Page 36 of Her Billion Dollar Groom

“Insects are creepy and gross.” I shiver at the idea of being near hundreds of bugs.

Like any normal person, I’m not a big fan of bugs. I don’t understand why so many of them need so many legs, and if it’s not too many legs, they have too many eyes. Isn’t two enough to be able to see?

But Jason is insistent. “Come on, Eliza, please,” he says, turning my own tactics against me. “You dragged me all the way out to the zoo, and now you won’t even let me see the one thing I really want to see.”

“Now who’s acting like a petulant baby?” I grin, throwing words he’s thrown at me before right back in his face.

“If there’s one thing I’ve learned from being with you, it’s that acting like a little baby works more often than you think it should.”

I open my mouth and close it again, realizing he’s got me.

“Oh, really,” I groan. “You one hundred percent absolutely totally really want to go and see weird, creepy things?”

“Bugs aren’t weird and creepy,” he says, throwing his hands up like he really believes every word he’s saying. “Bugs are fascinating. They’re everywhere and can do anything. Don’t you think that’s so cool?”

“I think you’re insane.” I chuckle. “But unfortunately, I’m a person who keeps her promises.”

“So that’s a yes?” He raises his eyebrows hopefully.

This is absolutely the last thing I want to do, but for him, I can force myself. “Fine.” I sigh. “But after this, we’re going to see the polar bear.”

“Deal,” he says and shakes my hand.

Cautiously, I step inside the bug enclosure. This is a part of the zoo I’ve never visited before. Usually, the idea of seeing all the creepy things freaks me out too much, and because I’m only friends with sane and rational people, nobody else has ever asked me to go in.

I grit my teeth as we step deeper inside. It’s dark and clammy in here.

Without thinking, I reach for Jason’s hand.

I get the feeling he wants to laugh at me, but as always, he’s too kind to let his true feelings show.

“Eliza, look,” he gasps, pointing at something with about a million legs. “They’ve got a collection of rare millipedes.”

“Great,” I mutter.

He goes to take a step closer, but I squeeze his hand tightly, stopping him in his tracks. He chuckles lightly at me. “Don’t worry, they don’t bite. These ones don’t anyway. And even if they did, they can’t get out.”

“You are too trusting,” I hiss. “You have no idea what something with that many legs can do.”

“They’re not going to do anything,” he scoffs. “Most millipedes are completely harmless, and none of them have a thousand legs, not really.”

“Okay…” I say, narrowing my eyes at the weird bug facts section of the trip.

He continues, lost in his own world. “They live in little tunnels under the ground, and you can find them almost anywhere.”

“They don’t bite, do they? You’re totally sure? You’re not lying to make me go near them?”

“No. I wouldn’t do that. Some of them have poison, but they won’t hurt us.”

“I still don’t want to touch one,” I say, gripping his arm.

Jason gets closer, pushing his face against the glass. “Aren’t they remarkable?”

One of the millipedes sits up slightly and wiggles all his legs. I shriek, deeply unhappy with the idea of one of those being anywhere near me. Jason is totally unsympathetic. “There’s nothing to be afraid of, honestly. I promise you that one of these couldn’t hurt you, even if it tried.”

“I don’t want it to try,” I snap, hiding behind him and burying my face in his shirt. “I want it to stay very, very far away from me.”

“They’re strong, but they can’t break through the glass.” He chuckles, turning around to pat me on the shoulder. “I promise. Come and look closer.”

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