“Uh-huh.”
She shudders. “Why?”
“Why not? Snakes can be great pets.” I start listing out a couple reasons just to mess with her. She’s been frightened of them since wewere kids. “They’re super intelligent, they only eat every couple of weeks.”
“I know better than to have this conversation with you. You think all animals are amazing.”
“I do,” I say with a laugh.
She shakes her head and holds up a brown paper bag. “I brought sushi and some bento boxes for lunch. Hope you don’t mind. I’ve been craving California rolls for ages, but Brian doesn’t do anything that’s fishy.”
My brother-in-law is a steak-and-potatoes kind of guy. “You know me, I’ll eat anything.”
“Where’s Vicki?” she asks, setting the bag down on the reception counter.
“At lunch. She had a hair appointment, so I let her go a couple minutes early.” Walking over to the door, I lock it and flip the “Open” sign to the “Will Return at 1:30” side.
“How did she take the news about your vacation?”
“She was gung ho.” I peek inside the bag and the scent of teriyaki chicken tickles my nose. “All right, you got my favorite dish! We can eat in the break room.”
“You only order one thing from Samurai Sushi, it wasn’t exactly rocket science. I know the rolls Ilike won’t fill you. You eat like a college student.”
We sit down, spread out our lunches, and I fill Daphne in on Dylan and the Queen of Vultures.
“I’ll continue to say it every time you bring him up. I’m sure that man was using you,” Daphne tells me emphatically. “Does that mean you’re finally going to cut him off?”
“Not completely.” I play with a bit of rice caught on the edge of the plate. “I’ve decided if he wants to talk, he can contact me. The ball is in his court.”
“Well, it’s a start.” Daph presses her lips together. “At least a vacation will get your mind off him. I just never thought you’d go allEat,Pray, Loveon me and choose Spain of all places. I didn’t even know you had a passport.”
“I got one last year when Dylan and I were supposed to visit Banff National Park in Canada.”
“And you didn’t go because . . .”
“His mom needed help moving.”
“How convenient.” Daphne mutters the word “flake” under her breath, then clears her throat. “Well, I think Spain is a great choice. It was one of the places Brian and I visited on our honeymoon cruise. We loved it.”
“That’s right.” I snap my fingers.
“Where are you thinking about going?” Daphne pops the last roll into her mouth.
“Fernan—I mean, one of my friends gave me a couple of recommendations. There are the big cities like Madrid and Barcelona. And a few smaller cities like Granada, Toledo, and Seville. I need to figure out how to get around, but I was thinking that?—”
Daphne swallows hard and holds up her hand. “Hold on a second, you said yourfriendrecommended these places to you?”
“Um, yes?” I sputter.
“As in amalefriend?”
“Uh...” My cheeks begin to burn as if I’ve been sitting outside in the sun too long.
“Ava. Please tell me you aren’t going on this trip with a rebound guy you just met.”
I release a breath. “No. It’s nothing like that.”
My sister relaxes. “Then who is he?”
