Page 94 of Wicked Love

“Hey, you. How’s your day going?”

“It’s been a good one. How about yours?”

“Yeah, same here. Mrs. McGregor is bringing Becca to Briar Hill after school. I have a meeting with my agent.”

“Oh, okay.”

“But I wondered if you’d want to come over for dinner tonight.”

“Well, look at you, two nights in a row. I might start to get ideas,” she teases.

“I hope so,” I say. My cheeks get hot when I talk to her.It’s the dumbest thing. I feel like a kid, trying to impress a girl…thegirl. I put my hand on the back of my neck and smile down at the floor.

“I guess I could come over for dinner,” she says.

“Anything I can do to make you certain?”

“Hmm. I like it when you sayplease.”

“Please, Poppy Keane, will you please come to my house for dinner tonight?”

“I’d love to.”

I laugh and she gasps.

“I just made Bowie Fox laugh…on the phone.”

“Shut up,” I mumble.

She laughs and I grin like a motherfucking cheesehead.

“What can I bring?”

“Just yourself.”

“That I can do.”

I’m in the kitchen talking to Mrs. McGregor about dinner, when Mom walks in.

“What’s going on?” she asks suspiciously. “Why are you all dressed up?”

I look at my button-down shirt and frown. “Is it too much? Poppy’s coming over for dinner.”

“Oh!” She brightens up, clapping her hands. “What are we making?” she asks Mrs. McGregor.

“Iwas making my Bolognese,” Mrs. McGregor says.

Mom sniffs, looking Mrs. McGregor over. “Your Bolognese?”

“Well, an old neighbor’s recipe, but it’s an authentic sauce.”

I look at the ceiling and count to five. “Was it a mistake to try to have a date over here tonight?”

Both women look contrite.

“Absolutely not,” Mrs. McGregor says.

“We’ll work together and then get out of your way,” Mom says, giving me a gentle nudge out the door. “Don’t worry about a thing.”

---