Page 55 of The Broposal

I cleared my throat. “So, um… about last night.”

“The rule’s officially back on,” Kenny said with a nod, like he knew I’d want to erase that last kiss from existence. Even if I really didn’t, both of us having selective amnesia about it was for the best. “Sunday cleaning, right?” he asked through a yawn.

“Yup,” I answered as I helped him out of bed.

We followed our normal Sunday routine, making both our beds in record time. Then we rushed out to clean the rest of the house. After dusting and tidying everything up, we were on to our final chores. Dishes for me and vacuuming for Kenny.

“You still doing that show tonight?” I called out over the sound of clanking dishes, running water, and the Luna-repellant vacuum screaming.

“Of course,” Kenny said, and I swear his face lit up at the reminder of his upcoming drag performance. Hell, I couldn’t wait, either. I had to admit, seeing Kenny in his element like that was incredible. Ten out of ten, would watch anytime.

After a celebratory pizza, Kenny and I started getting ready for work. But the last place I wanted to be was alone in his car with nothing to distract from all the weirdness.

“You okay?” Kenny asked as he parked behind the restaurant. “You’re all broody this morning.”

Shit, I hadn’t meant to be broody. I didn’t want Kenny feeling anything was off after last night.

“Yeah, just tired as hell.” Sure, it wasn’t what was actually on my mind, but I’d barely slept last night, so it was true. I was really getting the hang of this whole acting thing, using the realness to get across the fakeness, or whatever.

“I think I have some 5-Hour Energy in here somewhere,” Kenny said, shuffling through his bag, then pulling out a small bottle of the stuff.

“Gross, dude. How long has that been in there?”

“Mmm, probably like, less than two weeks?”

“I’ll pass.” I laughed, glad Kenny didn’t seem too bothered.

We went into work holding hands again, which I was grateful for. At least we got to do that. But at the same time, I wasn’t sure how I felt about PDA in front of Daniel. Getting an order wrong last week had gotten me a complaint, so I was on thin ice.

But Daniel stayed in his office for most of our shift, so I let myself loosen up. Besides, Kenny was a hard man to ignore. Especially since I wanted so badly to make up for the night before. I blew Kenny a kiss as he walked by, and he lit up as he blew one back, opening the dam.

Kenny was a little over-the-top with his flirting, but I had to admit it was fun. I liked pretending to catch the kisses he blew at me. Fake flirting with Kenny made working so much better. I hated my job, but the shift went by much faster when I let loose. I was so preoccupied, I almost missed my break. Finally able to let my hands breathe, I took off my gloves and headed for the break room.

As I walked through the kitchen, Kenny was passing by with a tray of food and blew me another kiss with his free hand. Itwas 100 percent overkill, but it was fun so I turned to catch the kiss midair.

“Behind you!” Julia’s voice was too close, and it was too late for me to move out of the way. She dropped her tray of fountain drinks in front of me right as I turned, my bad foot stepping onto the wet floor.

Before I could fall, my ankle jerked at the wrong angle under me, reflexively trying to keep the rest of me upright. But the slippery drinks didn’t allow for balance, and I fell to the ground, clutching my ankle and trying not to scream.

“Oh my gosh! Honey, are you okay?” Julia asked, and it wasn’t until then that I noticed the blood on my hand from catching myself on the floor with broken drink glasses. Several dishwashers were already sweeping the mess, and Kenny rushed to my side, ignoring the warnings to stay away from the shattered glass on the floor. He helped me to my feet—well, my good foot. I let him support my weight as we hobbled over to a chair that Tatiana pulled out of the break room. My cheeks burned.

“Can you move your foot, sweetheart?” Julia asked. I tried pointing my foot, but the pain shot straight up my leg, and I let out a wounded noise.

Daniel came into the kitchen with a solemn look on his face.

“I think his ankle is broken, or at least sprained,” Julia said. “He probably needs to go to the hospital.”

My heart sank. For one, I was sure I was about to be fired. But then again, wasn’t it illegal to fire someone for getting injured on the job? Did legality even matter when it came to me since I was undocumented? I wouldn’t qualify for workers’ comp, but I was probably safe from getting fired, as long as I didn’t miss too much work…

And I obviously couldn’t go to the hospital. I probably wouldn’t even get more than the rest of the day off.

“I’m fine, really,” I lied, sucking my breath in through my teeth and trying to look as fine as I could. Tatiana rushed over with paper towels to catch the blood on my hand.

“Are you okay to work?” Daniel asked. Kenny looked like he wanted to slap the dude, and I kind of wanted him to.

“He has an open wound and a broken ankle. He can’t work,” Kenny said, and I was grateful I didn’t have to say it myself. Even if I could work on one leg the rest of my shift, my hand was busted, and even I was sure working with a bloody hand was some kind of health code violation.

Daniel sighed. “I’ll call someone in. Get yourself cleaned up. I want to see you back here for your shift by Friday. We need all our cooks for the Friday-night rush.”

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