Page 76 of Fake Game

“Nei neoi peng yau hai been?”

Where is your girlfriend?

Shit.

I look down to see my grandmother has snuck her way over to me during the shuffle. She is peering around, not in an accusatory way, but there is definitely a suspicious glint in the way she is taking in the situation. Considering it seems like my supposed girlfriend sprang out of nowhere, I don’t blame her. Getting this ruse past her is going to be harder than convincing Auntie An—at least she’s seen Deer. My grandmother, on the other hand, is one of the sharpest women I know. The onlyperson who can beat her at mahjong is my grandfather, and that’s because she secretly lets him win.

“Youryi masaid she was coming.”

God damn Auntie An.

“She—”

“Hey, Angela. Congratulations, your performance was totally magical.”

Every bone in my body turns to stone at the words.

I would recognize her voice in a room filled with a thousand people.

I turn around, and sure enough, Deer stands in front of my little sister. If not for her pink hair, I would’ve needed to do a double take. She’s dressed differently than normal—a white sundress that reaches just shy of her knees and a pair of pale pink heels that are nowhere near as tall as the shoes she normally wears. I hesitate to call it conservative because, despite her efforts, the dress does nothing to hide the killer cleavage she is sporting.

She holds out a bouquet of yellow roses, and my sister accepts, a confused smile on her face. Deer straightens and her gaze connects with mine.

I’m once again taken aback. Even her makeup is more subdued, lacking the glitter she typically douses herself in.

The entire look she has going on is so normal that it’s abnormal on her. Well, as normal as a girl with pink hair can look.

“Hi.”

She smiles at me, and I realize I was wrong. Even when she tries to tamp down her shine, she still sparkles like no one else I’ve met. Something about her is like cracking open a rock in a mine and finding the most stunning gemstone inside—it glitters from every angle, no matter what you do.

“Hey.”

The air whistles to a stop as she jogs the few feet over to me, and I’m a fucking sinful man watching the way her tits bounce. There is nothing family friendly happening in my brain.

“Are you surprised?”

“Uh…”

Yeah, I’m fucking surprised.

“I’m guessing you didn’t see my texts.” She rolls her eyes and nudges me playfully. “I know I said I wouldn’t be able to make it because of the appointment, but I knew I couldn’t miss this, so I found a way to make it work.”

“Right.”

What?

She bends around me and holds out the second bouquet in her arms, this one made of red roses. “Nei hou. Ngo giu Deer.”

“Do ze.” My grandmother takes the flowers from her with a smile. “Nei siu dak hou leng.”

Deer falters for a second, blinking at my grandmother as her eyes widen a fraction. “I’m so sorry. That is basically all the Cantonese I know.”

“I said you have a pretty smile.”

“Oh! Thank you.” She stands back at my side and leans closer to me. Her arm is barely brushing mine, but it’s enough to send a crackle across my skin.

“Taa han jau ji si,”Po potucks the bouquet close to her chest and sets off for my parents’ car.

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