Page 101 of I Wanna Text You Up

I glare at him. “I know where my parentslive.”

He tucks his lips in, eyebrow shooting up. “Whatever yousay.”

I pull my phone from the purse I have dangling from my shoulder and swipe until I find the video chat option. Hitting the green button next to my mom’s face, I hold the phone out and wait for her toanswer.

My mother’s face—or should I say, hernostril—fills thescreen.

“Mom, move the phone away from yourface.”

She complies and gives me a wide grin. “Ah! There’s my beautifulgirl!”

“Here I am, but where are you? I thought you and Dad would be here untiltomorrow.”

“Well, we were going to, dear, but your dad—” She shoves her phone into his face. “Say hi,Rafe.”

“Hi Rafe,” my daddeadpans.

My mom’s face comes back into view. “He never wants to play along. Anyway, he decided to whisk me off for a romantic stay at a B&B before we go visit yourgrandmother.”

“I’m only doing this to get a decent meal!” my dad insists, and I believe everyword.

For some reason, my grandmother willonlyeat dinner at a local diner…and the food is horrendous. I can’t fault him for leavingearly.

“Well, hell, I guess you’re meeting my new boyfriend via FaceTime.” I move until Caleb’s in the picture. “Mom, Dad, this is Caleb, myboyfriend.”

“Boyfriend?” my mom asks, surprised. “You told me he was just your roommate. When did thishappen?”

Caleb and I exchange aglance.

“On the way here,” I tell her. “We justdecided.”

She purses her lips. “Zohanna Marie, are you playing some sort of trick onme?”

“No, Mama. No trick. We’redating.”

“Oh!” Her face lights up. “Well in that case, well done—he’s a looker!” She sends Caleb a wink. “Hi Caleb, I’m Sofia. Sorry we can’t be there to greet you, but we’ll be back before the end of your stay. You’ll have to give me lots of hugsthen.”

“Mama, I am standing right here. Stopflirting.”

“And I’m sitting right here. Leave the poor boy alone,” my dad tellsher.

“Oh hush, Rafe. You know you’re my number one thisweek.”

The screen blurs and you can tell the phone’s gone flying through the air, and then it’sdark.

“Ah hell! Hang on, kids. I dropped the dangphone.”

“Don’t take your seatbelt off. I’mdriving!”

“I will be just fine for two seconds. Take a chill pill,bro.”

My mouth drops open. “Mama, did you just call Dad ‘bro’?”

Her face comes back into view, this time with my dad in the background. “Well if he wasn’t such a douchebagsometimes—”

“Mama!”

“She’s been calling me that a lot lately, read some novel about these ‘douchebag’wrestlers—”

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