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Remembering how Lou had thrown my own emotions for a loop when I’d first met her, I could almost feel a little sympathetic.
Almost.
Quentin sighed, but his own tone lightened to match hers. “I suppose one slice won’t hurt anything. I’ll see what else they’ve got on the menu.”
I restrained a groan of frustration and drew my focus back to the traffic around me. Quentinhadbeen on better behavior since we’d come to Austin. I knew it was mostly for Lou’s benefit even when she wasn’t with us, but I could give him a little credit for self-control—and do my best to rein in my own irritation.
The right lane was packed with parked cars. I eyeballed them for my chance to veer over to make the turn I needed to. One started flashing its turn signal to pull out into traffic, so I switched to the brake to give it a chance to enter ahead of me.
Quentin let out a huff. “Jesus, St. Pierre, who taught you how to drive? We could have been halfway across town by now.”
The jab raised my hackles in an instant. “Some of us learned to be courteous to other drivers on the road.”
He snorted derisively. There was a familiar quality to the sound that cut right to the quick of my nerves. “There’s polite and then there’s being a total wimp about it. You know, if you want to get anywhere in life, you’ve got to—”
“Maybe I don’t fucking care what you have to say about it,” I burst out. “Let me drive however the hell I want to drive!”
The car jerked to a stop at a red light, and uncomfortable silence clogged the car. A burn of embarrassment spread up the back of my neck.
He’d only been casually hassling me. I hadn’t needed to start yelling and swearing at him. So much for keeping my temper in check.
After a blip of shock, Quentin simply shook his head at me. His nonchalant reaction abruptly reminded me of what he’d said about his mother. How many times had he needed to deal withhersnapping at him out of the blue like I’d just done?
Fucking hell.
As I sucked in a deep breath, trying to steady myself, Quentin clicked his tongue chidingly. “And there’s another thing. You’re going to keep getting distracted from your performances if you let people rile you up at the drop of a hat.”
I managed to keep my voice at a normal volume, though it still came out sharper than I’d have liked. “Thanks for the tip. It’d be easier if you didn’t have a knack for sounding just like my asshole dad.”
Quentin let out a scoffing sound. “He couldn’t have been that bad when he funded all your training with his posh job.”
My anger flared back to the surface and crackled through my retort. “He didn’t spend a goddamn penny on my skating. It was all my mom—until he madeherstop when I was eleven and after that it was all on me and whatever sponsorships I could scrounge up. Hehatedme training.”
Quentin’s mouth opened and then closed again. I’d managed to stun him into silence. I guessed it wasn’t totally surprising—given the kind of money my dad brought in from his job in corporate law and the trappings of privilege that I’d grown up with, people tended to assume that I’d never struggled to fund my pursuits.
Was that what Quentin had figured all this time? That I’d had everything I’d worked so hard for just handed to me?
The awkward silence lingered for a minute, and I cursed myself inwardly. It was the first night we’d been able to go out and do something with Lou, an actual date, and I’d ruined the evening before it’d even really begun with my stupid temper.
Then Niko’s buoyant voice carried from behind me. “You know the only problem with a pizza place? They probably don’t serve Calpis.”
The remark was so out of the blue and yet so Niko that a laugh sputtered out of me. “I’m not sureanywherein Austin serves Calpis. It’s a good thing you seem to be able to survive without your fizzy milk.”
“Just you wait until I get my hands on some and make you try it,” Niko said. I could practically see the mischief dancing in his eyes. “You won’t believe you ever doubted its deliciousness.”
“I’d give it a try,” Lou piped up.
I gave a brief grunt. “Now you’re making me look bad.”
Rafael backed me up with a low chuckle. “Don’t worry—I’m with you. Milk and carbonation should not mix.”
Niko gasped in mock-dismay. “Just for that, I’m force-feedingyouthe first bottle.”
A smile tugged at the corners of my lips. “Shouldn’t you save it all for yourself if you finally find some?”
“Hmm. You might have a point there. I’ll have to reconsider my plans.”
We all laughed, even Quentin, and the tension in the air seemed to fade. But as I parked outside the pizza place and stepped out into the cool early-winter air, apprehension still niggled at me. Niko reached over to give my arm a reassuring squeeze before we headed into the restaurant, and I couldn’t miss the concerned glances Lou was shooting my way, as if she were evaluating whether I might be on the verge of melting down.
