Page 134 of The Fallacy of True Love
She could have been talking about the two of us, but I said, “Is there a probation period?”
“Six months.”
“There you go. Think of it like they’re on probation status with you too. You can learn more about the company and the job, see if it’s something you want to do mid- to long-term. It’s not like a marriage that you can’t get out of.”
“Technically, you can get out of a marriage,” she argued.
“Technically,” I agreed. “Though I’m an in-it-for-life type of person.”
She pressed her lips together and couldn’t seem to meet my gaze.
Wanting to make her smile, I said, “So you loved my note, huh?”
There—a smirk. “A for effort.”
“I’ll get an A plus yet.”
She snorted. Then she asked, “Have you talked to your dad?”
“Not yet.” I’d told her what happened last night, and she’d been outraged on my behalf. She’d also been touched by Mama’s words, though I’d skipped telling her about the last part of our conversation. We agreed that I needed to find an opportunity to talk to Papa when neither of us was stressed.
“Let me know if you want to practice with me. Did I tell you how I practiced my interview skills with Nikki and Eric?”
“Thanks for offering—I’m just not sure I can practice that. We’ll see.” It felt awkward rehearsing what I’d say to Papa, though I could imagine Maya channeling her grumpy energy for that scenario. “And no, you didn’t. That’s cool of them. Did Nikki say yes to Eric, by the way?”
“Not yet. I’ll bug her again tomorrow.” She sighed. ”I might threaten to disown her if she says no.”
“That would last a day.”
“Give me some credit. One week, tops.” After a beat, she said, “Five days.”
I laughed. “You two love each other too much to go that long.”
Maya winced, and I immediately flashed back to our conversation about the L-word. Just like that, my mood sobered.
“Maya—”
“That’s such a stupid concept,” she blurted out. “Love. It’s illogical.”
“It is. But I think things don’t always have to make sense or be perfect for them to be worthwhile. To be real.”
Her forehead creased as she stared at me like she was trying to reconcile my words with her own thoughts. It struck me just how much I wanted to prove to her that love was worth the risk, and that she could have it if she wanted to.
“Yeah, well. Hopefully Nikki feels the same,” she murmured.
I stopped myself from saying more. My chance would come soon enough. “When is their date supposed to be again?” I asked her.
The lines on her forehead eased. “The event’s on Saturday, so she needs to make up her mind ASAP.”
“Speaking of Saturday, any chance you’d want company this weekend?”
“I wouldn’t say no.” A small smile lit up her face, and that was enough to have me grinning.
“Good.”
My plan to win Maya over was officially a go.
Chapter Forty-Seven
