Page 48 of Problematic Summer Romance

“Are we talking…Risk?”

“I’d rather not elaborate.”

“Or wait—is that computer games?”

“This conversation is over.”

“Are these war games you speak of just glorified Excel spreadsheets, Conor?”

“No comment.”

He’s so much older than me, our age gap could apply for a driver’s permit. But he listened when I tried to articulate that as much as I love physics, I’m not certain that’s the career I want. Problem is, I’m also not certain that I don’t. Which…Whatever. I’ll figure it out.

“Why do you do that?” he asked.

“What?”

“Interrupt yourself before finishing a thought.”

I remembered trying to express the same doubts to Alfie. “Um. Usually people interrupt me first, anyway?”

A scowling glance. “You need to find better people, then.”

It was fun, spending time with him. All the things we have in common. The people in our lives. The shared language of Austin, with its love for H-E-B and the profound hatred for I-35 traffic.

Maybe, I thought,I miss home more than I realized.

He received a lot of calls throughout the day. Most he declined. Some, he sighed and said, “Sorry, I have to take this.”

One of them was from my brother. “Guess who I’m with?” he asked as he picked up.

“I don’t know.”I immediately recognized Eli’s voice.“Is it the police? Have you been arrested for stabbing your father?”I realizedthat Conor was going to tell Eli that he’d flown here to see me, and…

I shook my head, quickly, instinctively. “Don’t,” I whispered. “Don’t tell him.”

Conor’s eyes locked with mine, his confusion was obvious. And yet. “You’re exactly right,” he told Eli, before changing the topic. “About the Mayers final bid diligence.”

“Why?” he asked after hanging up.

“I…don’t want him to worry,” I said. Conor looked at me like he sensed the lie, and…so did I. I just couldn’t figure out what the true reason was, so I decided to force-feed him some Irn-Bru.

I was going to go home and get changed before meeting the others. I think Conor planned to do the same. It just kind of happened, that we checked the time and realized that we were late. And the reason I’m wearing his coat is…well. He runs hot. I don’t.

“You okay?” Rose asks when Georgia leaves for the loo. Her palm rubs affectionately against my thigh. “You seem a little distracted.”

“Just—”Tired, I’m about to say. Instead I put down my empty soda glass and shift toward her. “Did you know that it was going on? Alfie and Georgia?”

Her button nose scrunches up. “You already asked. Did you forget?”

“No. It’s just, you didn’t seem too shocked about it.”

“I didn’t know, Maya.”

Maybe I should stop being confrontational about this. It’s just that…“If Surika dumped you,” I say calmly, “and a week later I caught her making out with my cousin, I would be more open to admitting that my cousin acted like a total cunt.”

“Do you have a cousin?”

“What?”

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