Page 96 of Quake

He releases her hand just long enough to shoot me a wink and bend down to hug Kira. “Hey there, birthday girl. Thanks for letting me crash your party,” he tells her, planting a kiss on hercheek and handing her the massive balloon bouquet he has tied to a small black-and-white gift bag.

“For you?” she asks, waving him off. “Anything.” She turns her attention over to Shay. “And Shay, my favorite realtor! How are you?”

“Happy Birthday, Kira. I’m doing really great,” she tells her, taking a seat beside my dad, who plants himself to my right. Shay worked with Kira to find the salon she now owns.

“I bet you are,” Kira hums suggestively. My cheeks heat, but I roll my eyes, ignoring her antics.

Jade interjects, always acting as the peacekeeper. “Hey, Dereck. I’m glad you made it. I feel like we haven’t seen you in forever.”

He meets Jade’s round eyes with a warm smile. “Unfortunately, that’s because you haven’t. We really need to bring back the days of trash-talking soccer players and binge eating junk food at the house.” He chuckles.

“I’m pretty sure we haven’t done that since undergrad,” Madison chimes in. “But I agree, it was my favorite part of the sport.”

“You wound me!” Dad says, clutching his chest. As the owner of a soccer team, he takes it rather seriously.

The waiter comes out moments later, bringing out waters and taking everyone’s drink and appetizer orders.

As soon as he heads back inside, Kira turns her attention to my dad. “Alright, Dereck. Let’s get to business. What’s this all about?” she asks, jutting her chin out toward where Shay and Dad have their hands interlocked under the table.

Dad’s smile spreads, and he turns to look at me. “Shay and I are in a relationship,” he tells me.

I roll my eyes, smirking as I say, “Obviously.”

“I considered talking to you about it since she’s the first woman I’ve dated since your mom left, but Shay convinced me that you’d just roll your eyes at me and tell me I was being ridiculous. It turns out, she knows you pretty well.” He laughs.

Shay leans across him. “To be fair, I told him he absolutely could have a private conversation with you about it, but I really thought you’d think that was absurd, so I guess I was banking on it.”

A smile spreads across my face, and my chest feels like it’s expanding. “Well, you were definitely right. I’m really happy for you both,” I tell them, honestly.

“Good,” Kira says, leaning back in her chair. The waiter cuts her train of thought short as he delivers our drinks.

“As I was saying,” she starts the moment he’s left. “I’m glad Dereck’s found love.” She winks at him. “And our Larky has too.” She leans forward on her elbows, cupping her cheeks in a cartoonish display.

“She has, has she?” Dad questions, his voice light as if he’s holding in a laugh.

“Isn’t it Kira’s birthday? Shouldn’t we be talking about her favorite subject?”

“Herself!” Madison finishes for me.

The whole table erupts in laughter, but Kira takes her fork and gently taps it against her wineglass to get our attention.

“Ha ha ha, very funny. As it turns out, my favorite subject isactuallythe latest gossip. So spill the beans, Larky.”

“Yeah, little bird. Tell us all about you and Gianni De Laurentiis,” Dad goads me.

Of coursehe’d have figured it out. Not that I was trying to hide it.

My cheeks turn pink as I’m suddenly reminded of all the things I’ve done with andtothat gorgeous man.

“Whatexactlydo you want to know?“ I ask, stalling as I prepare myself to let out all the things I’ve been thinking for months now.

“Oh, you know better than that, little bird. We want to know everything, butpleasesave the sex talk for when I’m not around,“ Dad explains.

I lean back in my chair and feel a chill quake through me now that the sun has officially set. Shifting my body so my back is to the patio heater, I get started from the beginning.

Several minutes pass as they all eat, watching me intently and hanging onto my every word as I tell them about Gianni, how selfless he is, and how he immediately came to check on me the day I passed out on the field. I tell them about how he’s purchased himself several diabetic rescue kits that he keeps in his car, backpack, and apartment.

They’re floored by the time I get to the art studio he made me and how incredibly perfect it was. Kira begs to see pictures now that I’ve had a chance to hang up some of my art. She’s particularly invested since she’s been holding that secret close to her chest for a little while now, as she was the one who helped him with it.

---