Page 36 of Stops Along the Way
My heart skips a beat. “Cute.” I shake my head and blush. “But, yes, you can.”
“Really?” Amelia asks. “I’m going on a picnic, and I’ll bring Iris?”
“Eek, sorry, you can’t copy someone else’s answer,” I tease.
Amelia groans, slumping back in the booth. “Ugh, can I bring Grady, then, I guess?”
“No,” I say, and Amelia gives a loud exhale of transparent relief.
Grady places a hand over his chest. “But I love picnics.”
“Okay, so far, we can bring corn, rice, and”—I shake my head at having to refer to myself in the third person—“Iris.”
Amelia leans forward. “I get it! I’m going on a picnic, and I’ll bring the moon.”
“Aww, that’s pretty,” I say. “Yes, you can bring the moon.”
Grady doubles over laughing. “Can I bring the sun?”
“Nah, dude.” Declan takes the opportunity to decline his brother this time for me. “You can’t bring the sun.”
Grady scratches his chin. “The stars?”
Declan takes another bite of his burger, placing his hand over his mouth to speak while chewing. “Don’t reach for so many.”
“Astar?” Grady asks, triumphantly holding up the rest of his sandwich, lettuce slipping out onto the plate.
We all cheer.
Grady scrunches up his face as he licks his fingers clean. “Oh, four-letter words?”
Declan nods and prompts him, “So, what are you going to bring?”
Grady smiles at Amelia with a mischievous glint. “I’m going on a picnic, and I’ll bring a crow.”
My sister’s face scrunches up, fearful and a touch repulsed, throwing Grady a look that suggests this was something they discussed in the car earlier today. “Birds do not need to crash our picnic.”
“Notbirds, plural,” Grady says with a joking smirk, for some reason knowing exactly the effect this will have on Amelia. “Just one crow.”
Chapter Ten
After lunch, Amelia and I congregate in the little diner restroom. While taking turns washing our hands in the small white sink, I say, “I’m good to drive for a bit now.”
My sister nods, then dries her hands beneath the noisy air dryer, holding the thought until the sound stops. “Oh. It’s my turn to drive again now too.”
We pause, both realizing we should probably have a game plan before leaving this bathroom. “I could drive with Grady,” I suggest.
Amelia stares at me, not exactly thrilled with us having to choose what to do right now with the situation we’ve found ourselves in. She sighs and rolls her eyes, ever the martyr. “No, it’s fine, we can stay in the same cars.”
I take a step backward toward the door, happy with this result even if she isn’t. “Are you sure?”
She waves her hand. “Yeah, you and Declan probably want to keep flirting and talking about board games anyway.” She shakes her head as if thinkingThe things I do for my sister.“You owe me.”
I don’t like this approach. I didn’t ask her to do this. “Hey, I’ve said a million times this drive back home was supposed to be just the two of us.”
“It’s fine, really.”
Amelia pushes past me and out the bathroom door, where I spot Declan and Grady through the window already waiting for us outside. “They’re by the cars,” I tell my sister, and she leads the way out the front entrance.
