Page 28 of Unforgettable Player

“Good luck convincing our little Ruby Gloom to come with us,” he says.

Mom has to shout upstairs three times for Scout to come down for dinner. She’s at least taken her boots off and tied up her unruly hair. I really look at her for once and am caught off guard by how much older she looks. Usually, her wild, curly hair is in her face and she’s scowling at me the way she used to as a teenager. But she’s starting to look like a woman now, and it’s scary. The freckles lining the top of her nose, the ones I used to know the pattern of from all our fort building exercises and Disney movie watching marathons under said fort, have changed.

She catches me looking at her and raises an eyebrow. “Is there something on my face?”

“Nope.”

I let my attention fall on Elliot. Big mistake. He looks fucking delectable in his glasses and a casual t-shirt and jeans.

“Eli, I like you with your glasses on,” Mom says. “You haven’t been wearing them recently.”

He blushes and rubs the back of his neck. “I thought I’d give contacts a try.”

“Both suit, you fine, Elliot.” Dad says as he joins us.

The cooked lasagna looks amazing. Fattening and amazing. Dad’s even toasted some garlic bread and put a hunk of parmesan on the table to grate over the food.

I let him serve me a huge slice of lasagna before loading my plate with green beans and asparagus.

“Scout, don’t you want any greens?” Mom asks when Scout bypasses the veggies for more garlic bread.

“Asparagus makes your pee smell funny.”

And your jizz taste gross. But I don’t need to worry about that right now. Maybe Eli should avoid it if he’s planning on getting blown by Cute Bookstore Guy. Fuck, I hate the thought of Elliot being with a guy like that. What is wrong with me? It’s none of my business. We kissed, we shouldn’t have, end of story. So why can’t I stop staring at him while he eats? Why am I being such a fucking creep when I promised him that I can take no for an answer?

“She’s right,” I say.

Everyone looks at me. Shit, was I too late with that reply? “About the asparagus.”

Scout rolls her eyes. Does she hate me talking even when I agree with her?

“Can we please stop talking about … pee … at the dinner table?” Mom picks her wine glass up with a sigh and everyone falls silent. She turns to Eli.

“So, tell me about this bookstore boy.”

I clench my jaw and keep my eyes on the food in front of me. I have no right to be jealous.

“It’s not a big deal,” Elliot says.

“It is,” Scout argues. “This guy’s really hot.”

Fuck this guy. Woah, where did that come from?

“What does he look like?” Mom asks.

As much as I wish they weren’t talking about this, my ears prick up.

“He’s tallish, shaggy, dark hair. Blue eyes? Eli, has he got blue eyes or green eyes?”

“I’m not sure.”

My lips quirk. I keep my head down.

“Anyway, he’s hot, and he has good taste in music.”

Why don’t you date him, then?

“How do you know he has good taste in music?” Mom asks.