Page 303 of Trouble from Abroad
I smile against his skin. “Will it be a total mood killer if I say I’ll miss having Lily around for a day?”
“No, baby. You loving my kid is the biggest turn-on of my life. It’s my wildest dream coming true. It’s the making of our family.”
CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO
mia
Days stack easy.Mornings are for shoelace lessons on new sneakers and our secret goodbye wave at lineup—like we’re undercover agents instead of just slightly unhinged humans before 8 a.m. Preston cheats at Go Fish. Lily and I catch his tells and stage a coup at the kitchen island. I bought erasable pens, and now the fridge gets a new doodle every morning before school. My favorites are Lils’s notes. Her handwriting’s so adorable. So her.
The sight of two mugs sitting side by side doesn’t spook me anymore; they pin a ridiculous smile to my face. After breakfast, he loops my scarf around his neck so his cologne finds me when we part ways at the door. He’s teaching me to drive, so I don’t need an Uber for afternoon pick-ups.
We text the important and unimportant things—banana-bread fails, lunchbox triumphs—until unimportant turns into everything.
By lunch, Moe's Diner is at full capacity. The espresso machine hisses, forks chime off heavy plates. We're donewith our food, not with our company. Callie emptied the sugar caddy, her spoon clinking too fast and loud in her mug. April smirks at her, elbows tidy on the Formica, napkin refolded and squared in front of her.
My phone buzzes: Pres.
I answer with a grin I don’t bother to hide.
“Hey, baby. Where are you?” he asks, and warmth radiates from my ear to my chest.
“Moe’s. Callie’s on a sugar bender and her third cup of coffee.Allegedly. I think they’re spiked. Which is apparently how Callie got ordained online so she can marry us?” He laughs out loud as if that was funny. I angle away, palm cupped over the speaker. “How do I stop her?”
Callie leans in, stage voice on. “I did that because Mia cannot have two maids of honor. Pick a favorite, coward, or I’ll be the priest.”
“We’re not getting married, Callie.”
Pres chimes in from the other side of the line, “Oh yeah, we are. Don’t say hurtful things like that.”
Heat stings my cheeks. “Shut up, you know what I mean. God, your friends are pushy.”
Callie gasps, delighted. “We’re your friends now.” She points the spoon at me like a wand. No, more like a weapon.
April laughs the menace off. “Want my advice? Start therapy immediately.” She turns to Callie and slides a glass of water toward her. “Girl, what's our motto?”
Callie's mouth turns downward before she answers with a mocking voice. “Hydrate before you escalate. This is coffee, not tequila, you know?”
Preston cuts in, amused. “I swear they're worth the headache.”
I meet Callie’s stare while I answer him, “Boundaries are just so very healthy.”
“Unfamiliar with the concept,” Callie says. She’s joking, but she’s also being utterly sincere.
“Not for lack of trying,” April adds, resigned, long used to Callie’s ways.
I soften because I can’t help it. “Hey, everything okay?”
“Better than okay.” His breath hovers against the phone, a half-laugh he can’t seem to keep in. “I just got the most fantastic news and can’t wait to share it with you. In person. Can I meet you there?”
Callie’s ear is practically glued to my cheek. “We’re done here. Moe’s giving us the stink-eye. Give us fifteen minutes, and we’ll hand-deliver her, boss.”
I flinch back. “Privacy, please?”
Callie shrugs. “Another foreign word.”
April snorts mid-sip and blots a drip off her shirt. She nudges the glass until it taps Callie’s knuckles. “Seriously, let’s water down the caffeine. And the sugar, for goodness’s sake.”
My right leg bounces, matching my heartbeat. “See you in fifteen,” I tell him. The last bit slips out on its own. “Love you.”
