“Sooo, how did it go?” April lets the first word drag on, and I tangle my fingers in my lap.
“Good.” I accept the cup of coffee my mom slides toward me and she winks. Crap, she totally knows what I did last night, the same way she knew everything I did when I was growing up.
“You didn’t call me until almost midnight, and then all you said was you were going to bed and would talk to me in the morning. So I’m guessing the date went better than good,” April states as I take a sip of coffee.
“Okay, it went better than good.” I sigh, wishing I woke up in time to get some caffeine into my system before I had to leave my place. Unfortunately, I slept through the three alarms I set in fifteen-minute increments and still pressed Snooze on the last one, which left me only minutes to get showered, dressed, and in my car to make it here.
“So,” June cuts in. “Did he bring you peonies?”
“I think you all already know he did,” I say, looking around the table and feeling overwhelmed when I see everyone waiting for me to elaborate.
“We knew he asked for your favorite flower, but we didn’t know if he’d actually buy them for you, since they aren’t exactly easy to come by,” July pipes up, looking happy.
“Where did he take you for dinner?” Mom asks, and I pull my eyes off my sister’s smiling face to look at her.
“Flame,” I reply, and Mom’s eyes widen with awe. “He knows the owner. We had dinner on the rooftop, which has been enclosed with glass, and were the only people there after the owner’s parents left.”
“Was the food good?” May asks, and I look around April at her.
“It was one of the best meals I’ve ever had.”
“Peonies and dinner at Flame,” Mom says, and I find her shaking her head. “He’s not messing around.”
“Can we please cut all this crap and get to the good stuff? What happened when he brought you home?” April asks, raising one brow.
My chest gets tight and my face warms. It’s one thing talking with my sisters about sex. It’s completely different with our mom present.
“April,” Mom scolds.
“What?”
“You know what. We talked about this.” Mom narrows her eyes in disapproval, and April shifts uncomfortably next to me.
“I see the last of you has arrived,” a waitress says, appearing suddenly at the side of our booth, and I couldn’t be more thankful for her interruption. “What can I get you ladies to eat?”
We give her our orders, food enough to sustain six grown men, and she looks impressed by the time she walks away. Once she’s gone, I focus all my attention on the cup of coffee in front of me, waiting for April to continue with her interrogation, unsure how I will handle it if she does.
“Do you like him?” At my mom’s quiet question, I lift my eyes to hers and nod. “Good,” she whispers, and I bite the inside of my cheek.
“At least tell us the good night kiss was mind-blowing.” April, never one to give up, prompts and I hear my mom huff in frustration. Still, I turn my head to look at my sister.
“The kiss good night was everything I hoped it would be.” I watch her expression fill with relief. Seeing that look, I realize she hasn’t stopped worrying about her role in the way things played out between me and Gareth and has still been feeling guilty about it. “We’re good.” I reach under the table to squeeze her hand, and her fingers lock around mine tightly before they let go.
“So, when are you seeing him again?” June asks as I pick up my coffee.
I hold my cup inches from my lips and shrug. “I’m not sure. We didn’t make plans.”
“Oh.” She looks forlorn by my answer, and I wonder if I should be worried that we didn’t agree on a time to see each other again.
Did he just tell me what I wanted to hear so he didn’t have to deal with things being awkward? I mean, I did sleep with him on our first date; maybe he thinks I’m easy now and wants nothing to do with me. My stomach turns at the thought.
“He’ll call,” April says, and I glance at her. “He’ll call. Just give him time.”
“Sure,” I agree, not feeling sure at all. Actually, now I’m wondering what the heck I was thinking, sleeping with him last night. I should’ve had better control. I should have…. “Oh no.” My heart pounds, remembering him telling me that the condom broke the last time we had sex. How did I forget about that until now?
“What?” Mom asks worriedly, and I shake my head.
“Nothing. I… I thought I saw that crazy-haired guy walk by, from the alien show July watches.”