“What is going on?” he asked.
She got up on her knees to be eye to eye with him. “My grandma. Is trying. To set us up.”
“No way.” There was no world in which any grandma wanted their granddaughter to be in a relationship with him. He was too scruffy and grumbly and literally homeless—though, Winnie didn’t know about that part.
In a falsetto voice he assumed was meant to imitate Winnie, she said, “She’s so smart and pretty and you should talk to her.”
“Grandparents tell me those things about their grandkids all the time,” he assured her. “Every therapy session is half work, half bragging about their kids and grandkids. Trust me. It’s normal.”
She gave him an unconvinced look. “I know my grandma.”
“So do I, and I don’t think she meant it like that. Besides, even if she was trying to set us up, it’s not like she can force us into a relationship.”
She laughed and patted his arm as if consoling a child. Why did every casual touch shoot fireworks through his veins? “Oh, sweet, innocent Asher. You’d better sip her soup carefully, because it might be laced with a love potion.”
His stomach flipped. Eliana’s phone rang and she answered it.
“What a surprise, Grandma,” she said, sounding too surprised as she crossed her eyes at Asher and bumped her shoulder against his—and then left them pressed together. “I’ve got nothing going on this afternoon. Why?”
For the millionth time that day, his mind drifted back to when she’d walked into the kitchen that morning, still sleep-tumbled and drowsy. He’d been punched right in the lungs and couldn’t get any air in. Winnie was completely justified in wanting to brag about Eliana. She had everything going for her, yet here she was, sitting on the floor at his grandpa’s bungalow, spending hours going through boxes with him.
“Sure, I’ll drop soup off to Asher. I’ll be there in about fifteen minutes … Yes, heisquite handsome.” She rolled her eyes at Asher and mouthed,See?
His cheeks heated. He knew she was just playing along with her grandma, and he needed to get busy before she saw how she was affecting him, so he stood to break down empty boxes.
“Ihavealways like men with facial hair,” Eliana continued, her tone teasing. “Too bad I’m not looking for a relationship … Oh, you’re just making a statement, not trying to hint at anything. Okay, cool. Love you too.”
She hung up the phone and smirked. “Still think she doesn’t have any ulterior motives?”
“I don’t,” he said, honestly.
She snickered. “You shall see.” She held her hand up and out, and he realized she was waiting for him to take it and help her up. Her soft hand slid into his, their palms gliding against one another in a way that nearly made him groan.
She, of course, was completely unaffected.
“See you soon. With soup. Love potion soup,” she sang as she slid her sandals on and left, taking all the sunlight with her. The bungalow seemed extra gloomier, dustier, and boxier without her presence.
Yeah, he was a sap. Maybe Winnie had already slipped him some love potion soup when they’d had their lunch together.
He picked up the secrets box and dropped it in the trash pile. This was a bomb waiting to go off, and he worried it could take all of Diamond Cove down with it.
Chapter 14
“Let us be elegant or die.” —Louisa May Alcott
Karma.
It was the only explanation.
In a fair world, Asher would be the one feeling like his stomach wouldn’t be satisfied until it turned itself completely inside out, not Eliana. Sincehewas the one who faked being sick and all. She was completely innocent in all this.
Men were always dodging karmic consequences, leaving unsuspecting women to get smacked right in the face with them. She was adding a chapter about this into her book. No, a whole section.
She groaned as her stomach cramped, and she rolled over on her air mattress. It dipped dangerously closed to the ground. She’d been feeling too awful this morning to refill it, so it was half-deflated.
Everything was too much effort. Eating. Drinking. Showering. Watching videos. Making her bed comfortable.
If she could crawl out to the couch, then maybe she could manage to fall asleep out there. Sleep meant oblivion. That was her life goal now. Forget books and social media—those things were lost to her.
