Page 27 of On Your Knees

“Oh good,” he says, and he pets my hair. I absolutely melt inside. “Have you had Thai before?”

“Yeah. I love it.”

“So it’s nothing new then.” He sounds disappointed, which kind of amuses me, but I don’t want him to be disappointed.

“I’ve never had spring rolls,” I admit.

“You love Thai and you’ve never had spring rolls?”

I shrug. “They’re an appetizer. You can get two meals out of a bowl of curry, but an appetizer is gone too fast.”

Ethan’s eyes narrow. “Did you save that food from last night?”

Ice water pours through me. “Oh my God, I forgot to thank you for that. I meant to—”

“Answer my question.”

“I… well, just some for today.”

“So yes.” His voice is sharp. He’s pissed, but I don’t understand why.

I look away because I don’t know what to say. A firm grip on my jaw has my face turning toward him. His dark eyes practically bore into me.

“You do not save food.” He pauses as though to make sure I’ve heard him. “I will get you food. You do not save it.”

I don’t know why I start shaking. I don’t know why that hurts so much that I feel like I’m going to cry. I really, really don’t want to cry right now.

Maybe Ethan can see that. Maybe that’s why he relents. He releases me and orders, “Go sit. You want something to drink?”

“Um. Water. Please.”

“Okay. Go on. Sit. Eat.”

I go to sit on the other side of the island while Ethan fills two glasses at the sink, but I don’t start eating. I stall by pretending to consider the options. Ethan seems to recognize my tactic because he looks annoyed as he joins me, putting a glass of water in front of me. He pushes the spring rolls my way.

I pluck one from the box and dip it into the peanut sauce.

“Oh God,” I mutter around a mouthful.

Ethan smiles slightly as he watches me. I push the container his way so he can have some, but he pushes it back at me and starts eating one of the curries.

I plow through the spring rolls, which are everything I’ve always imagined they would be. The wrapping is weird and cool, the filling is bright and crunchy, and I love the sauce. I try to offer the last roll to Ethan, but he still refuses, and I know it’s because he wants me to have it. It’s so fucking nice that it makes my throat tighten, and it takes me a minute to finish the last one.

After, I glance at Ethan to see if there’s something he has his eyes on, but his eyes are only on me. I flush at his attention. I don’t understand it. And yet… I do like it.

He’s still eating the curry, so everything seems to be available. I pick the spicy beef salad because I’ve always wanted to try it. I love Thai, but I’ve only ever had curry because this other stuff is too expensive.

At the first bite, I close my eyes, savoring the flavor and heat. It’s heaven.

Ethan lets me eat for a minute then asks, “What was your credit card debt from? Obviously not extravagant takeout.”

My heart skip then sinks. “Just regular life stuff. Groceries and stuff like that.”

“New York is expensive.”

“Yeah,” I agree.

“And you don’t have a job.”