With a much-needed day off on my hands, I woke up later than usual and with an actual smile on my face.

I wasn't sure where Mason and I were going to go, but like the lady I was, I didn't fuck and tell. The next time I saw him, we'd need to talk about what it meant for us, but for the time being, I was perfectly fine with living in the high from our boat life endeavors. The way his hands felt on my skin. The butterflies and fireworks of romance. The openness of the water and ourselves.

How was I supposed to play this one cool? I needed him again as soon as possible. Waiting just wasn't going to be an option for me.

But I got out of bed and went to make myself breakfast, even if I didn't have anywhere I needed to be for once in my life. As soon as I closed my online shop, I'd call Mason, and then I'd probably call my mom to tell her about my new job, and then I'd have the rest of the day to do whatever I want. I looked at the clock. 11:30. Even if the rest of the day was only a few hours, I could do whatever I wanted.

It was probably crazy how good I felt after one decision to give up and one hook up, but it wasn't the first time in history it had happened to someone.

When I got in the kitchen, Alex and Blake were already there, probably for lunch, and because I was still in my pajamas, Alex wished me a good morning and told me she was glad I wasn't dead.

Eleven-thirty wasn't that ridiculous of a time to wake up for the day.

But I wished her a good morning back anyway. "Thanks for not being loud this morning. I really needed to catch up on that sleep."

Normally Blake would have taken a shot at how I couldn't possibly be that tired because I didn't have a difficult job like him, but he didn't, probably because I was finally doing something he deemed acceptable. Everyone would finally approve of how I was making a living. What could possibly be more satisfying than that?

I chuckled at the thought. Sex with Mason was a million times more satisfying.

He knew all the right moves, which a girl couldn't find just anywhere in a small town. Imported men did it better.

"Is this mood what I think it is?" Blake asked.

I nodded. "Probably."

He laughed and shook his head. "It only took you a month and a half or something."

I smiled anyway. "Makes it that much better."

I hadn't asked him to stay the night with me so I didn't seem too clingy, especially since we worked together, but now I wish I had, just so Blake could see why he was a project I didn't mind taking my time on.

Blake didn't ask any more questions about Mason anyway, and Alex was always more focused on her lunch than any details of anyone's dating life, so that conversation was over. That was fast. But instead of dwelling on that story, I moved on to the next topic of discussion.

"So I think I'm going to focus on my actual job more than my crafts now," I said.

This time, Alex had a comment. "What?"

"I just think that I can get more out of life if I focus on something that's going to guarantee me money instead of taking a chance on myself." But as that thought left my mouth, my heart sank into my stomach. Those were words I never thought I'd ever say.

Alex looked at Blake with wide eyes, but Blake nodded in approval and said, "It's about time you joined the real world."

"I think so too," I said, but now that the idea was out in the universe, I wasn't as sure about it anymore. I shook my head and swallowed my pride. I was just doing what was truly best for myself. "I mean, I'm still going to do that craft fair in Columbus next month, but after that, I might just let it go and move on with life."

That felt a little better.

I wasn't quite sure what was going on in Alex's mind, but she didn't seem as happy as I thought she would be. Maybe it was just too sudden of a change for her. Virgos didn't really care for surprises.

***

With a list of phone calls still on my to-do list, I sat outside on our front lawn to watch the leaves fall. If I had a drivable car, I would have had a pumpkin spice latte to warm up my hands, but I still had to get a new one, because there was no way I was going to be able to get her fixed at a reasonable price.

Days off were never really days off, but if I played my cards right, maybe I could get my dad to go with me to get a new car. All I had to do was tell him all about my new success, he'd see that I wasn't a complete loser and failure, and we'd be back to being family once again.

I had disappointed a lot of family by not chasing my dream the hard way, by going to college and getting a degree in some kind of business, and in a small town that I hadn't left, it made life lonely. But with one person (hopefully) in my corner now, I really could only go up from here.

I picked up my phone and called Dad, and after a few rings, it went to voicemail.

Maybe he was busy. It had been a while since I talked to him enough to know his schedule, but people usually had things on their to-do list on a Sunday. I sure did.

"Hi Dad, it's me, MG. I just wanted to let you know that I finally decided to do what you said and get a big girl job. Ever since Lydia passed away, I've been helping George keep the Lakeside Daisy up and running, and I'm just going to focus on doing that as best as I can moving forward. Also, I was wondering if you would be willing to co-sign on a new car for me. Love you, bye." I hung up the voicemail, and although the execution left a plenty to be desired, it was a step in the right direction.

Maybe I would be happier if I managed to bring everyone who thought I wasn't good enough back into my life. Maybe that was the key all along, and I just missed it because I thought a silly little dream was a better way to find happiness.

That had to be it.

It had to.

Right?

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Hello friends! Thank you so much for reading!

So for today's question, how do you choose to deal with toxic people in your life?

As much as I want to be nice to most people, if I think someone is toxic, I really can't hide that. I like to think that I'm pretty good at figuring out whether people have a good heart or not, and if I don't think you have good intentions, I'm not going to let you spend any time around me in the first place. And if I somehow miss that someone is toxic at first and figure it out later, then it's pretty easy for me to cut them off. Maybe too easy, sometimes.