Page 30 of When Love Gives You Lemons
Joey_Italiano
omg how could I miss that? damn, ricky glowed up. zaddy!
Grouchy.1505
RIGHT? And that caption about being in the most romantic place? With Ricky? Seems like life handed Ricky a Lemon . . .
amithedrama
Word on the street is Ricky and Lemon hate each other.
Grouchy.1505
@amithedrama Lol you don’t know them troll
amithedrama
K lol. My friend went to school with Ricky and Lemon and he said they don’t speak. Ricky moved cross the country and Lemon sleeps with anything that moves. I have receipts.
Joey_Italiano
@amithedrama u don’t know shit. i hope they got back together. they were goals.
Chapter 8
I Should Have Stopped in All My Evil Plotting to Have That Manicure, But It’s Too Late Now!
The neon-orange sun is disappearing behind the cliffs, casting the Amalfi mountains in gold. The fading blue sky is streaked with purples and pinks, like a magical moving watercolor painting splashed across the walls of the villa, a perfect backdrop as Matty douses me in cologne until I can’t breathe. He flicks the top three buttons open on my shirt, exposing my collarbone and my few chest hairs.
“How do I look?”
“Like you’re about to bottom.” Matty cheeses.
“If all goes to plan!”
“You—” He narrows his eyes devilishly, pinches his fingers, and gestures at me.
We mull over the plan for tonight and cross-reference with Operation: Ricky @ Second Glance. Part one consists of a casual family run-in in the villa’s luxurious kitchen. Ricky’s mom, Bianca, can’t resist being in the fray, so I’ll bet anything she’ll bein the kitchen, noseying around the executive chef. Perfect opportunity to apply the charm.
Then, standard family gatherings with the Lemon Coven tend to stretch into the wee hours of the morning, especially factoring in wine, limoncello, a couple decks of playing cards Nonna the gambler stashes in her purse. We’ll use this and the time difference to our advantage. To not rope in Topher or Sienna and keep them drama free, Matty will enlist Monroe and Benny, both of whom have the uncanny ability to talk nonstop about anything, to separate Ricky and Cam. If they can loop Cam into a conversation and lure him away from the party, Matty will swoop down on Ricky and ask if they can have a best man to man of honor one-on-one using a “surprise” for Topher and Sienna as a ruse. As all this is going on, I’ll casually excuse myself and make my way down to the pool area, which will already be lit with fairy lights thanks to the impeccable décor choices of our villa hosts. Matty and Ricky will stumble upon me, and Matty will act all surprised that I’m there, but that’ll be the moment I finally get to talk to Ricky. Everything else will melt away, except for us.
A happenchance rendezvous beneath the stars? What could be more romantic, right?Fuhgettaboutit. I can see the stitched reaction videos now . . .
He’ll get all flustered because he knows deep, deep, deep down he loves me, not Cam, and then we’ll laugh about how silly the emotional distance between us is, and Italy will imbue us with all the magic we need to have a super-charged moment that is sure to reignite his feelings for me, leaving Cam in the dust.
“Are we bad people?” I plop down on the bed.
“Nah. Just horny and in love.” He palms his chest and pointedly says, “Horny,” then moves the same palm to my chest. “In love. And love conquers all. Especially doe-eyed nerdy new boyfriends who can’t hold a candle to history.”
“You gotta stop watching old Disney movies and listening to Benny.” I pick at my cuticles, ripping off a rogue slice of skin. Blood pools in the crevices of my nail bed. I really should have gotten a manicure before the trip.
“Andyougotta stop giving off bottom energy. Channel top energy tonight. Ricky is going to take notice of just how much you’ve changed, and what he’s missing.”
Have Ireallychanged?
“(A) that is heterosexist and slightly homophobic,” I start, which Matty appreciates because he’s working on his internalized homophobia and likes being called out when he uses stereotypes. “(B) Ricky and I were both vers, but that’s beside the point. (C) Ricky does give off dom energy, huh?” A slow realization pushes me to the edge of the bed. “He said the night of the Great Commencement Massacre that he felt like he needed to take care of me. Maybe I need to show him that I can take care of him, too.” I hold out a shaky hand. Now the blood drips onto the floor. Matty bolts to the bathroom to grab me a washcloth to blot and wrap my finger. Then he shoves Ricky’s journal in my face and turns to a page he’d dutifully earmarked for me. Written on opposing pages are two poems close enough in proximity that theyobviouslymean something when read together:
FROM THE JOURNAL OF RICCARDO DELUCA
