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The statement was so frank, so absurd that a laugh burst from Allison’s mouth. “Thanks,” she coughed out.
“A bad one that the board of health is about to close.” His eyes were on the road but his lips twitched toward a grin.
“I get it.”
“Just like… really? Bud Light?”
Allison spun toward him, forgetting all about her carefully crafted distance. Without considering the ramifications (like that he was driving, and donuts were precious and delicious), she tossed her glazed donut at his face. It hit him smack on the cheek, the sugary fried dough clinging to his stubble for a moment before sliding (achingly slowly) down his face and into his lap. It was like something out of a cartoon. Another laugh broke from her, the relief of letting it loose almost painful.
“That is brazen violence against donuts,” he muttered as he plucked the pastry off his lap and crammed the entire thing in his mouth.
Allison crossed her arms. “Stop alcohol-shaming me, then.”
“I merely thought our tastes were supposed to improve with age.”
“Oh my god. I did not seek out the Bud Light. I’d made these amazing sangrias and then Sophie and her friends polished them all off in like two minutes, so I had no choice but to drink the cheap beer.”
“I would have abstained.”
Allison cocked her head, deliberately and (she hoped) bitingly. “Well, I was pissed at someone and needed to drown the anger.”
“Monty?” Colin gestured his head toward the sleeping puppy in the backseat.
“Nope, someone else in this car.”
“You really shouldn’t harbor anger toward yourself—” Her glare was enough to silence him. Colin sighed. “Are you going to let me talk now?”
Allison flourished her hands at the car’s interior. “It’s not like I have much else going on.” Leaning forward, she snuck open the donut box and grabbed a chocolate frosted. Her stomach protested, but Allison took a big bite and swallowed it, washing it down with a swig from a bottle of water (one of five) Colin had also purchased. He was right. She couldn’t show up at the hospital drunk.
He snuck a quick glance at her before pinning his attention to the road. “I’m sorry you feel like—”
“Nope,” Allison bit out around the heap of frosting filling her cheeks.
Colin’s mouth fell open like a fish’s. “I haven’t finished a full sentence. How are you already disagreeing?”
“You’re apologizing wrong.”
Who knew his mouth could open even wider? Allison had the urge to shove something disgusting into it.
“How can you apologize wrong?”
Allison crossed her arms. “It issuperpassive-aggressive to apologize for my feelings rather than what you did that might have summoned said feelings.”
His sigh was as beleaguered as they come. “Point taken.”
“Try again.”
He smacked his lips, mulling over his words “I’m sorry I’m competing with you again for something you care a lot about.” He shrugged, the movement sagging, defeated. “I’m still learning how to consider other people in my choices.”
When he didn’t say anything else for a full minute, Allison poked his arm. “I hope you don’t think you’re done.” Acknowledging that his choices impacted her was barely a start. She licked her fingers, one by one, relishing the ganache, then popped the last piece of pastry in her mouth.Do your work, donut,she prayed.Sober me up.
His jaw tightened, the muscles of his face rippling under the tension. “I’m not. I just… it’s complicated, and I don’t know how to explain myself without disclosing stuff I’m not proud of.”
Pursing her lips, Allison sat back against the seat. It was hard to imagine that he had any secretsthatembarrassing, but then again, wasn’t she the one who’d been lying to him about how well her recitations were going? Competition with an ex did weird things to people.
COLIN BENJAMIN’S WCS
He hasn’t been keeping up with the reading.
