“We’reeating dinner. I’ll check later,” I said, stating the obvious, and he smirked.
“Likethat’s stopped you before. If it was Brooke, you’d check.”
Islowed my chewing. “She’s just going to tell me something else about how greatRichard is, and—”
“And,you’re acting like a big baby.”
Igrabbed the phone and held it out to him. “You’re more than welcome to check myphone and see what she wants.”
Puttinghis fork down, he kept a smug expression as he took the phone from me andleaned back in his chair. “Can I also go through the texts from your otherboyfriends and all the dick pics they send you?”
“Youmean all the dick picsyousend me?”
“Hey,I have a beautiful dick,” he said, punching in my phone’s pin code. “Oh, andyour mom wants to come to Black & Brewed on Wednesday.”
“ThisWednesday?”
Henodded. “Yep. She wants to know if the offer still stands for them to stay—”
“Them?”I worried my lower lip.
“Yeah,uh …” He scrolled through the message. Mom was notorious for sendingnovel-length texts. “Apparently Richard’s in town and he’s dying to meet us.She wants to know if the offer still stands to stay here.”
“Thatoffer was madebeforewe knew she had a boyfriend,” I retorted.
Devinlowered my phone and cocked his head. “Baby, if it makes you uncomfortable tohave him stay here, I get it, but you can say that without sounding like abrat,” he said gently, sliding my phone onto the table. “You didn’t like it whenshe accused you of shacking up withme.”
“Thatwas different,” I defended weakly.
“Ohyeah? How?”
“Ihad been friends with you for years when we moved in together, and I wasn’tsleeping with you.”
“Okay,and she’s apparently known Richard for a while, and you weren’t sleeping withme …yet.” He waggled his brows as he grabbed his fork and continuedeating. “It’s also different when you’re older. You have less time to waste.Things move quicker. I mean, look at us.”
Hehad a point there.
Ifelt my submission approaching and I leaned against the back of my chair.“Okay, so what do you think?”
“Noway. That’s a loaded question.” He shook his head. “This isn’t my decision tomake, baby.”
Mysigh was accompanied with a gentle roll of my eyes. “I’m not asking you to makea decisionfor me. I’m just asking what you think I should do, and notfor nothing, but this is your home too. If you were uncomfortable with my mom’sboyfriend staying here, you have a say in that.”
Loweringhis fork again, he rested his elbows on the table. He leaned forward and ranhis tongue over his upper teeth before saying, “Well, that’s a fair point, butno. It doesn’t make me uncomfortable at all, so we’re good on that front. Asfor what I think you should do? I personally think you should give the guy achance. But, if that’s more than you think you can do right now, then I respectthat. Andifthat’s the case, then I wouldn’t expect you to ask him tostay here.”
Heshrugged gently, and said, “But Idothink you need to meet him. I knowit’s hard, but … I really think it’s the right thing to do.”
Inodded and wordlessly I stood up from the table, taking my plate into thekitchen. To process, to think.
“Kylie,don’t be mad,” he said to me from the table.
Scrapingthe remaining bits of my salad into the garbage, I said, “I’m not mad.”
“Okay,maybe you’re not mad, but you’re still upset,” he said, getting up to bring hisdish to the sink. “There’s nothing to be upset over.”
Wehad been over this topic countless times over the two months we had beentogether, over the two months since I found out about my mother’s newrelationship. It amazed me that Devin had so much patience. He never once gotannoyed or angry at me for running in circles around the same thoughts. Fromsadness to acceptance,over and over again.
Ifthere was anyone who deserved to be nominated for sainthood, it was him.
