Page 11 of Finally Loved

“That’s the name of the place, is it?Um?”

Alba waved a hand in her direction. “Of course not.”

“Okay… So?”

Alba sighed and twisted in her seat to look at Zainab. “Last weekend, I was at the mall—”

“Right, with that weird cousin of yours.”

“She’s not weird.” They’d had this conversation a million times. Alba didn’t even think Zainab was wrong, they just had different appreciation levels for Alba’s cousin.

“She definitely is.”

Alba shook her head. “Whatever. That’s not the point.”

“And what is?”

“Is that a philosophical question?”

“Alba.” Zainab’s head fell back against her seat in exasperation.

“Right. Well, before I actually got into the mall, I ran into someone outside.”

“Okay?”

“We’d never met before.”

“You go to the mall expecting to know every other person there?”

“Ha. No.” Alba felt more nervous than she was used to. The whole thing was nothing, not really. She just couldn’t shake it, and she knew she was being weird about it precisely because of how hard telling Zainab was. Perhaps that was a sign she really needed to talk about it. Maybe once it was out, the whole thing would simply go away. “It was just… this woman.”

“Ohh.” Zainab laughed knowingly, sitting up straighter again. “Pretty, curvy, sparkling eyes, dazzling smile?”

“What?”

“Your mystery woman. It’s always the short, curvy girls that get you. Especially the ones whose smiles you can’t get enough of.”

“Excuse me, I don’t have such a specific type. I’m an… equal opportunities dater.”

“Correct. But nothing makes you weaker than—”

“Yes. Thank you.” Alba adjusted herself in her seat, realizing, even as she protested, that Zainab was right.

But that wasn’t really the point.

“So,” Zainab prompted, “was she?”

Alba scratched her head and looked away. “Um. Yeah, kind of. But I don’t really know what her smile looks like. Not properly.”

Zainab scowled. “Why? You hit her with your car or something?”

“Seriously? That’s your first thought?”

“It’s my every thought.”

“I don’t… even know what that means.”

“Don’t worry about it. Why no smile?”

---