Page 53 of Can't Win 'Em All
“You’re hard to forget, Ruby.”
He said it with such sincerity, I paused. “You’re hard to forget too, Rex. Will you take it personally if I stop being sweet and start making animal noises when I eat, though? I don’t think I’ve ever been this hungry in my life, and I have to keep it between 2,200 and 2,900 calories a day.”
Surprise registered on his features. “First off, if you don’t eat, I’m going to be really disappointed.”
That was the only prodding I needed to flop down on the couch to dig in.
“Secondly, why do you have to keep it between 2,200 and 2,900 calories?”
“Because that’s what the books say,” I replied, not making eye contact. “At my age, it’s going to be harder for me to take off the baby weight after I give birth. The trick is not to go overboard before then. At least that’s what all the books I’ve read so far say.”
I made a groaning sound as I took my first bite. “Oh, this could be the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
Rex’s eyebrows hiked. At that moment, however, I didn’t care how I looked. “Well … while I get that you want to get your body back as soon as possible—trust me, I would be the same way—I don’t think starving yourself is the way to go.”
“Who said I was starving myself?” I made a face. “I’m eating. I’m just eating healthy.”
“Yeah, but if there was ever a time to indulge, wouldn’t this be that time?” Rex looked pained as he sat on one of the chairs. “I mean … you guys never got junk food when you were kids. At the time, I was convinced your parents were torturing you. I do think there’s a happy medium between allowing yourself to eat a box of those Christmas tree Little Debbies as a snack every day and forcing yourself to eat lettuce and tomatoes without dressing.”
“There’s a lemon wedge,” I protested, pointing. “I can have a third of the dressing container too.”
Rex looked pained. “How about no more of this?” He grabbed the salad and carried it to the kitchen so he could dump it. “You can indulge just a little bit.” When he came back, he was all smiles. “I got you more than that, so leave a little room, huh?”
“I’m constantly starving,” I countered. “I’ll have room for whatever.”
Rex still wasn’t smiling. “Well, I got myself a cheeseburger and fries, so don’t eat that.” He snagged the other big container before I could get my hands on it. “For you, though, I got the onion soup au gratin because you mentioned you loved that too.”
I pressed a hand to my heart. I was feeling weepy again. “I do love it. I can’t believe you remembered.”
“Are you going to cry?” Something akin to panic washed over his features. “Like … for real?”
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me.” I wanted to cry. It was a distinct possibility that I might cry. I had no intention of stopping the eating even if that was going to happen, however. “I cry at everything now. I saw a commercial where a puppy was talking to a cat the other day and the cat was mean and I cried for an hour.”
“Huh.” Rex was apparently at a loss. “I guess those stories about pregnancy hormones I heard growing up were real.”
“I was determined to be the exception to that rule.”
He grinned. “Or you could just be what you’re supposed to be and not follow the list you’ve set up in your head.”
I glared at him. “It’s as if you don’t know me at all.”
He didn’t look bothered by my tone. “I also got grilled artichokes, chocolate mousse, and the bananas foster crepe.”
I was definitely going to cry now. I had to swallow around a huge lump in my throat. “Nobody has ever been this nice to me in my entire life.” I burst into tears.
“Oh, geez.” Rex abandoned his burger and moved to sit next to me on the couch. It was awkward at first as he tried to get comfortable, then get me comfortable next to him, but somehow he managed it. “There we go,” he said when I went back to shoveling food into my mouth. “It’s okay.” He brushed his lips against the top of my head.
What was really weird about our current relationship was that we’d had sex, we were going to have a baby together, but we acted like platonic besties when in close proximity. The first week after the sex had been difficult, but ever since, we’d been totally fine. Our relationship wasn’t exactly the same—it couldn’t be—but it had somehow grown stronger despite the fact that we were constantly walking a dangerous tightrope.
“Listen to me.” Rex’s voice was soft as he rubbed his hand over my arm. “I know you think you need to be perfect?—”
“It’s not about being perfect. It’s about doing what’s right.”
“I don’t think forcing yourself to eat salads with lemon is what’s right. You need to unclench a little bit.”
“I’m not high-strung.” Even saying it, I wanted to laugh. I was a bit high-strung. I couldn’t be Cora Stone’s daughter and not be. “I mean … I’m not as high-strung as Pearl and Opal.” Was that really a win, though?
He patted my shoulder. “You can be high-strung. I’m okay with it. Just … try to be kind to yourself too, huh? If you want something specific to eat, then allow yourself to eat it.”
