Page 26 of Touch the Sky

“Is that okay?” Tess asks me.

I shrug. “It’s an open house.”

I can feelMamanglaring at me, and I realize that came out a little blunt, even for me.

“I mean, yeah, of course,” I try again. “They should come over.”

Mamansupervises Tess’s short phone call while I shake a few more hands. It’s only a couple minutes before Tess confirms they’re heading over.

“Oh look, it’s Natalie’s parents,”Mamansays as Tess is hanging up. She waves at the next couple to walk through the door. “I’m going to go sit and chat.”

I watch her wander off into the crowd until I’m forced to face the reality of being alone with Tess for the first time ever.

Not that we’re really alone, but there’s something about Tess that makes it hard to process anything more than two feet away from the shimmering cloud of energy that seems to surround her like an invisible force field.

It’s probably because she’s so obnoxiously tall and muscley. She’s like a statue that’s too big for the room.

“So, you want to talk to me?” I ask.

“Yes.” She pauses as another decorated child skips past us, this one either supposed to be a shark or some kind of sea lion. “It’s not urgent, though. I definitely don’t need to interrupt your special day.”

I can’t help chuckling. “It’s not like it’s my wedding. I’m here to talk to people. If you have a question, you can ask it.”

She nods and presses her lips together. They’re shiny, like she just put Chap Stick on a few minutes ago.

I wonder if she just uses plain Chap Stick or if it’s a flavoured one.

Then I ask myself why the hell I’m wondering that.

“I just…”

Her shiny lips form the words and then press together again as she lapses into silence for a moment.

“I guess I’m just wondering…”

I’ve got to stop staring at her lips.

“Do you not like me, or something?” she asks.

That does the trick. I jerk my gaze up to her eyes and take a step back, my mouth falling open.

“Because I don’t have to take the lease,” she continues, the words tumbling out at warp speed now. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable or mad or anything. It’s your home. I want you to feel okay about it. If I’ve done something, or said something, or?—”

“No. You haven’t.”

“Oh,” she says, her eyes flaring wide at the force in my tone. “Okay.”

I didn’t think she’d noticed how annoyed I am for no good reason whenever she shows up. I didn’t think she’d noticed much about me at all.

Yet here she is, all tensed up like she’s afraid I’m about to bite her head off just because she needs somewhere to live.

“I’m sorry,” I say. “I’ve been kind of a dick.”

“Um, what?”

“I’m sorry,” I repeat. “I’ve had a lot going on, with the farm and this place and…stuff. I guess I wasn’t feeling super welcoming, but I should have been more polite to you.”

I force myself to smile, doing my best not to look like a deranged puppet as I squirm my way through the awkwardness of the moment.