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let’s meet at Bela Terra Café.  Then we can have
fish and your dad can have a steak,” she suggested.
    After getting a table and placing our orders, both Mom and
Dad pressed me for an explanation as to why I was acting so impulsively all
week.  They knew something was going on.  Against my better judgment, I finally
confessed that I had run into Max a couple of times and that he was no longer
dating Celeste.
    “No!” Mom exclaimed, collapsing her face in her hands, while
dad sat there wondering who I was talking about.
    She’s such a drama queen!   “It’s ok, Mom. I’m a grown
up now, and Max has changed a lot, too.”
    “How much counseling did we pay for to get that kid out of
your head the first time?  I don’t want to see you go down the same path
again.  You’ll end up wasting your entire youth on him, Lara,” Mom pleaded.
    Yeah, as if being the designated driver and official
purse sitter wasn’t a waste of youth! 
    “No, I’m setting a deadline," I explained. "I’ll
give him one year, and if we aren’t a deliriously happy couple, I’m moving to
Ft. Lauderdale and finding a teaching job.”
    “You’ve only seen him a few times, and you’re already
planning your life around him?  Oh, Lara! I wish you would just stay away from
that boy.  He’s just like his father,” Mom retorted.
    Are you kidding me?  Ew!  He is so NOT like his father.
    “Ft. Lauderdale?   Felix would love that,” Dad added,
completely ignoring the rest of the conversation.
    “Mom, I’m not planning anything around Max.  I’m just saying
if I get messed up again, I’ll take up Uncle Felix on his offer and move to the
beach. That way Max would be out of sight and out of mind.”
    Uncle Felix was my dad’s brother and was definitely the
savvy businessman in our family.  He was a multi-millionaire by age thirty and
has led a life of luxury ever since.  A few years ago, after the real estate
crash, he bought a multi-million dollar home in the Las Olas Isles. It came
complete with a two-bedroom guesthouse.  He told me that when I finished
college I had to come to Ft. Lauderdale, and he would let me and a friend live
in it rent-free.  It was definitely a great Plan B!   On the other hand,
maybe Max and I can go vacation there together. Hmmm, I wouldn’t mind seeing
him on the beach in a swimsuit!
    “Well, at least this explains why you suddenly did a
complete 180 this week.  I was beginning to wonder if I had to schedule another
visit with Dr. Porter.” 
    Drama Queen - Act II.
    “You’re such a pessimist, Mom.  You should see someone about
that.  Maybe get on Prozac or something,” I teased, giving her a dose of her
own medicine. Pun intended.
    When the waiter showed up with our meals, I took the
opportunity to change topics so we could actually enjoy a pleasant meal.  I informed
them that I had been talking to Derek and Hadley about possibly renting a place
with them, but I didn’t mention Max’ name again.  That would’ve completely sent
Mom over the deep end and there had already been enough drama for one night.
    ~~~
    Max
    After seeing Celeste drive by my workshop again Wednesday
morning, I decided to get out of town for the rest of the week.  After calling
around, I ended up going to Destin to stay with my old high school buddy J.T. 
He, Derek, and I were good friends before his family moved. His dad was a real
estate developer, and they moved to Destin after he cashed out.  J.T. was
supposed to get a college degree and go to work with his dad, but so far his
only acquisition had been a killer house right on the beach.  His true passions
were being a phenomenal tattoo artist and hooking up with women, but not
necessarily in that order.   I knew J.T. would be ecstatic when I told him that
Celeste and I had broken up.  He had been trying to entice me back to the
single life for as long as I could remember.
    As usual, J.T. offered up a ton of crazy stories about how
wild spring break had