“What?” I whisper.
“Are you serious about my brother?” Max asks, not wasting any time before diving right in.
“I, uh, yes. I’m serious about getting to know him better.” Max looks at me with concern and disappointment.
“My brother really cares about you. I know this is fun and all”—Max sweeps his arm around to gesture at his home, his family, I assume—“but don’t drag him along if you aren’t all in. I’m pretty sure it would kill him if you broke his heart.”
“Max, I’m not planning to hurt him. I care about him a lot too,” I sputter quietly.
“Okay, but just, please. I want to believe you, but I’ve never seen him like this before, and he’s kind of the glue that keeps us all together. I don’t know what any of us would do if he falls apart.” My heart warms at the sentiment. Sam is the big brother, the protector. Max wants to make sure Sam is safe with me emotionally, and it’s really sweet. The only problem is, I can’t and won’t make any promises. I’ve made it clear to Sam that I need time to figure things out. I don’t need to share that with Max, but I feel guilty for not being able to reassure him completely.
“What are you guys doing in here in the dark?” Nora asks, sneaking into the dining room with us.
“Nothing, I was just telling Olive not to break Sam’s heart,” Max explains.
“That’s usually the talk you’d give to my boyfriend. I’m pretty sure Sam can handle himself. Come on, Olive,” Nora scolds Max and then grabs my hand, dragging me into the hallway and then to the kitchen.
Sam is waiting, sitting on a stool and eyeing me suspiciously. Nora notices and approaches him while depositing me at the stool next to him. “Sorry, I just stole her for some girl talk real quick.” Sam doesn’t look convinced but takes my hand and presses a kiss to my cheek as I scooch onto the stool.
“You, okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” he whispers in my ear.
“Yes, I’m great. Someone got me hot and bothered upstairs. Just needed a minute,” I lie, not wanting to tell him about his brother’s speech.
Sam chuckles softly and kisses my neck discreetly before Mabel pulls a loaf of bread from the oven and shoos us to the dining table.
twenty-eight
Sam
Paper-Thin Costumes
I can see from the large glass windows that Olive is approaching. We’re meeting after my last appointment of the day to go look for costumes, and she’s about ten minutes early. There’s a woman splayed across my table, and right as I’m leaning over her and tattooing something on her chest, Olive pushes on the door handle and waltzes in, pageant smile firmly on her face. I know she understands this is my job, but we’ve never really discussed the sometimes-awkward positions I end up in.
“Hey, babe. I’ll be done in just a few. Do you want to hang out here or wait in the back? Either is fine.”
“I’ll wait here,” she replies, taking a seat on a plush velvet couch in the front sitting area, eyeing a few books of my artwork on display in front of her.
I continue working for a few minutes, putting the final touches on, while Olive browses through one of the books. I know from the cover it’s the one labeledMagical Musings, which is only a tiny bit ironic given her predicament. Instead of focusing more of my attention on Olive, I wipe down my client, show her to the mirror, and then place a plastic wrap over her skin. She seems happy, from what I can tell. Moving quickly, I clean my station and ring her up. As the woman makes her way to exit, she side-eyes Olive, and my stomach flips. It’s evident that my girl was an unwelcome guest to whatever agenda this client was hoping to push, and that puts me on edge because everything is already so up in the air between us.
“Hey.” I walk up and wrap my arms around Olive’s middle for a hug, an attempt at calming any nerves she may have over that interaction.
“Hi,” Olive says, smiling at me before reaching on her tiptoes to give me a peck.
A grin tilts my lips up. “Are you ready to become someone else with me?”
“Always. But actually, who are we going to be?” Olive asks as I let go of her and walk toward the back to grab my things. She follows behind me, I think hoping for an answer.
“I have no clue. I thought maybe Raggedy Anne and Andy, but then Bridg told me she thinks they are siblings, so that won’t work. Do you have any ideas?”
“Ariella and Howie won’t reveal their costumes, but Ari assured me we’d never think of it. Maybe something funny? Like salt and pepper or hot sauce and eggs?”
“Olive, I already told you I’m falling in love with you, and this does not change that, but neither of those things are funny,” Iquip, grabbing her hand and leading her outside and into the cold.
I lock the door after turning the open sign off, and we head down the sidewalk toward the costume shop, Sally’s Specialties.
“Okay, fair. But sometimes the most obvious costumes are ironically funny. At least to me,” she justifies.
“You’re not wrong. Let’s see what we find. We still have a few days if nothing seems right.” I kiss her temple and then thread her fingers through mine. I want to show her that no matter what, we will figure it out. While Halloween costumes may not be the biggest challenge our relationship faces, they still demonstrate the ability to adapt to what we’re given and make it work.
