Page 50 of 6 Clues Your Nemesis Loves You

Everything in me freezes. Just a second, then my stomach does a celebratory spin. I almost do a victory lap around the store, but I rein myself in. I never expected Maggie to make the first move with us. I knew she loved my notes and enjoyed spending time with me, but distant moments like when she first left work interfered with my woman radar.

Now she’s asking me out.

As quickly as my adrenaline spikes, it starts to ebb.

I desperately want to say yes. Begin the next stage of our relationship. But a second ago, I was feeling out of sorts. I need to deal with my father before I go out with Maggie. Move past the stress knotting me up. Once I’m free and clear, I’ll be relaxed enough to give her the undivided attention she deserves.

“It’s fine,” she says quickly. “We don’t have to. I just thought… Anyway, it doesn’t matter.” She tries to pull her hand from mine.

I firm my grip, keeping her close. “You thought right, and it does matter. My answer is hell yes, but not tonight or tomorrow. I’d love to go out Wednesday night, if that works. Meeting my dad tomorrow will be rough. I’ll need to decompress. In order to woo you properly, I have to be at my best.”

Her bashfulness returns. “That sounds perfect.”

It does, and I hate my father a little more for delaying my Maggie gratification. I lift her hand and give the backs of her fingers a lingering kiss, then grab a bottle of wine. “This should get me adequately sloshed for tomorrow.”

“Oh shit.”

I swivel at Maggie’s worried tone. “What?”

“Wednesday is my sister’s birthday. We’re doing a small family dinner with my folks.”

I shrug. “That’s fine. I’ll just come.”

I expect Maggie to freak out at my suggestion—meeting the family is undoubtedly a massive step forward into committed territory—but I’m surprised her face actually pales. Even worse, her eyes widen, like she just opened a real serial killer letter. “That’s ridiculous. Why would you want to come to my sister’s birthday?”

“Because you’ll be there.”

“It’ll be boring.”

“Good thing I bring the party with me. I’ll even do Eminem karaoke.”

Her next swallow takes an eternity. “Nobody spends their first date with family.”

“Is this really a first date, though?” I tap my chin thoughtfully. “Technically, those pond nights were dates. I think we had, like, a hundred of those. And paint fights definitely classify as dates.”

She huffs. “A friend doing a favor painting doesn’t classify as a date.”

“Do I need to remind you that you painted my dick Island Getaway green?”

A nearby woman gasps and hurries her shopping cart away.

Maggie’s panic morphs into her Die Motherfucker Face. “It’s a good thing we’ve been dating so long. You won’t be blindsided when you get dumped in one minute.”

“I’m not getting dumped. Don’t you think it’s high time I meet my future mother-in-law?” There’s no eye roll or dirty look this time. Her face falls so spectacularly, I’m worried it’ll slide right off and hit the floor. “Maggie, I was joking. Just messing around. We can go out this weekend. I don’t need to meet your family.”

But she’s studying the linoleum floor so intently I worry my knee-jerk humor has hurt her somehow. Or my future talk hit her commitment-phobic button, which I knew was an issue, but ha-ha-ha. There goes my unchecked humor again, usurping my brain.

I lower my head and try to catch her eye. “Mags?”

“No.”

Something inside me atrophies. “No, what?”

“No, I don’t want to wait.” She stands taller and clenches her jaw. “It’s fine. It’ll be fun. You’ll come to my sister’s birthday.”

While I appreciate her quick turnaround, there’s a veneer to her expression, as though she’s morphed into the Maggie who puts on airs in public. A presentation to appease.

She grabs the cart and marches ahead of me, as I scratch behind my ear and wonder if I’ve just set us back another eleven years. Even worse, I have to get through my Life Wrecker meeting tomorrow before I approach that land mine.