Dani sat straighter. “You did not.”
“You brought a woman to my daughter’s yoga competition after knowing her for a month and looked at her like she had personally invented oxygen.”
Tessa dropped a spoon into the sink. Dani pointed at her, though Gloria could not see.
“Stay out of this.”
“I didn’t say anything,” Tessa replied.
“Who is that?” Gloria asked.
“Tessa,” I said.
“The nurse?”
“The spy,” Dani said.
Tessa dried the spoon.
“Nice to meet you, Gloria.”
“You too. Thank you for keeping them alive.”
“I’ve done what I can.”
“This call is losing structure,” I said.
Dani covered her mouth to hide a smile.
Gloria said, “All right. The relationship started for the competition. Is it entirely fake?”
Tessa stopped pretending to clean. Dani’s fingers found her thigh. I checked the disclosure plan, which had no response for this. The agreement was fictional; the attraction, launch kiss, six-mile hug, and diner sleep were not.
That did not make us a couple. It made Gloria’s question badly designed.
“We are not dating outside the competition,” I said.
Gloria laughed softly.
“That was not what I asked.”
“It is the most accurate answer.”
Dani leaned closer to the phone.
“We’re figuring out the boundaries.”
That was also accurate. It sounded more vulnerable. Gloria seemed to hear it.
“Okay,” she said. “Thank you for telling me.”
“Are you angry?” Dani asked.
“I’m deciding.”
“That sounds like angry.”
“It sounds like parenting an adult who should know better.”
