Page 67 of Good For Me

“You want to eat?” River asks. “It might be nice to fill up before the masses show up.”

Since hunger is basically my default these days, I agree and follow the two of them into the house. “Hey,” a tall, brown-haired guy calls from an ancient looking beat up pine table in the kitchen. He’s filling platters with pieces of crusty bread, cheese, and all kinds of sliced meats. “You guys made it.”

“Leo, this is my friend Jasmine,” River says. “Jas, this is the guy who so kindly took my sister out of our hair.”

Rose punches him again while Leo wipes his hands on a dish towel then reaches one out to shake mine. “Nice to meet you, Jas. I’m thrilled there’s going to be another non-Ransome here to keep me company before the wedding guests arrive.”

“Don’t listen to him. The entire family is crazy about Leo,” Rose says, rolling her eyes.

Her boyfriend raises an eyebrow. “Last week your Uncle Reed threatened to have my brake lines cut if he saw me kissing you again.” Then he winks at me. “Don’t worry—they reserve the protective thing only for guys who have the audacity to date their precious Rosie.”

“He’s not wrong,” Rose agrees, grabbing several plates from a stack and handing them around. “Everyone is perfectly sweet to Eva.”

“Seriously, though,” Leo says in an undertone when I step up next to him to grab bread for my sandwich. “It can seem a little loud and chaotic when everyone is here. Just try not to get too overwhelmed. There’s a lot of them, but they aren’t so bad once you get to know them.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“I don’t come from a big family,” he continues. “Only child. This is a very different scenario than I’m used to. It was a little…much at first.”

“Me too,” I say, feeling grateful to have an ally. “I have a cousin, but it was mostly just me and my grandfather growing up.”

He smiles kindly. He’s a really cute guy—tall, broad-shouldered, pretty green eyes—but then I guess that’s not surprising considering he’s dating a woman who looks like she could model for suntan lotion ads. “Stick with me. You’ll be just fine.”

We take our plates out to the porch and sit on creaky wooden rocking chairs. It’s a gorgeous day—sunny and just warm enough to be comfortable in sweaters or hoodies. The trees surrounding the property are showing off a riot of color, all gorgeous shades of yellow and orange mixed in with the evergreens.

River grins over at me. “See? Peaceful.”

“You were right,” I agree. I’m not sure the sentiment will remain once the rest of the family gets here, but this view, along with the chill company of Rose and Leo, is just what I needed.

“I had a big exam in my finance class this morning,” I explain to them. “I’ve been a little stressed about it.”

“Jas is finishing up her bachelor’s degree before she starts her MBA next semester,” River adds. He nods at his sister and her boyfriend. “They’re both in grad school, too. Rose is working on her master’s in counseling and Leo is getting a PhD.”

“Wow,” I say, wondering how the hell Rose balances master’s level work with running a shelter. “That’s pretty impressive.”

The three of them chat easily through lunch, Rose and River doing most of the talking. Apparently when you have a huge family, there’s a lot to catch up on. There’s plenty of weekend plans to go over as well—Will’s father seems to be trying to cram every conceivable activity into his son’s wedding weekend.

“The big argument is over the amusement park,” Rose explains. “Most of the kids are begging to go to Dollywood tomorrow to ride some roller coasters, but Eva and Will are dead set on zip lining.”

“Wait,” River says, sitting forward. “I didn’t hear anything about this.”

“You haven’t exactly been easy to get ahold of this past week,” Rose says softly, and I feel a pang of discomfort. I would bet money that if River has been avoiding talking to his family, it’s because of me.

“So? You couldn’t have left me a message or something?”

She shifts in her seat, looking uncomfortable. “I didn’t think about it.”

River sighs, running a hand through his hair. He casts a look in my direction. “We’ll just stick around here.”

It takes me a second to realize what has him so worked up. Are pregnant people supposed to go zip lining in the mountains or ride roller coasters? I have no idea. And the fact that it never occurred to me to be worried about it is probably pretty damn telling. Shouldn’t an expectant mother’s first thought abouteverythingbe her baby? I look down at the sandwich in my lap, realizing belatedly that Rose made sure to note that the chicken was freshly cooked, and not from the deli. I hadn’t even blinked at the time, but now I get it—I’m not supposed to eat deli meat.

Jesus, I am the worst pregnant person ever.

And now Rose and Leo are both looking at me, and I wonder if Rose told him, and all of a sudden, I feel sick for the first time in nearly a week.

“I’ll be right back,” I say, standing quickly. River is on his feet in two seconds flat, his hand at my back. Somehow, that makes me feel even worse.

“I’m fine,” I say, knowing my voice is too sharp but unable to rein it in. I brush him off and dart into the house, wishing I would have taken River up on his offer of a tour before we ate, because I have no idea where the bathroom is.