Page 66 of Let's Talk About Love
“What’s that?”
“Me. You. Monday night. It’s happening.” She nodded. “Prepare thyself.”
“I still don’t know what it is.” He rubbed his face again—a smilepeeking through his fingers. “But okay. Whatever you want, if you think I need it, let’s do it.”
And then he was reaching for Alice. She was on the inside of a Takumi hug, his arms wrapped around her shoulders squeezing her tight, his warm cheek pressed against her blazing one, their bodies in extremely close proximity. Her hands moved on their own, finding his waist and matching the intensity of his hug. He felt firm, muscled and lean, and smelled like tangy alcohol with the tiniest hint of a nice-smelling laundry detergent.
“I’m really glad I met you,” he whispered in her ear.
Chills rolled up her spine, making her head snap back. “Me too.”
CHAPTER
22
Would her phone ever stop ringing?
Glory leapt onto the bed, pawing at her shoulder. She purred when Alice scratched under her chin. “That’s not an alarm. It’s too early to eat,” she huffed, rolling over to check the screen, and then sucked in a breath through her teeth. Her thumb hovered over the Answer button, afraid of what would happen next.
Answering could mean death—a verbal evisceration the likes of which had never been seen. But not answering had the potential to be even worse. Ignoreherlong enough and she would magically show up, in person, like a thief in the night bringing the apocalypse with her.
“Hey, Mom,” she said with a gravelly voice, fakingI was asleep and you woke me upnoises.
“Alice.” Whenever she used that tone, herI know you weren’t asleep, I’m your mother, I can sense youvoice, a lecture was on the way.
She had honestly tried to remember to call, set alarms for it twice that week, but sometimes that Silence button could be really convincing, like it was using mind control to make her push it.
“Mom, I’m sorry. Things are really stressful for me right now.” Glory jumped onto her chest and stretched out, kneading her in solidarity.
“It still says undeclared, Alice.”
“Couldn’t you have at least tried to pretend that wasn’t what you were calling about?”
“Why? I want you to know that I know.”
“I’m changing my password,” she mumbled.
“I’ll make your dad ask you for it.”
Damn. Alice could never tell him no. “That’s cheating!”
“That’s love. I don’t understand what the problem is. You clearly seem to think your future is a game, since you keep lying.”
“Lyingis a very harsh word. It’s more like forgetting. On purpose.”
“Alice.”
“Mom.” A vocal fry rumbled in the back of her throat before petering out into a whine. “Okay. Do you promise not to get mad?”
“I’m already mad.”
“Fine. Madder? I’ve been wanting to tell you something, but I wasn’t sure how to do it without disappointing you.”
Her mom was silent for a moment. “You rank me being disappointed above me being angry?”
“Well, yeah. I mean, I don’t want to make you cry.”
“What on earth could you possibly say to do that?” Her amused laughter came to an abrupt halt. “Oh, Jesus,no.Alice, are youpregnant?”
