Shifted Love Volume 1 - Fiona Davenport Page 0,1
meant for two but we insisted on sharing anyway. “She’s always brought helicopter momming to a whole new level.”
“She really has,” I sighed, scooting up into a sitting position. I looped my arms around my shins and rested my chin on my knees. “And she took it to whole new levels over the break.”
“Yeah, but I bet you’ll miss her cooking.” Larissa grinned as she slid off the mattress to pad across the room and grab the container of chocolate chip cookies my mom had baked for us. Popping open the lid, she took a big bite out of one of them before bringing the cookies over to share with us.
“Maybe she’ll send more in her next care package,” Calliope mumbled around the cookie she was chewing on.
Larissa snagged another one and nodded. “I’m sure she will if Allegra lets her know how awesome they were.”
“Definitely,” I agreed with a grin. “She was already going on and on about all the things she forgot to get me, so I wouldn’t be surprised if I get a box in the mail next week. I’ll send her a text in the morning to let her know we already polished off this batch.”
Calliope grabbed another cookie. “I’d be shocked if you didn’t get three or four care packages from her before Christmas break even though it’s less than a month away.”
“Totally.” Larissa handed me the container before crossing the room to grab her purse off her bed. Digging inside, she pulled out a rubber banded wad of cash and wiggled it from side to side. “Meanwhile, my dad planned ahead so he wouldn’t need to send me anything for the next semester.”
“I like how your dad thinks.” I jumped up and grabbed the cash. Yanking the rubber band off, I fanned out the bills to count how much he’d given her. When I hit five thousand, my jaw dropped. “Dude. He realizes your books, dorm room, and meal plan are already all paid for, right?”
“Yeah.” She took the wad of money back and shoved it into her desk drawer. “But you guys know how he is, always worrying that I’ll miss out on stuff and trying to make sure I have anything I need.”
Larissa’s dad was as protective as our parents, but most people missed it. Not Calliope and me, though. Growing up with her, we understood that his gruff exterior masked his big heart. Even though he was kind of clueless about girls, he still rocked the whole single dad thing. “I know what you need right now.”
My friends laughed and started putting their shoes back on because they knew exactly what I was going to suggest. When we first moved into the dorm, our parents took us to a diner in town for lunch before they hit the road to head back home. They had the best strawberry milkshakes I’d ever tasted, and anytime we went off campus, I wanted to grab one. Luckily, Larissa and Calliope liked them—and loved me—enough that they were willing to stop there whenever I asked.
Fifteen minutes later, we were sitting at our regular booth in the back corner. It was a good thing the hostess knew our orders by heart because our waitress didn’t bother to stop by our table until we were halfway finished with our shakes.
“What can I get you?” she asked without bothering to look up from her notepad.
Larissa rolled her eyes before answering, “Nothing. We’re good with the shakes.”
Her head jerked up, and she glared at us. “Seriously, you don’t want anything else?”
“Nope.” I let the P pop and grinned when she huffed in frustration and stomped away.
“I wonder when she started here,” Calliope grumbled before slurping on her vanilla malt. I always got strawberry, and Larissa got chocolate, but she rotated through the flavors. I suspected that sometimes she picked based on what she was wearing. The cream cable-knit sweater she was wearing today was almost a perfect match for her shake.
“She’s got to be new, or else we would’ve seen her here before,” Larissa suggested as she scooped off the last bit of whipped cream from the top of her shake.
“Maybe she replaced Candi since she usually does the Sunday evening shift, and I don’t see her anywhere,” I added.
Larissa and Calliope leaned against each other and giggled, shaking their heads.
“What?” I asked, not getting how I’d made them crack up.
Larissa pulled her straw out of her shake, sucked the shake out of it, and pointed it at me.