Page 10 of Under My Skin

“That’s what parents are for, Lizzie girl. You never need to question our love for you,” my dad says and smiles gently at me. He’s a man of few words most of the time, so you know his words will have meaning when he decides to voice them.

I smile back with a wave. “See you later. I’ll let you know if I’m going to be around for dinner. I might grab food with Lia.”

They wave back, and I drive off. Within ten minutes, I’m pulling up outside Francine’s and parking next to my best friend.

“Hey, girl,” Lia says, but then stops as her eyes get as big as saucers. “Damn, you look like shit. I mean,prettyshit and all, but definitely likeyou didn’t sleep last nightshit.”

I should be offended by her comment, but I can’t be. Lia is the exact opposite of me, which is probably why we get along so well. She’s blonde with green eyes, pale, flawless skin, and curves for days. She has absolutely no filter, and that’s one of my favorite things about her.

We’ve been best friends since second grade because she was the only one brave enough to tell me I had toilet paper sticking out of my pants after I used the restroom. It was still embarrassing, but she made it funny, and we laughed it off. We’ve had each other’s backs ever since. Her being away at college has been hard because I miss her so much, which is why we try to spend as much time as we can together when she’s home.

“Yeah, that tracks.” Lia keeps staring at me in silence, waiting for me to continue. I thought we would at least order and sit down first, but I guess not. “Just overthinking my interaction with Cameron yesterday.”

“Hold on right there,” she says, holding a finger up. “Do not say another word. Let’s get our coffee first. I feel like I’m gonna need to be sitting for this.” She starts walking inside and then turns around so abruptly that I almost run into her. “And pastries. Maybe a Danish. Let’s get some carbs.”

We place our orders at the counter and pay, moving to sit at a cozy table in the corner. I absolutely love Francine’s Patisserie. It’s a Parisian-themed cafe. that sticks out in a town like Brantley Falls but is loved by everyone regardless. It’s been here all my life, and Francine herself used to work here every day. I’ve seen her less and less this past year and a half, though. Her daughter Ellie moved back home from Chicago after earning her business degree with the intention of taking over for her mom. She’s only two years older than Lia and me, and we’ve always been friendly, but we’ve become closer since she’s been back.

“Hi girls! Got your goodies,” Ellie says as she drops off our food and drinks. “What’s new?”

“Lizzie and I are going to Rangers tonight. You should come.” Lia smiles big, putting on as much charm as possible in hopes of convincing her to say yes. Ellie tucks her light blonde hair behind her ears and makes a face, clearly trying to come up with an excuse.

“I know it’s not really your scene, Els, but Lia and I always have so much fun. We’ll have a couple drinks and dance until our feet hurt,” I say pleadingly. “Just come out this once, and if you hate it, we won’t ever ask you to come again.”

Whenever we get together with Ellie, it’s usually to watch a movie or just to hang out at each other’s places and binge on unhealthy food and reality TV. Getting her to socialize isn’t exactly easy, so Lia and I give her our best doe eyes and cross our fingers under the table, something we’ve done since we were kids when we really wanted something to go our way.

“Fine,” Ellie concedes.

“Yes!” Lia and I shout at the same time.

Ellie is a tough nut to crack, but even she kind of smiles out of excitement.

“You will not regret this, Els. Lizzie and I are going to lure you out of your shell before the summer is up. Just wait and see,” Lia adds.

“I don’t need to belured out of my shell. I don’t even have a shell,” Ellie points out in mock annoyance. “I just prefer to stay in. Is that such a crime?”

“It’s not. We just know you’ll have fun if you give it a chance, that’s all,” I tell her, like her saying yes is no big deal when I know it is.

“Alright, alright, you win. But just this one time.”

We make plans to pick her up from her apartment above the cafe at seven so we can grab a quick dinner before heading to Rangers. I’m so excited for tonight that I almost forget about everything I have to talk to Lia about.

However, she doesn’t.

“Spill it, Liz,” Lia says around a bite of Danish.

After relaying everything that happened, all Lia does is stare at me in silence.

“I’m being silly, right? He probably meant that it’s a perk to have someone who can babysit his girls when he has to run out somewhere. Yeah, I’m sure that’s what he meant.” At this point, I’m talking fast and rambling, and Lia just keeps watching me, which only makes me more nervous. “I told him I run pottery workshops for kids too, so he probably feels comfortable leaving his girls with me because it’s basically a babysitting service for parents in the summer. Great, I have absolutely no chance with him now. He’ll probably ask me to watch Mackenzie and Addy so he can go on dates. Karen has made it very clear to everyone that she has her sights set on him. Plus, I don’t think I can show my face around him anymore after the spill I took. It was absolutely mortifying.” I have to stop to take a breath and am about to continue spiraling when Lia puts her hand on mine to stop me.

“First of all, Karen is a bitch who never got past her high school years.”

“She’s a hot bitch, though.”

“That may be true, but Cameron is smart and would never fall for that. He did as a teenager because boys at that age are only thinking with their little heads. Second, no one would refer to your babysitting as a perk?—”

“Hey!”

“When you look like that. Let me finish!” She takes a sip of her coffee before she continues. “Third, as embarrassing as the fall might have been, it sounds like he was concerned about you, not judging you. In my expert opinion, we need more interactions, so I’ll reserve my ruling for another time.

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