that can of worms. “What? I’m sorry. Shoot. Can’t hear you. I’ll have to call you later.”
“Maggie Grace Stevens, don’t you da—”
“I love you. Bye.” I let my final word ring for an extra beat before I end the call. But I don’t stop there. I power off my phone, giving my mom zero chance to call me back. My next heavy sigh is one of relief.
By the time Monica joins me after her long bathroom break, I’m finishing my vodka soda with a loud slurp before plopping the lime into my mouth and sucking every ounce of alcohol from its flesh. “Here,” I say, sliding her drink in front of her.
“Thanks,” she says, as perky as ever. “I’ll trade you.” She slides a piece of paper in my direction.
I eye it with a glare, and my head snaps toward hers. “What is this?”
Her glass is poised at her lips when she raises her brows. “It’s your cooking certificate. Congratulations. You earned that, sis.”
I laugh sarcastically. “Not according to the cooking lord himself. What’d you do? Pay him off?”
She narrows her eyes, her excitement dwindling rapidly. And for that, guilt swarms through me. Desmond has some nerve handing my sister a pity certificate.
“No, I didn’t pay him off,” she grits out.
I bite down on the straw of my empty drink, cursing internally. Sometimes I hate that I’m such a pain in the ass. I’ve been a difficult bitch since the moment I arrived at my sister’s office at BelleCurve, even after she was gracious enough to offer me her couch, but it’s like I can’t help it. The world she’s built around her seems to be one big trigger for everything I’ve tried to avoid.
I stare down at the certificate as guilt continues to cycle through me. Perhaps I should be more grateful for her gesture. She obviously went out of her way to take what should have been mine to begin with. She was only trying to make me happy.
With a sigh, I shake my head and force out a laugh. “Well then, what’d you say to convince him?”
“I just told him you deserve it and that it wasn’t fair for him to keep it from you. That’s all, I swear.”
“And he handed it over to you? Just like that?”
A hopeful smile breaks through her expression. “Desmond’s not a bad guy.”
“Yeah, well, instead of embarrassing me in front of everyone in class, he should have given it to me himself.” Lord knows I’ve had enough embarrassment to last a lifetime.
Monica growls. “Can’t you accept the dang piece of paper and move on? Or don’t take it. I don’t care. I just wish y’all would stop bickering so much. You’re my sister, and Desmond is Zach’s best friend. News flash, sis—there’s no escaping each other. One of these days, you and Desmond will have to figure out how to get along.”
Annoyance burns in my chest. “I can tell you right now, that will never happen.”
She lets out a frustrated growl and shakes her head. “How about we talk about something else?”
My entire body relaxes at the suggestion. “Yes, please. How’s school? How’s work? How’s the relationship?”
Monica perks up instantly at the mention of all the above. “School keeps me busy, and when school doesn’t, work does. I guess that’s good since Zach and I barely see each other right now.”
Not only is Zachary Ryan a football player for the NFL, but he’s the star quarterback for Seattle. After meeting him and seeing their connection, I totally understand why my sister is head over heels for the man. They complement each other in a way couples only dream of. He’s the chocolate to her strawberry as she often says.
“You knew what you were getting yourself into,” I say with a weak smile. We both suffered through the NFL’s crazy schedule when we were little and our dad played for Dallas.
Monica bites her lip. “Yeah, well, you try having a sexy boyfriend with zero time to be together.” She leans and lowers her voice to say the last two words, lifting her brows as if insinuating sex is a crime.
I scrunch up my face but am unable to keep the laughter from slipping past my throat. “Are you horny or in love? Because right now, I’m not sure which it is.”
“Both,” she says easily before sipping happily on her drink. “I just happen to really miss the sex right now. Between all the production shoots I’ve been working at BelleCurve and Zach’s