Page 53 of London, Love, & A Little Something Irish

“Okay,” she said, folding her arms. “Who are you texting?”

I glanced down at my phone, realizing my grin was probably so obvious.

I rolled my eyes. “Youknowwho.”

She smirked. “Nathan?”

I shrugged, taking a sip of my water. “Maybe.”

Her brows lifted. “And what’s he saying?”

I glanced at my screen, where his last text read:

At the beach. You’d love it. Wish you were here.

A flutter kicked up in my stomach. “Just talking about Barcelona,” I said lightly, locking my phone.

Chantelle leaned forward. “Okay, but what’s happening with Nathan? Because let’s be real, you and Joel haven’t been broken up for that long…”

And there it is. The conversation I knew was coming.

I took a deep breath. “Nothing’shappenedyet,” I admitted. “But I really like him. Joel and I were never right for each other.”

She nodded slowly but didn’t let me off that easily. “I know you were never crazy about Joel, but it’s just beena few weeks. Are you sure you’re not just hopping from one relationship to the next?”

I paused, choosing my words.

“Honestly, Chants… I get why it could look that way. But I’ve been wrestling with all this for months. Joel and I were never in love. And Nathan… I don’t know. It feels different. Like maybe he could even be the one.”

Her expression softened. “That’s all I needed to hear. I just wanted to hear it from you, not through a trail of emoji hearts and half-finished stories.” She paused, tilting her head. “Now. Back to Nathan.”

I groaned, laughing. “Oh no.”

“Oh yes.” She leaned in dramatically. “I fully support this man, but he needs to know that if he breaks your heart, he will answer to me.”

I snorted. “You? The least intimidating person I know?”

She lifted her chin. “I will threaten him with dad jokes for all eternity.”

The rest of the trip was everything I needed. Lazy mornings with my mom while dad worked, wandering through town, watching the sea outside the window as the waves rolled in and out. A romantic comedy every night.

My mom also knew everything that happened from day one. I can’t hide anything from that woman. She justknows.

She called me on the night that I broke up with Joel.

“Hi, sweetheart. How are you?”

“Hi, Mom. What’s up?” I said in a neutral tone.

She clearly heard something in my voice. “What’s the matter?”

I sighed. “It’s like you have binoculars and can see through the phone or something. You just know whenever something’s wrong, don’t you?”

I could hear the grin in her voice. “Of course I do. I’m your mom. I’ve got eyes in the back of my head.”

“I just broke up with Joel.”

A pause. “And? How did it go?”

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