“Mom,” I groaned.
Her eyes were bright, earnest. “He’s the first guy I don’t actually want to kill.”
“Yet,” I added.
“Yet,” she agreed without missing a beat, pulling out a carton of eggs and checking each one for cracks. “But even if I do end up wanting to kill him, which I won’t, I won’tactuallydo it. I made you a promise.” She looked up at me, and her expression shifted into seriousness. “I’ll never break a promise to you, Malibu. Never.”
The sincerity in her voice hit hard, and I sighed. I wanted more than anything for my mom to be happy, truly happy. No one deserved it more, but I’d often wondered if her past would always haunt her and get in the way of her being able to find true love or peace. More importantly, how the hell had my mom gotten a date before I did? The woman hated the opposite sex.
Or she had. He must have made quite the impression.
“Is he taking you somewhere nice?” I asked, plucking an apple from the fruit basket.
She stopped unpacking and leaned against the counter, crossing her arms over her chest. The afternoon light came through the kitchen window behind her, making her dark hair shine and painting her profile in gold. For just a second, she looked so young. “A place downtown. He mentioned arestaurant with a patio. Said the sunset view was worth the overpriced wine. I’m meeting him there.”
I bit into the apple, my mind already jumping ahead, worrying about what might happen, but I could see she wanted this. She was only ever this excited about finding her next victim. I just wanted her to be doing this for the right reasons, not because she thought it was what I wanted. She knew how much I desired a normal life, and it would be just like my mom to date if she thought it would make me happy. I wanted this for her. Not for me. “You know I love you. I don’t need a daddy figure. You’re all I need.”
She came around the counter and pulled me in for a long hug. “Thanks. I needed that.” She pulled back, looking into my face. Her fingers tucked a curl stray behind my ear. “But to absolve you of the guilt I know you’d carry, I’m doing this for me. It’s time I start healing. It’s time we both did.”
I nodded. “Okay, but if he tries anything…”
“I know how to handle myself, but…I’ll make sure he’s still breathing when I drop him to the ground.”
My lips twitched, and Mom went back to unpacking groceries.
I grabbed my tote bag from where I’d abandoned it and headed for the stairs. I should be happy for her. I wanted to be, but it felt like too many changes were happening at once. I was sure tons of kids had to deal with their single parents dating, but did any of them have to worry that their mother would kill them?
I wasn’t ready to abandon Elmwood. Not yet.
5
MALLORY
By five o’clock the next day, I was back at the coffee shop, and not in hopes of running into a guy or for the matcha, although I could use a pick-me-up considering the shitty amount of sleep I managed to get last night.
I was meeting Paisley and potentially making my first friend in Elmwood. Hopefully, I didn’t say or do anything stupid, and I was strictly forbidding myself from talking about death. Maddox, on the other hand, was fair game.
I peered inside the coffee shop as I stood on the sidewalk, looking to see if Paisley was still working, but another barista was behind the counter, a guy with shaggy brown hair. He was cute in an I-play-video-games-all-night way. He had a carefree appearance, someone who put minimal effort into their clothes or hair because it wasn’t all that important, and it worked for him, not sloppily either.
“Hey.” A cheerful voice sounded behind me, and I jumped away from the window. Paisley stood on the curb, a tote slung over one shoulder and her teal hair pulled back into a messy bun. This was the first time I’d seen her dressed in somethingother than her Daily Dose tee. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”
I smiled to cover my nerves. “It’s fine. It wasn’t like I was ogling the guy behind the counter or anything.” I was joking. Mostly.
The corner of her lips lifted as she gave me a funny look. “Milo?”
“Even his name is cute.”
Paisley wrinkled my nose. “You might be the first girl who has ever said that about my brother.”
My hand flew to my mouth. “Oh, shit. Brother? Seriously?”
She nodded.
“Sorry? I think. Does he have a girlfriend?” I said the stupidest things when I was embarrassed.
She laughed. “If you want his number, I got you. He might not know what to do or say if you call.”
“Who?” someone asked behind me.
