Page 21

Dad held up his hands in surrender. “I’m shit at keeping secrets from her. You know that.”
I shook my head at him. Some things never changed.
Mara and Mom came into the living room, laughing about something. I smiled between the two of them. The woman I looked up to and the woman who was quickly stealing her heart.
“Ready to go?” I asked Mara.
She nodded, coming and looping her arm through mine. “It was great to meet you all. I’m so thankful you had me over.”
“Come back any time,” Mom said. “I’ve never had someone so complimentary of my cooking.”
Dad chuckled, “We’re all used to the greatness.”
“Uh huh,” Mom said. She came and gave both of us a hug. “See you in the morning, sweetie.”
“See you,” I said.
Then Mara and I walked out the door, toward my car. Once inside, she looked over and said, “So? Do you think it’s going to work?”
Knowing it was a terrible idea, I nodded anyway. “You’ve got yourself a deal.”
8
Mara
Confession: I didn’t expect fireworks.
Jonas wasquiet for a little while on the drive to my house, which was probably a good thing. I needed time to sort through my thoughts too.
I should have been thrilled he’d agreed to go along with the plan, but there was a tightness in my chest more intense than it had been in a long time. Seeing Jonas’s family, all of them so loving toward each other... it reminded me of that missing piece within myself.
I hadn’t talked to my mother since I was twelve years old. Hadn’t seen my dad since I was sixteen. I couldn’t help but stew on the fact that they were existing in the world, living their lives without me.
We’d never have family dinners like that where my mom shared pot roast recipes. My dad would never worry over her or shake hands with my boyfriend. There would be no jokes about my growth spurt at fifteen or shenanigans I pulled as a teen thinking my parents weren’t watching.
They hadn’t been watching long before Mom left, long before I followed in her footsteps.
Jonas broke the silence, asking, “Do you really put people from real life in your romance novels?”
I smiled at the question. “Only bits and pieces.”
“What do you mean? Only noses and toes?”
I laughed, finding it easier with him than most people. “Not exactly. I take moments. Little things that draw my attention...” Like your lips earlier, I didn’t say. “Earlier, when your dad smiled at your mom. His eyes crinkled around the corners and his gums were showing... He looked at her like she was his reason. That’s the kind of thing I describe.”
Jonas smiled slightly. “I used to think it was gross, how affectionate they were toward each other.”
“And now?” I asked.
He lifted a corner of his lips. “After the fire, it all made more sense. Things always seem more special when you realize you could lose them at any moment.”
He was right.
We drew near my street, and he turned, slowing to park in my driveway behind my new used car.
I unclipped my seatbelt to get out and tell him goodbye, but then I heard the click of his buckle. He was opening his door and getting out of the car.
Was he walking me to my door?