Page 26 of Crashing into Love

“You had those for dinner last night,” Selma replied, running her hand over the back of her daughter’s head.

“So?”

“She raises a valid point,” Drew said and took a drink of her iced water.

“Do you want a real drink? You can have one. You don’t have to have water because you’re eating with us.”

“No, I’m good with just water. I don’t drink often in season, and I definitely don’t drink how I did the other night all that often. People kept buying me drinks, so…”

“You didn’t want to be rude?” Selma teased.

“Exactly.”

“Can I have a Coke, Mom?”

“You can have milk, juice, or water.”

“Gross,” Gia said.

“You know what I do sometimes to make water taste better?” Drew asked Gia.

“No. What?”

Drew leaned over the table conspiratorially. Gia leaned over, too. Selma shook her head and smiled at them.

“I add fruit to it.”

“You what?”

“Lemons or strawberries. Or, sometimes, even both.”

“You add fruit to your water?”

“Yes,” Drew said with a strong nod. “Or mint.”

“Or chocolate?” Gia asked.

“No, chocolate is for my milk.”

“Mom, can I have chocolate milk?”

“No, honey. What if I get you and Drew whatever fruit we have in the kitchen, and you two go crazy with it, though?”

“Really? Cool.”

Selma looked at Drew while pointing at Gia.

“I’ve got her,” Drew said.

Selma got up from the table and headed into the kitchen, still wondering how she’d managed to suggest she buy Drew dinner and that she and Gia would join her at the table. She hadn’t planned on it, but watching Drew with Gia earlier and seeing how good Drew was with her only made Selma want to do something nice in return for Drew, and she didn’t exactly have a lot to offer her. She literally lived at her job and had a hard time even getting away for an afternoon on the mountain for her daughter, so a night out in town wasn’t much of an option. She also needed to watch her money, so eating at the lodge allowed her to do that and do something nice for both Drew and Gia, who seemed to really be intrigued by Drew.

Gia was incredibly smart; that much had been obvious about her practically since she’d been born. But she was also only nine years old, so she was still very much in the phase where every new person was bright and shiny to her, and as a result, she wanted to spend as much time with them as possible. Selma worried about what would happen when Drew left and Gia missed her, but only a little because she knew Gia would meet someone else and find them bright and shiny next, likely forgetting all about Drew Oakes, which was a good thing because it was possible that this was Drew’s last season on a board and Selma wasn’t sure she wanted to take Gia out on the road with her until she was a bit older, so it would be the last time Gia would see Drew.

“Okay. I’ve got strawberries, raspberries, lemons, limes, and blueberries,” she said, placing a bowl of sliced fruit between them on the table. “Take whatever you want.”

“What do I do?” Gia asked.

“Pick what you want, put it in your water, and stir,” Drew instructed.

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