Page 27 of All's Fair in Love and Blackmail
“I’ll see you on Saturday,” I go on. “Morning? Afternoon? Evening?”
“Evening,” she says. “I have a shift in the afternoon.”
“Evening it is,” I say. “We can go to the bookstore and then you can tell me all about the rest of your list. If nothing else, I’ll be a pretty sight for you to look at while you’re accomplishing things.”
Another snort, but she doesn’t shut me down, which I’m counting as a real win.
“Do you have anything else to say?” she says, her voice still dry. “Or can I hang up now?”
A laugh bubbles up in my throat. “You can hang up now. Good job checking.”
“I’m nothing if not a fast learner. Bye, Felicia,” she says. And then the line clicks, and she’s gone.
I put down my phone, reach for my rice, and make myself finish the whole thing, a smile pulling at my lips the entire time.
INDIA
“Ladies and gentlemenof the Marigold clan, thank you for gathering here this lovely Friday evening.”
“You said this was important, India,” Cyrus says, looking annoyed.
Aurora squints at my shirt, a little frown creasing her brow. “Is that mine?”
“It is important,” I say, ignoring Aurora—whose shirt I am indeed wearing—and addressing Cyrus. “This is something that involves our entire family.” I beam at all of them—Cyrus, wearing his usual button-up and jeans, seated at the end of our ugly red couch. Aurora is dressed in yoga clothes and a high ponytail, and she’s now glaring at Cy from the other end of the couch, because he took her favorite spot. Juliet, meanwhile, is wearing a sun dress, her hair gleaming and perfect, and she’s makingshushing noises and patting Aurora’s leg soothingly.
“Well, get on with it, then,” Cy says. “I haven’t eaten dinner.”
“Fine. Okay. So.” I take a deep breath and then make my announcement: “There is a new member of our family that I would like to introduce you all to.”
For a second, everyone stares at me; then Juliet speaks.
“Oh my gosh, Indy,” she says, her eyes going wide, her jaw dropping comically. “Are youpregnant?”
“What?” Cyrus half-shouts, his brows pulling low and severe. His head whips toward me. “You’repregnant?”
“Of course she’s not pregnant,” Aurora says with a scoff, frowning at Cy and Juliet. “Come on, guys.”
“In what universe would I possibly be pregnant right now?” I demand, my hands on my hips as I glare at Cyrus and Juliet. “I got a pet! There’s now an animal in our family.”
“Oooh,” Jules says; her gaze goes from alarmed to gooey and soft. “A pet? Where? What kind? What’s its name?”
“He’s a fish,” I say, reaching around the back of the TV and pulling out the little fishbowl hidden there. “And his name is Cyrus.”
Human Cyrus does not find this as funny as the rest of us do. His glasses glint in the light as he levels each of us with an unimpressed, unamused look.
“Fine, fine,” I say as our sniggers subside. “But heisa fish, and his name is Janis Joplin.”
“Janis Joplin was a woman,” Aurora says after a beat of silence.
“Yes, well,” I say primly. “They didn’t have any girl fishes. Janis would understand.”
Juliet nods her agreement. “Of course she would. Look how cute he is!” she says, jumping up from the couch as gracefully as ever, because everything she does is graceful. She leans down to look at the fishbowl in my hands. “Look at his little fishy fins! Hello!” She taps the glass gently.
“Do you guys have any bagels?” Cy asks, rising from the couch and turning toward the kitchen. “Or are there any cupcakes left?”
“I bought some blueberry bagels at the store the other day,” I say. “Cream cheese in the fridge.”
“If you ask nicely,” Aurora adds over her shoulder. She eyes the fishbowl with skepticism. “So what brought this on, Indy?”
