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“I—he—” Kissed me! He kissed me. I kissed him. We, together, kissed in the way where it instantly feels like you’re naked—like your body feels precisely how it would feel to undress with this person and—“He is fine,” I say, diplomatically.
“So, you admit it,” Evelyn crows. “He’sfine.”
I roll my eyes, smiling.
“Hal mentioned that he liked you two together,” Lottie contributes from her chair.
I clear my throat. “Yes, we’re excellent… Collaborators.”
She grins. “He said you seemed quite happy.”
“Of course I was,” I say, waving her off. “Hal helped me look good at work, and it’s always a treat to see him. I do have his jam thumbprint cookies, by the way. I’ll send them home with you.”
“Speaking of cookies,” Roxy adds. “Does anyone have a good recipe for a simple sugar cookie?”
I’ve never known Roxy to bake, but soon, Lottie and Arthur are saying of course they do and Evelyn’s wondering why someone would make something simple, when there’s chocolate to be had? Oh my God—bless Roxy. She nabbed that subject change to bail me out of the Austin inquisition.
Thank you, I mouth at her. She gives me a wink.
After my friends have left,I turn on the TV to keep my noisy brain quiet while I clean up.The Real Househusbands of New Yorktheme song starts, and I sway my hips automatically, feeling much more relaxed after having company to distract me. I scrub at Arthur’s favorite coffee mug like I can scrub away the thoughts of Austin.
That stupid kiss.
People talk about fireworks, and I get it. But that kiss? It felt like two puzzle pieces connecting in place. Like finally—I found it.It. That connection, butterflies. And all.
With the one person who is absolutely off-limits—and not just because he’s my boss.
My phone rings, breaking through my thoughts. I recognize the ringtone and wince. “Hi, Mom,” I answer with a sigh of resignation. “Everything okay?”
“That’s how you answer the phone?” she replies curtly. “Of course everything’s okay. Can’t a mother check in with her daughter?”
“It’s later than you usually call,” I point out gently.
“Well, I was on the phone with Aunt Cathy until just now, and she asked how you were. I said fine, but I thought I’d call to check since you’ve avoided my last few calls.”
“I wasn’t avoiding you,” I say, patiently. “I’m just busy.”
“So, your cousin Jeannine is pregnant again,” my mom announces.
“That’s great,” I say. Itisgreat. I like Jeannine. I like babies.
“You know,” my mom says, “Before she met Tom, Jeannine thought about freezing her eggs.”
Here we go. I can almost hear the starter gun. My mom’s off to the races. “That’s nice,” I say blandly, rinsing dishes.
“Might be worth consideration, honey,” she says. “Just as a precautionary measure.”
Mom, I’m only thirty. The words are right there, about to pass my lips. But I don’t want to restart this back-and-forth. It’s easier to change the subject. “So, how’s Aunt Cathy? Her knee still okay after the surgery?
My mom goes on for a few minutes while I get through most of the dishes, makingmhmmnoises. But when there’s a knock on the door, I’m thrilled for the excuse to hang up. I could kiss whoever’s on the other side—probably Evelyn, who is eternally scatterbrained, leaving jackets and purses behind. “Mom, I’ve gotta go. Talk soon.”
“You don’t have to be so abrupt, Jenn,” she scolds.
“Love you,” I say, seconds before hitting the red button with particular satisfaction.
“Did you forget your phone again?” I tease, as I open the door.
But it’s not Evelyn. The person standing in my doorway is about a foot taller and twice as wide.
