pulled Michaela into a hug. “Yeah, see you later,” she said, casting me a small, curious glance before she turned to wave down an approaching taxi. The taxi stopped by the kerb, and Afric climbed in.
“Well,” Michaela said, folding her arms. “I guess you won’t be coming to lunch with Afric and me again any time soon.”
I shot her an arch look. “You’ve guessed correctly.”
Michaela chuckled. “I warned you she wasn’t everybody’s cup of tea.”
“Seems appropriate that I’ve always preferred coffee,” I replied, and we made our way back to the gym.
Hours later, I was still irritable when I arrived at my grandma’s house for dinner. My younger sister, Rosie, still lived with her since she’d raised us after our parents passed away. I had my own place in the city, but I preferred to eat here rather than prepare a meal for one and eat alone in my sad little flat. Besides, nothing could beat Grandma’s cooking.
I smelled the shepherd’s pie as soon as I stepped in the door, and my mood improved substantially. As expected, my lunch hadn’t gone down very well. I liked sushi, but it’d probably be a while before I could stomach it again. What a horribly rude, argumentative woman. And what kind of name was “Afric” anyway?
I rarely said this about people, but I’d be happy if our paths never crossed again.
“You look like a brewing storm,” Grandma commented when I entered the kitchen. She stood by the cooker, removing a dish from the oven.
I sighed and took a seat by the table, rubbing the tension lines on my forehead.
“Is everything all right?” Rosie asked. She was already at the table, a worn paperback in front of her. My sister was never without a book. She’d graduated from university last year and managed to snag her dream job as a trainee librarian.
“Everything’s fine. I just met a particularly unpleasant person today, but with a bit of luck, I’ll never see her again, so every cloud and all that.”
“Oh?” Rosie said curiously as she pushed her glasses up her nose. Neither of us had managed to escape the short-sighted gene that seemed to run in our family. “Who was she?”
“Just a friend of Michaela’s,” I answered, hoping to change the subject. “Anyway, how was your day?”
Rosie smiled. “I convinced someone to give Neverwhere a try, so that’s another literary good deed completed.”
“She never gets tired of recommending books to people,” Grandma said fondly, her perceptive gaze coming to me. “Are you sure you’re okay? How are things with Leanne?”
I frowned at the mention of my boss/ex-crush. It had been over a year since I’d confessed my feelings for her, and aside from my current predicament managing Callum’s social media, I was completely over her. Unfortunately, Grandma still liked to check-in with me about the whole thing since I hadn’t had a girlfriend in the interim. She thought I was still pining, but I wasn’t. I’d moved on to an entirely new crush, but that was something I’d yet to discuss with my grandmother for various reasons.
“Things are fine with Leanne,” I replied. “I told you, it’s all in the past now. We’ve moved on from it.”
“Hmm, well, if you ask me, you’re a much better catch than that Callum. All those tattoos won’t age well. You mark my words.”
“I’m not sure the vast majority of the female British public would agree with you, Grandma, but I appreciate the sentiment.”
If you looked up “sexy, tattooed bad boy” in the dictionary, you’d find a picture of Cal.
“The vast majority must be blind if they can’t see what a fine gentleman you are. You’ll make some young lady very happy one day.”
I shifted, uncomfortable by all the fine gentleman talk. If my grandma knew the thoughts I’d had about Leanne, she might want to reconsider her words. Rosie grinned at me, enjoying my embarrassment, so I decided to turn the tables on her.
“What about Rosie? Do you think she’ll make some man very happy one day, too?”
“Oh, yes,” Grandma exclaimed. “Rosie is a smart, beautiful woman.” A pause as she studied my sister. “She could have men knocking down her door if she’d only put herself out there.”
“Grandma!” Rosie exclaimed, cheeks reddening.
“What?” Grandma retorted with a twinkle in her eye. “You know I’m right. You’d rather stick your head in a book on a Friday night than go out dancing. You might encounter some dashing heroes in the pages of a fantasy novel, but you’ll never meet a