Page 99 of The Statistically Unlikely Reunion

I lift his hand to mine, spreading a gentle kiss along his knuckles; I know I’ve been difficult today, and I need to make amends. “What’s on your mind?”

“Never playing poker with you.” Lucas laughs a little, his gaze on the grass in front of him.

“But it would go so well for me.”

I wait, patiently, while Lucas searches for the perfect words. I’ve long since given up trying to convince him to spit out the rough draft of his thoughts. The wind swirls around us, other visitors stroll by in groups, pointing to the various attractions.

“Eluva’s making me an offer.” It’s a complete sentence, and yet the way he pauses, it’s clearly not everything Lucas wants to say. Finally, an eternity later, Lucas contributes another sentence that’s clearly also not the full story. “I can start any Monday up to six months after graduation.”

Considering a return offer is what everyone—Lucas included—was hoping for, I start guessing at his potential reservations. “I’m happy to keep checking on Levi and Leno. Once they’re heading into college application season, my English skills are going to be far more helpful than your general college anxiety.”

Silence. A nod.

“Brody and I will be disqualified after this year’s worlds.”

Lucas starts plucking individual blades of grass with his short nails. Snip, flick. Snip, toss.

Okay.

“It’s less than a three-hour flight, and we can look into trains if it’s really an issue.”

He takes off his glasses, wipes them awkwardly, given he’s still propped on one shoulder. Puts the glasses back on. “You’re not going to ask me what the offer is?”

“It’s fintech. I can more or less guess.”

“It’s generous, Lorelai. More than I’d hoped for. I’m sure it’s only one of those things people say, but the CEO met with me personally, said my reviews are the best they’ve seen from a summer intern.” Lucas flushes a little, uncomfortable with praise, as always. “He said they wanted to make me an offer strong enough to circumvent a bidding war, even though no one else has offered.”

“To be fair, you never applied anywhere else.” It had been our plan to start this month, if we didn’t hear from Eluva. The perk of attending a place like Caltech was that everyone knew when the interviews were happening, the Discords were full of analysis on recent interview questions and offers, meaning if Lucas says this offer is generous, well, given his propensity for understatement . . .

Lucas continues in his slow and deliberate way. His voice is monotonous, a doctor delivering a serious prognosis. “There’s also a housing relocation bonus that could easily be the downpayment for a condo and a separate sign-on bonus.”

I bite down on my lip because, usually, Lucas is a very goal-oriented man. And considering this seems like the best-case scenario, I’m struggling to connect the dots. “Is this a commitment thing? Whole life flashing before your eyes? Or is there some other catch I’m missing?”

“There’s no catch.”

I wait a beat. “Lucas Sebastian Murray.”

He lets out a long sigh. “I’ve been toying with an idea of my own, a novel investment strategy.” He winces at the word novel, and I finally understand.

“Dunning-Kruger effect?”

Lucas looks up, a small smile finally breaking through. “Exactly. What if, after a mere summer working at a hedge fund, I think I know more than I do? I go out on my own only to realize I was too ignorant to truly measure my own . . . stupidity? The safe play is obviously to take the offer. I should have already signed, right?”

“And you can’t do both?” I hear the question in my voice and immediately correct myself, because I know better. “You can’t do both.”

“Eluva’s offering a monstrous amount of money. Of course, the contract is basically indentured servitude. There’s a clause mandating a cooling-off period. If I start and then quit, I’d have to basically garden for twelve months.”

“Golden handcuffs. You’re supposed to be too busy admiring the gold to care.”

“Yes.” Lucas shakes his head, the dark-brown strands a little overlong again, because it’s the length I prefer and I don’t cut it until it’s actually bothering him.

“I don’t know why I’m hesitating. The bonus alone pays for a year of college for both twins. I could also move my mother into a better place.”

I smile because of course Lucas’s first thought is about providing for his family. “But you’d like to start something of your own.”

“Crazy.” He swallows, finally looking up at me, his eyes bright behind thick lenses. “Right?”

His hesitancy tells me everything. “Not crazy.”