Page 39 of Your Kiss Is On My List

“Now’s a good time. You’ve got me and Lou for moral support.”

“Well I have you at least. Lou doesn’t know,” she whispers and I slide my eyes over to see Lou’s attention glued to the TV.

“Read the damn text or I’ll read it for you.” I make a grab for the phone and she laughs, holding onto it. She scrolls to the text and finally reads it.

“He’s inviting me down to NYC for the next weekend.” She leans in and gives me a hug to celebrate and she’s all excited.

“Hey what’s going on?” Lou says frowning at us with the clicker poised and turns the volume down like she senses she’s missing something.

Dani tells Lou about her dad’s invitation to visit, but not about his side of the story of why he’s been gone all this time, that it was her mom’s fault.

Lou is surprised that I already knew about her dad showing up, and maybe a little miffed, but she rolls with it because that’s how she is.

I’ll have to make sure there’s no resentment or bad feelings brewing later. While I’m at it, I’ll ask her why she’s forcing Dani into my lap all of a sudden. I’m not sure what’s up with that, but I sure as fuck want to know—need to know before my dick gets too excited--that Dani’s really and truly interested in more than friendship. I know she’s attracted, that’s not the thing. The thing is she’s scared because we’re worlds apart in experience and where we are in life, if not age. She has three more years of school and I’m leaving for the big wide world in a few months. Fuck. I need to stay in the here and now for once.

“Are you going to visit him?” Lou asks

“I’ll need to tell my mother,” Dani says.

“Why the fuck would you do that?” Lou says. “What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her.”

“You have a point, but that’s not how my relationship with her works. We’ve been through a lot together. It’s kind of been us against the world.”

“I thought it was you and me against the world?” Lou says half seriously.

“You’re right, but only when mom is off with one of her guys. Then it’s been me and the Eagletons against the world,” she flashes me a glance. “For real. You’ve all been such a big part of my life. But you know my mom is my mom and she has such strong feelings about my dad that I have to tell her.”

“What if she asks you not to go?” I say

“I’ll… still go.” I want to ask her if she’s going to call her mother on her lies—or what have most likely been her lies about how things went down with her dad—but I can’t say anything in front of Lou because she hasn’t shared that part.

“So,” Lou says, as if she’s reading my mind. “I thought your dad disappeared off the face of the earth to hear your mom talk about it—where has he been all this time? What’s his excuse for being a no-show and why are you forgiving him so easily—even for you?”

Dani glances at me and I see a sliver of panic before she covers it up.

“He’s my dad, Lou. I need to give him a chance. If he didn’t want to make amends he wouldn’t have sought me out, wouldn’t be inviting me to visit him.”

“And his new family?” Lou says.

“Shut up, Lou. I think she’s doing the right thing.”

“I’m glad you think so,” she says. “Because I told him we were.. together. It was before we broke up—”

“You are so crazy all of a sudden,” Lou says. “You never broke up and you were never together—unless, maybe you were always together and you never broke up. I’m not sure which it is at this point frankly,”

“Didn’t I tell you to shut up?” I say without edge, though I’m not fucking kidding. I really do wish she would shut up.

Lou flounces from her chair. “Fine, I’m going in the kitchen to watch the guys play cards and don’t try and stop me.” Fuck. I go to open my mouth, but Dani puts a hand on my arm, like she’s holding me back. And it works. I take a deep breath and don’t say a word as Lou stares me down then flings herself in the direction of the kitchen through the dining room.

“I’ll come with you,” Bane says and Nate follows. All of a sudden, we’re alone.

“Shit,” I say under my breath.

“She’ll be fine. She likes him and I think he likes her. He’s not a bad guy you know.” Her words are gentle and worse, they’re true.

“I know. Fuck. I just have trouble letting go of her like she’s still a little kid, still want to keep her from getting into trouble.” I laugh. “As if that was ever possible.”

“It never was. But I love that you’re protective of her. One of the many things I lo—like about you,” she says, her grin unaffected by her near slip of the tongue.