Cursive - By Phoebe Lane Page 0,74

and I don't need to explain my decisions to you or anyone else. I'm a big girl, and if I want to date again, move to Timbuktu, or drink an espresso at eleven o'clock at night, then that's my decision to make. Mine." Aislynn was on a roll and there was no stopping her now. "Second, Jace is a wonderful man, and we're in a serious relationship now. I like him, and we make each other happy. This is actually the happiest I've been in a long time. And finally, while you're here in San Diego, I expect you to respect me and treat Jace like he is the most important person in my life…because that's exactly what he is."

Pam held Aislynn's stare for a half second, but then walked around her to go stand by the fruit display. "You know, you can be really dramatic sometimes, dear. I swear it's like a rollercoaster with you—up and down, up and down. You don't need to get so worked up about everything," she said with a roll of her eyes. "Here, have a kiwi."

Argh! Argh! Argh!

Freud would have had a field day psychoanalyzing the fact that Aislynn was deathly allergic to kiwi.

After they finished shopping at the market and did some sightseeing around the city, Aislynn and Pam spent the afternoon making dinner. Ellie had joined them in the kitchen, and the three of them had spent the last couple of hours talking about movies and all the latest Hollywood gossip. Then the conversation inevitably turned to Pam telling embarrassing stories about Aislynn's childhood.

"Oh my God! No, I didn't," Aislynn said with a laugh. She was very surprised to realize she had been able to get over their altercation at the market and was now actually enjoying herself.

"Oh, yes you did. You must have been about four years old, I think. Your dad used to snore so loud that I didn't hear you sneak out of your room. By the time I made it into the kitchen, you had spilled milk all over the counter, all the eggs were cracked—well, maybe more like smashed—inside a bowl, and you had splattered pancake mix everywhere. It turned into this cement-like glob that took me a week to clean off the backsplash," Pam said, taking a sip from her wine glass.

"Well, in my defense, it's the thought that counts. I must've been really excited about making breakfast for the family," Aislynn added.

"And you make great pancakes now," Ellie added, sending a smile and a wink in Aislynn's direction.

"Thank you very much," Aislynn said.

"Ellie, are you done with that?" Pam asked.

"Yeah, here you go," Ellie said, handing Pam a big bowl of fresh green beans, all the tips now cut off. "That was a lot of work. Don't these come precooked? Or canned?"

Aislynn and Pam stared at her like she had just spit on their graves after stealing candy from a kid and kicking a puppy off a building—they looked utterly disgusted.

"Okay, then…" Ellie said, backing away from the kitchen, hands up in the air. "I'm gonna go get cleaned up. The guys will be here soon."

"Wait, what time—" Aislynn said, a knock on the door interrupting her.

Oh, no! I haven't had enough time to freak out about this!

Ellie had already disappeared into her room, and Pam didn't even acknowledge the knocking. There was no way around this.

It's happening. Here we go.

Aislynn approached the door, took a deep breath, and opened it. She found Evan holding a couple of bottles of wine and Jace carrying a big pastry box. Aislynn didn't really register Evan's greeting as she was immediately consumed with Jace. He was casually dressed in jeans and a button down shirt, a warm smile on his lips that spoke words he somehow knew shouldn't be said out loud. Not yet.

"Hi, guys," Aislynn said, almost as a whisper.

"Evan has been hypnotized by the smell of the food outside ever since we parked. I swear, he's like a greyhound," Jace joked.

"This food calls to me like a moth to a—" Evan said, staring at Ellie, who now stood behind Aislynn. And just like that, all talk of food was forgotten.

He entered the apartment and embraced Ellie in a long and passionate kiss. Aislynn suspected something new was going on between them just by the way they looked and held each other. It was always the little things that made Aislynn's mind wander.

Jace approached her and chastely kissed her on the cheek. She felt a bit