red face. Although she knew they were teasing her, her heart warmed up upon hearing Amy's words. No one was ever old enough to not need their parents. For Amy who never had that, she hoped she could at least be one for her even though she's already a grown woman.