I watched him go, feeling a pang of worry in my chest. The server shook his head as he was cleaning our mess. I was about to crouch over to help him when I felt Levi’s grip on my arm.
“Don’t get on your knees to fix someone else’s mess.”
“It’s not his either,” I argued.
“No, it wasn’t.” He pulled a hundred-dollar bill from his wallet and placed it on the table. “Let’s go.”
I didn’t move but folded my arms across my chest. “Not before you tell me why you never spilled Sylas’s secret since you clearly dislike him.”
The sound of shattered glass being discarded into the trash faded into the background.
“Contrary to you, I don’t let my emotions alter my rationality,” he said, tucking a rebel strand of my hair behind my ear. “Sylas annoys the fuck out of me, but he has great chances of having a decent political career, and it may be a good investment to have him owe me one.”
“I don’t buy it.” I mustered a faint smile. “I believe that deep, deep down, you wanted to help him because you care.”
“Don’t confuse strategy with sentiment,” he cautioned, leading me out of the café. “I’m glad you’ve finally accepted our relationship.”
Right, I’d called him my boyfriend.
“I’m—” I fretted, the grinding of coffee beans assaulting my ears, grating like nails on a chalkboard. Utensils clinked with a menacing edge, their metallic symphony slicing through the air like knives. “I’m not really sure how my father will react to this news.”
We rushed out, the door shutting behind us, leaving the shrill noises of the café fading in the distance.
“He’s going to be so pissed… But I can’t lie to him forever and—” This time, I was interrupted by my phone ringing. It was Grandma. “She never calls me unless it’s serious. I need to take this.”
Levi nodded, and I picked up. “Grandma?”
“My flower, I just landed on Pantheon Island! I’ll be there soon!”
“You’re here?” I screamed.
“Did I forget to tell you?” Grandma chuckled. “Well, of course, I’m here! It’s Parents’ Day, and you sounded so sad on the phone last time.”
“But, Grandma, you took the plane alone, and you—”
“If the queen of England could travel when she was my age, I don’t see why I can’t! I’m not that old!”
The lump in my throat grew. “Is Dad with you?”
“Of course not. The signal is terrible. Dalia? Dalia, can you hear—”
The call abruptly cut off, leaving me staring at Levi, my mouth agape. “Well, I guess you’re about to meet my grandma.”
He hummed impassively. “Do you want me to meet her?”
I thought it through. I could always be myself with Grandma. She’d always have my back.
“Yes, I would actually love that.”
“She’ll decide if she likes you within the first two seconds of meeting you, so be nice,” Dalia warned, her fingers twisting nervously in the seat of my car.
“When am I not nice?” I asked, maneuvering the car out of the parking spot.
My research on Grandmother Mercier had been thorough; if anyone could be swayed to my side, it was her. If not, I had a backup plan involving a little secret about her black web plant-growing activities under the pretext of being a former florist.
“You’re overly confident,” she groaned.
“I don’t see what the—”
