“I told them,” I said.“About us.”
“Ah, finally admitting there’s anus.Good.”
“Hush,” I said with a laugh.“I can’t lie to them.I’veneverbeen able to lie to them.Besides, they’ll see the spring in my step, and I only own so many turtlenecks.So, I came clean.”
“Does that mean we can take this thing public?And by public, I mean tell Lenni.It would’ve been nice to sit on the couch next to you last night while we watchedReturn of the King.”
“Yeah,” I agreed.“It would’ve been nice to cuddle.”
“So?”he pressed.“We need to tell her.”
I nibbled my lip.
“Wyn?You’re not seriously going to keep using Lenni as an excuse, are you?”
I shook my head as I reached into the refrigerator and pulled out a jar of pickles.“No.”
“Then we tell her.”
I tapped the lid of the pickle jar as my thoughts wandered.Finally, I said, “My whole life is changing.”
“So is mine.”
“We jumped from nothing to something really fucking fast.”
“Wyn?”
“Yeah?”
“Share my sandwich,” he said.“And stop trying to rationalize it all.We’re together.And we’ll tell Lenni.”
“How am I supposed to explain this to my parents?”I demanded.“They’re going to think I’m insane for staying here for a relationship.
“Come here,” he commanded.When I didn’t move right away, he stated again, “Come here, Wyn.”
I brought the jar of pickles with me and set it on the table.Archer reached out and pulled me onto his lap.
“You listen to me.And you listen good.”His eyes bored into mine.“This isn’tarelationship.It’stherelationship.The one that works.The one that lasts.”
“How can you know that?”I asked, my voice trembling.“It’s been so fast.”
“Woman,” he said with a labored sigh, “the moment I saw you braiding Lenni’s hair, I was done for.”
I blinked.“That was the first time we met.”
“Yeah.”
“But how can you—that’s crazy.”
“Maybe.”He shrugged.
“What happens when it wears off?”
“When what wears off?”
“The sex haze!I give it four months, tops, before you’re like,Oh God, how do I get this broad out of my house?”
“Wyn?”
