I didn’t believe that for a second. She rarely ate, and when she did, it was a sandwich or a bowl of cereal. Even with the fridge fully stocked, it wasn’t often that she made herself a big, filling meal. “I was thinking about ordering something,” I said. “If you want any. Doesn’t matter what. Thai, burgers, sushi. I’ll get whatever you’re in the mood for.”
Her eyes softened the slightest bit. “You don’t have to do that.”
“Do what?”
“Look out for me.”
I furrowed my brows. She was definitely putting distance between us.
“I know,” I replied, trying to sound as nonchalant as her. “But I want to.”
She hesitated, and I watched her work through whatever she was thinking. Finally, she let out a small breath. “Okay. Maybe something light. I had a lot for lunch.”
“You did?”
“Yeah. Holland and I went to this food truck park. Ate quite a lot. But I could go for, I don’t know, veggie summer rolls.”
“Good,” I said. “Then I’ll order for both of us.”
Her lips twitched like she was fighting a smile. “Great, thanks.”
“Sure. I’ll let you know when the food’s here.”
Relief loosened the knot that had built inside of me, but not fully. It was a small win for me though, having her agree to have dinner with me.
I left her room to get dressed before I picked up my phone to order.
The food arrived fast. I grabbed the bags from the delivery guy at the door and walked back into the living room where Lana was already curled up on the couch with a blanket pulled over her legs.
I set the bags down on the coffee table. “Here we go.”
She glanced over and scooted to make room for me. “What did you get?”
It was another casual question that shouldn’t have moved anything in me. I needed to stop overanalyzing everything she did or said, because she was clearly just being friendly.
“A spicy beef noodle soup. And some summer rolls as well.”
I unpacked the containers, handed her hers, and sat beside her. The TV remote was already in her hand. She didn’t have trouble figuring out what she wanted to watch. Instead, she quickly picked a documentary about planets and the universe.
“Is this fine?” she asked.
“Yeah, fine with me.”
Putting the remote aside, she glued her gaze to the TV and started to eat her food in small bites. She didn’t look at me once. Didn’t make a single comment about the food. She seemed unbothered and fully calm.
I kept glancing at her but she didn’t notice.
Or maybe she did and didn’t care.
Maybe I really had read everything wrong. Maybe she didn’t feel a damn thing for me. Maybe her wanting to keep being my fluffer had nothing to do with me at all.
My ego didn’t like that. Not one bit.
I looked over again, wanting to figure her out. She was so focused on the TV though, and I didn’t want to make things weird. So I kept my mouth shut and kept eating.
We finished eating around the same time. She set her empty container on the table, folded the carton neatly, and stood up to gather the rest of the trash. I beat her to half of it.
“I got it,” I said.
