him.
“You have to say something, Leo,” Quinn says.
“Alma,” I answer simply.
She will forever be the answer to anything good in my life.
TWENTY-THREE
Alma
“Are you sure you don’t want me to go home with you? I don’t mind. I feel bad that you have to face your dad on your own,” I say to Amos over my half-eaten plate of eggs.
He shakes his head. “No. You’ll have more fun here. Plus, I don’t think it will be that bad. What does he have to yell at me about? My grades are perfect.”
“I know, but I’m afraid he’ll find something.”
“It will be fine. I swear,” he says before taking a drink of his coffee.
It’s been a while since Amos and I have had a meal alone together. He stayed over with Quinn last night, but she had to get up early to go help her mom and sisters cook the food for Thanksgiving. Many of the local restaurants are closed, but Luca’s Coney Island is open, and his breakfast food is just as good as the chili-cheese fries that Leo’s obsessed with.
I’m a little confused with Quinn and Amos’s relationship. They love to be together, especially to have sex, but he doesn’t seem to miss her when she’s gone, and vice versa. I crave Leo every second that I’m not with him. Heck, I’d never tell Amos, but I’m missing Leo like crazy right now.
I ask Luca for a large chili-cheese fry with a side of ranch and ketchup to go, and he smiles down at me knowingly.
“Your mom sure will be happy to see you. Give her a hug for me, okay?” I say to Amos.
“I will,” Amos says, snatching the bill from Luca before I can grab it.
“Let me pay for my meal or Leo’s takeout at least.”
“The fries are on the house,” Luca says, clearing our plates.
“See, the fries are on the house. No worries.” Amos hands Luca some cash and wishes him a happy Thanksgiving.
“Thank you, Luca. Hope you have a great day,” I tell him before Amos and I head out, the bell of the diner chiming as we exit.
I walk Amos to his car and say good-bye before heading the other direction, back to Leo’s house.
He’s still in bed when I get back.
“I come bearing gifts.” I hold up the white plastic bag containing his fries.
Leo scoots up in his bed until he’s sitting against the padded headboard. “You’re awesome.”
He takes the bag from me and pulls out the large Styrofoam container.
“How was breakfast?” he asks through a mouthful of fries.
“Good. He’s on his way back home.”
“You want to stick with our plan for the day? It’s not too late if you want to do the Thanksgiving dinner thing with just the two of us.”
“No, we had a big dinner last weekend. Takeout and a movie marathon sounds perfect.”
“I just want to make sure you’re happy.” He dips a fry in ranch and then ketchup and tosses it into his mouth.
“Or do you want Thanksgiving food, so I’ll make those potatoes again?” I quirk up a brow.
“I would do almost anything to have them again.”
I shake my head with a grin. “I can make them for you every weekend. It’s not hard.”
“Ah, babe, that would be incredible.”
“Okay, it’s a plan.” I pull off my shirt and head toward the bathroom. “Finish eating and then come join me in the shower. Afterward, we’ll put on jammies and veg on the couch all day. I say we watch The Notebook first.”
“I was thinking maybe Endgame—you know, the Avengers,” Leo calls from the bed.
“No way,” I say in response, turning on the shower. “You said my pick.”
“Your idea of a great movie is some sappy, romantic crap?” he groans.
“Today it is.”
Before I step into the shower, Leo grumbles, “Fine, but only because I love you.”
We spend the day watching all of my favorite romance movies and order Chinese takeout for dinner. Snuggled up next to Leo on the couch, I reach onto the coffee table and grab the fortune cookies included with our meal.
I hand Leo his. “We have to read our fortunes. That’s the best part,” I exclaim.
“Okay, ladies first,” He nods toward the cookie in my hand.
I remove it from the wrapper and crack it open. Taking the small rectangular paper in my hand, I read aloud, “You may love many people but only one will burn into your soul forever.” I stare at the paper for a moment, re-reading the sentence in my head. “Wow.”
“That’s deep,” Leo