Page 14

“Maybe. I have class for two hours, then my lab, and then I have to go to the hospital for more work experience.”

The corner of my mom’s mouth lifts. “Look at you, my little nurse. Who would have thought?”

Certainly not me or my family, apparently.

“Haha,” I reply. With a lift of my brow, I grab my bag and kiss my mom and dad on the cheek. “Not sure when I’ll be home.”

“God, I’m so glad I don’t live with my parents anymore,” Blair adds, glancing at Mom and Dad. “No offense, you two.”

My father smirks. “Trust me, Blair. No one is happier about that than we are. And since Lennon is barely here most days, that means that your mother and I can watch Friends as loud as we want.”

Blair gags and Nora’s nose scrunches up in disgust.

I don’t do either for fear of actually throwing up, but we all know that when our parents say they’re going to watch the popular sitcom from the ’90s, that’s not actually what they’re doing.

Nope. My parents have been using that as code for sex since we were kids .

Hudson caught on first, since he’s the oldest. Then he told Sloane, who was convinced all five of us were delivered by the stork and refused to believe him. But then Blair walked in on Mom and Dad having sex, and her scream was so loud that I ran to her, and quickly figured out what was going on. Sloane had to accept the truth at that moment too.

Let’s just say I feel like I got the sex talk a tad earlier than I should have.

But with a mother like ours—unapologetically open and an advocate for women understanding their bodies, and how to give and receive pleasure—I’m actually shocked that it didn’t happen sooner than it did. Sex is now a normal topic of conversation among the Riley family, but that doesn’t mean we don’t still get grossed out by the idea of our parents doing it. I think that’s just normal for children to feel.

“And that’s my cue to leave,” Blair announces as she stands from her chair.

Nora yawns before taking a bite of her toast. “Yeah, I should probably go too. I need to restock the shelves with the novel you’re assigning for class, Mom.”

Mom smiles. “I hope you ordered enough copies. News of my new class is starting to spread, and let’s just say that I have a lot more young men coming to ask if I’m still accepting students. Word has spread around campus about all of the knowledge my students are learning about the female gaze and how educating romance can be.”

Since it’s the beginning of the semester, students have a limited window to add classes, which means this Friday is the deadline. This weekend marks the beginning of September, which is the busiest part of the year for us.

“Who would’ve thought you’d be teaching a class on romance novels, honey?” My father kisses my mom on the lips and then takes his mug to the sink.

Rising from the table, Mom turns to face him. “I did, and that’s why I petitioned for it. There’s a reason romance is the best-selling genre of fiction.”

Nora nods proudly, and the irony isn’t lost on me. “Yup. It’s a billion-dollar industry.” My shy younger sister will turn beet red at the mere mention of sex, but she sells it for a living.

“My sales have increased exponentially since Mom petitioned for the class, too. More and more readers are coming out of the woodwork. Reading these stories isn’t as taboo anymore, and I think it’s amazing, especially in a small town like ours where everyone knows something about someone.”

Ah, yes. The small-town gossip mill.

Everyone knows something about someone and isn’t afraid to share it.

Funny that I haven’t heard much about Easton lately, though. Not that I’m listening, of course.

Lifting my bag from the floor, I say, “I hate to eat and run, but I don’t want to be late.”

My mother eyes the untouched scrambled eggs in front of me. “You hardly touched the food, Lennon.”

I shrug off her comment and try to avoid looking at the eggs for fear of getting nauseous again. “I’m just not that hungry this morning. And maybe I’ll stop by your office and say hi to you before I go to the hospital, but I’m not making any promises, Mom.”

“All right. No worries. You know where to find me if you have time.”

One last round of goodbyes eats up the ten-minute head start I gave myself, but that’s what happens when the Rileys get together—we can’t stop talking.

But this morning, surprisingly, that didn’t include me. And just a few hours later, I found out why I wasn’t feeling talkative or hungry this morning—a detail I couldn’t believe even though there was no denying it once it was staring me right in the face.

Chapter 2