Abby opens her car door at the same time I open mine. “I better be the godmother,” she yells.
“Abby!”
“Right. Sorry. Go.”
22
Lincoln
I spot Adley as soon as she walks through the door of Chloe’s favorite Italian restaurant. It’s a quaint little place, and when I stand up, she catches my eye from across the room and walks toward us. Chloe stands and gets to Adley before I do, greeting her with a warm hug.
“Sorry. I got here as quickly as I could,” she says, squeezing my sister before turning to sit beside me. “Did you already order?”
Her cheeks are flushed, and her eyes look a little red. I reach for her hand under the table. “Are you okay?”
Adley’s eyes widen. “Yeah. Great. I’m great. Why—why do you ask?” she stammers.
“You just look a little flustered.” I rub a thumb under her eye. “And your eyes are red.”
“They are?” Adley reaches for her face, and I regret mentioning it because now she looks insecure. “Probably because I’m stressed over this stupid test, and I’m exhausted and—”
She blows out a breath as though if she keeps talking she may start crying, and I cup her face in my hands. “Let’s get out of here.”
“No.” Closing her eyes, Adley shakes her head and wraps her fingers around my wrist. “I want to stay and hang out.”
“Are you sure?”
Her lids flutter open. “Positive.”
“Okay, but tonight when we get home, you’re relaxing. You need a break.”
Adley nods and turns to Chloe. “Sorry.”
Chloe holds up both hands, unfazed by our interaction. “Don’t be. I know how stressful that shit can be. College is a bitch, and then when it’s over, it isn’t really over.”
I wrap Adley’s hand in mine and rest it on my thigh. “Speaking of college, did you register for graduation?”
“Yes,” Chloe says, rolling her eyes. “And speaking of graduation, I know about the party tomorrow.”
“Rose told you? I thought it was supposed to be a surprise.”
I’m not sure if she notices she’s doing it, but at the mention of Rose’s name, Adley’s grip on my hand tightens.
“It was, but we live together now, so it’s kind of hard to keep things like that a secret.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
Our waitress stops at our table and places a glass of ice water in front of Adley. “Are you guys ready to order?”
“I’ll have the chicken alfredo,” I tell her.
“Ooh, that sounds good.” Chloe scrunches her nose. “I was going to go with the tortellini, but the chicken alfredo sounds good. What are you getting, Adley?”
“Oh, um…” Adley looks down at her menu. “I think I’ll have the lasagna.”
“Great choice.” Chloe grabs my menu along with Adley’s and hands them to the waitress. “I’m going to have the lasagna too.”
“You’re so indecisive.”