“Wow. That must be awkward.”
I chuckle. “Believe it or not, we don’t have many reasons to run into each other, so I think I’ve seen him maybe twice in the last fifteen years.”
“That means he doesn’t come to the town meetings.”
“Correct. He’s never had any interest in the meetings, though he enjoys the newsletters. He wants to be up to date on what’s going on, but he doesn’t want to be involved in discussions.”
“Wow. He’s missing out.”
“Missing out on the in-person show, yes. But we all know that the gossip train never breaks. He knows exactly what’s going on at the meetings.”
Lie grins.
“What about you?”
“Well, I’ve never been married or close to being married. When Cash and I were eleven, there was a movie about friends who said that if they weren’t married by a specific date, they’d get married. So we thought that was a good idea. Everyone should have a backup plan. At first, we said that if we weren’t married by the time we were fifteen. That was a long way off when we were eleven.”
I laugh.
“Obviously, as we got closer to fifteen and the realities of relationships and marriage and whatever made sense, we gave ourselves a little more leeway and moved that date to thirty. It made the most sense. Gives us plenty of time to actually put some effort into giving it a shot, but still young enough to raise a family if we choose to.”
“That’s cute.”
“To be honest, I don’t think we’d make a good married couple. I love Cash with my whole heart, but I think we’re too alike. We’re needy at the same time, and…” Lie shakes his head. “I don’t know. I think we’d back out at thirty if it came to that.”
“How do you feel about getting married?” I ask.
His smile is soft, and he shrugs one shoulder. His fingers move through my chest hair as he looks into my eyes. “I don’t think I have a preference either,” he admits. “Like you, I’ve always wanted a love like Mom and Dad. I love their love. But I’m also fine having that love and not getting married. I just don’t think it’s a necessary conclusion to loving someone, you know? I’m reserving my right to change my mind about it. Maybe I’ll want to get married in a year or whatever. But right now, I don’t think marriage equates to a happy, fulfilled life like so many people think it does.”
“Good answer. One I wish I’d heard twenty years ago.”
He smiles beautifully. “I’ve come to the conclusion that I can be in love with someone and spend my life with them without the fanfare. The idea of a big ceremony makes me cringe.”
I pull him to me, pressing my mouth to his. We kiss for several minutes with an excess of tongue, as if we’re trying to lap each other. It morphs into a game that has us laughing. “You’re a breath of fresh air, Lie. Thank you for being you.”
Lie sighs, his arms tightening around me. “Thanks for telling me about your past. It’s nice to think about something other than what’s going on right now.”
“It is,” I agree. For this small moment in time, we didn’t have to think about the hurricane next door.
Chapter Thirty-One
LIE
One of theweirdest things this week is that the meeting had been postponed for three days. It’s all anyone can talk about. Three days isn’t a lot of time, and there hasn’t been any recent upset with Taylor, so what can be happening in just three days?
It’s been enough to take most of the attention off me and Laiken. Not all the attention, though. That’s a lot to ask for, especially when my dad is still acting like a shithead. His behavior means no one has forgotten about our scandal, and they’re likely not going to for a while.
In those three days, I worked yesterday and today at the post office. I hate everything about it. I hate the sounds and moving heavy boxes. The monotony of sorting. The system to send mail is unnecessarily complicated and obnoxious.
I’m not even going to get into how uncomfortable the uniform is. I’m forced to wear a belt, which makes the shorts bunch around my waist. This big shirt makes me look frumpy. What’s wrong with wearing clothes that fit you? Why is that not a thing with places that require uniforms?
At least I’ve been relegated to sorting packages instead of dealing with people needing to ship. I could absolutely learn the system but it’s a stupid computer program and the computers are like eighty years old, so they’re slow as fuck. I don’t have the patience for it without getting incredibly frustrated.
Since the post office is in the middle of Bane Island, directly in the center of the residential area, it’s one of the few places on the island chain where I’m allowed to keep my phone on me. Which means I have my earbuds in and listen to filthy audiobooks. It makes the monotony of sorting mail a little more bearable.
I also appreciate that the post office closes in plenty of time to make it to the town meeting. I’m already stripping out of my horrendous uniform on my way out the door. My heart skips when I see Laiken leaning against the post drop box, waiting for me.
He’s wearing a shirt today, but it’s an open button-down and the sleeves stretch tightly around his biceps. Honestly, how are there not more people lined up drooling around him? Laiken is one of the hottest men on Kala. Hands down.
