Page 321 of Dark Love

“Cookies.”

Now I did it. I blabbed too much.

“Why are you making thank you cookies?”

“You know people make cookies for reasons other than to say thank you.”

“I know that.”

I can practically see her swatting away my explanation.

“But why are you making thank you cookies?”

She knows me too well.

“What type?”

“Chocolate chip,” I mumble.

“Dahlia Prudence Fleur, you’re making cookies for a man, and you didn’t tell your mother.”

“Mom, it’s not like that.”

“Are you or are you not making thank you cookies for a man?”

“I am.”

“Are you putting nuts in them?”

There might be a selection of nuts sitting on my counter.

My silence is all the answer Mom needs. “Has he asked you out?”

“No!”

“Not yet. After those cookies, he will.”

“Mom, I’m not making him cookies to get him to ask me out.”

“It worked for your father.”

“ICK! I don’t want to know what worked when you two were dating.” I gag a little in my mouth.

“Short skirts and cookies.”

“Mom!”

“Why did I listen to your father when he suggested naming you after your great-aunt Prudence? You need to live a little.”

I laugh at the running joke in the family. “All of this is living a little. Mom, I moved to Urbium, got a job, and am trying to make friends.”

“You’re making a man thank you cookies, and I don’t know a thing about him.”

“It’s nothing. Less than nothing.” The next step is to cream together the sugar, eggs, butter, and vanilla.

“Really?”

“Really, Mom. I’d tell you if there was someone special in my life.”

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