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“I told you three times,” Mom said with a smirk. Shit. I’d gotten totally distracted by Bren.

“Okay,” I said, wanting to use my hands to hide my blushing cheeks, but that would have only made things worse.

Instead, I rushed to the table and busily started filling my plate as my phone vibrated in the kitchen with another message that was probably from Bren. All I wanted to do was get up and get it, but that would just confirm my obsession to my family.

“No phones at the table,” Dad said as he passed the plate of corn around.

“Yeah, HONEY,” Ember said.

“Excuse me? Who has been caught sneaking their phone under the table the most times in this family? Definitely not me.”

Ember sputtered and looked to my parents for sympathy.

“She’s right, my darling. You do have an unhealthy obsession with your phone,” Mom said.

“Yeah, like everyone else! It’s not my fault that none of my friends live closer.” She pouted and crossed her arms.

“Ember, your friends live like ten minutes away and a lot of them have cars. We don’t live in Siberia,” I said.

Ember huffed. “Why is everyone ganging up on me? Honey’s the one we were talking about.”

“We’re not ganging up on you, sweetheart,” Dad said in a gentle voice. “The no phones rule is for everyone.”

“Not me!” Ellie said, her voice cheerful.

“That’s because you don’thavea phone,” Ember fired at her.

“And if I had my way, none of you would have anything other than a device to make and receive calls until you were eighteen, but then I’d be accused of child abuse,” Mom said, rolling her eyes.

My phone went off again.

“Maybe you could get your phone and put it on silent,” Dad said. “So it’s not disturbing our meal.”

Ember made an irritated exclamation as I got up and fetched my phone from the kitchen.

You’re NOT cute, Honey.

I wanted to respond, but I muted my phone and set it face down on the table next to me.

Bren Hendrix thought I wascute.

Later that nightafter we’d cleaned up from dinner and had done the evening chores to put the farm to bed, I typed out a response to Bren.

You can say that you didn’t say it, but it’s literally right there. You can’t take it back, Bren. You think I’m cute.

I was going to tease her mercilessly about this.

Fucking hell. That wasn’t what I MEANT.

What other meaning could there be?

Then what did you mean?

Nothing! I meant nothing.She was really backtracking now. If she’d simply let the comment slide without freaking out about it, then I might have believed she didn’t seriously mean it. But now she was protestingsomuch that I knew it was true.

Okay, sure. Whatever you say??

I could just hear her letting out a frustrated sound, her face getting all red.