Page 356 of Safe With You

“I thought you meant ordering something.”

“You have very little faith in me.”

I smiled. “I’m impressed.”

“As you should be.”

“Don’t ruin it.”

He laughed and turned back to the stove.

Mila came into the kitchen a few minutes later and climbed onto one of the stools.

“Is it ready?”

“Almost.”

“You said that already.”

“Because you keep asking.”

She looked at me.

“He takes forever.”

“I’ve been here five minutes.”

“See?”

I laughed.

Ellis pointed the spoon at both of us.

“Neither one of y’all has to eat.”

“Yes, we do,” Mila said.

I nodded. “She’s right.”

“Unbelievable.”

Dinner settled into the same easy rhythm it always seemed to when the three of us were together. Mila talked enough for all of us while Ellis kept reminding her to finish chewing before starting another sentence, and somewhere between the steak and mashed potatoes, I stopped teasing him about being surprised he could cook.

Halfway through dinner, she looked at me.

“Are you famous now?”

I almost choked.

Ellis dropped his head.

“No.”

“But you’re gonna be in a magazine.”

“That doesn’t make me famous.”

She thought about it. “What makes you famous?”