did for us?” Blanca says.
“Yeah?” I can’t help the eagerness in my tone. Their blog doesn’t need a lot of what I like to photograph, but if I can get another gig from them, it’d help me not to have to Uber anymore.
“A woman reached out to me after she saw the pictures and wanted to contact you. Her email signature says she owns a gallery in the city.” She clenches her teeth and widens her eyes like she really wants to squeal.
I raise my eyebrows. “Really?”
“Yep, and I gave her your phone number so…” She does this little dance with only her upper body. Her shoulders move up and down and her hands move in circles. I’m sure Ethan finds it cute as hell, but I’m wondering if she’s having a seizure.
“Great, thanks.” Not what I was expecting when I came in here today, but I’m excited. I’m just more nervous about talking to my mom than anything right now.
“I hope something comes out of it. We’re planning out our next six months today, so I’ll let you know if we need anything.”
“I’m curious, do you two ever fuck anymore?”
The smile strips from her face. “Don’t be vulgar.” She backtracks to the booth.
“I’m just saying five minutes doesn’t really count. Keep that in mind.”
She discreetly flips me off by placing her middle finger along the bridge of her nose as she sits back down—beside Ethan this time. Blanca smacks a kiss on his lips, surprising him. At least the guy grabs her by the back of her head and deepens their kiss.
“Close your eyes,” I whisper to a little girl standing in line before I walk to the head of the line. “Mom.”
She’s talking to a customer, so I head to the back and grab a coffee. I don’t know how Evan takes hers, so I make my best guess, snagging an everything bagel from the bin and shoving it in a bag.
Once everyone is either waiting for their bagels or are sitting down, my mom looks to me to start talking as she takes inventory of what they still need. I’m used to the multitasking my mom does while I try to hold a conversation with her.
“So I ran into Dad at the store last night,” I say.
She rolls her eyes. “I’ve told him a million times, it is what it is. It’s a disease and he doesn’t need to be embarrassed that our son succumbed to it, but he feels as though all the blame rests on our shoulders. Well, I’m not down with that. Look at you.” She steps forward and pinches my cheeks.
“Mom,” I say like I did when I was twelve and we were outside the school.
“But still he insists on going late, usually when I’m asleep.” She shrugs. “What can I do? Nothing. He’ll figure it out on his own.”
“Yeah, so that’s not what I came to tell you.”
She glances up from her pad of paper. “No?” I shake my head and she drops the pen, turning toward me. “What is it?”
“He saw me with Evan Erickson,” I admit, trying like hell not to allow one ounce of nerves into my tone. She can spot me lying without a word leaving my lips.
“Oh?”
“Yeah. We’ve been dating.”
Her eyes peer into me as though she’s scrutinizing the thoughts in my brain. I can practically see the checklist in her head. Eyes, doubtful. Heartbeat, rapid. Limbs, shaky.
“I thought she was with Brock?” She sips the coffee she left off to the side.
“Oh, that was just a front.” I wave as if it’s no big deal. “We made it official. Actually, I asked her to marry me last night.”
Her coffee comes out of her mouth in one sputtering stream. “You what?”
“I proposed and she said yes.”
“Proposed?” Her voice grows louder.
My dad emerges from the back, his hands on his hips, nodding like, “Can you believe it, Deb? Our second son is screwing us over now too.”
“Did you ask her father first?” Mom asks.
My forehead creases. “What?”
She looks at my dad and her shoulders fall. “Seth, you cannot ask a girl to marry you without her father’s permission. Have we not taught you anything?”
That’s what she’s disappointed about? “Well, he would’ve said no.”
My parents exchange looks.
“Hey, Mrs. Andrews.” Blanca comes up to the counter, oblivious to the fact that we’re having a private conversation.
“Yes, he probably would have, but that doesn’t mean you don’t ask.” She turns to Blanca. “Did Ethan ask your dad before he proposed to