Page 5 of Yours and Mine (Friends with Benefits)

“I’m not. That’s just the way it is. It should be natural. Why are we talking about spit-swapping anyway? Our parents are old enough to know what they’re doing.”

I hoped they were, because when it came to the matters of the heart, I felt like I was getting more confused with each passing month — especially when I talked to Nick about it.

“Now, what are you doing on your birthday? It’s in one week,” he asked.

“Nothing, I guess. Do you have any plans?”

“Nope. Want to celebrate them together?”

It was a silly question because I couldn’t even remember one birthday that we hadn’t spent together.

“Sure. Hey, look at that one. Is that a comet or a satellite?” I pointed to the night sky sprinkled with white dots.

“Satellite. It’s too steady to be a comet.”

“I wish we could do this on my roof. I bet you we’d see more falling stars than here.”

“Well, maybe if you learn how to skip stones better, we can,” he teased. I hated him when he did that. Maybe we were already more like siblings than friends?

I shook the thought away, because I didn’t want Nick to be my brother. Despite him being an ass-hat sometimes, I liked him as my friend.

Chapter 2

“Good morning, sunshine. Happy birthday. You’re officially a teenager now.”

My father stood in the doorway to my room with a wide smile on his face. I hadn’t asked him about the kiss I’d seen last week, but I hadn’t seen Nick’s mom come around more than once a day to get her bread, so I wondered whether it was a one-time thing, or if perhaps they’d had a fight.

“Thank you.”

“Any special plans for today, or are you doing the usual dinner and movies with Nick?”

“The usual. I wish you could come,” I pouted, knowing very well how much my father’s heart broke when I did that.

“Me too, baby. But you know I have to run the store. I’ll have a surprise for you when you come back, though.”

“You don’t need to give me anything, Daddy. I have everything I need.”

“And I have the most thoughtful daughter in the world. How about a piggyback ride to the front door?” he asked.

“Dad, I’m thirteen now. I think I may be a little old for that.”

He pouted. Now I knew where I’d gotten that skill from. “Okay, one last time.” I hopped on his back, and he treaded toward the front door before setting me down.

“You’re sure you don’t need me this afternoon?” I asked.

“I always need you, but today is special.” He took me into his arms, folding me in a tight hug. I could feel all the emotions rolling off him and onto me, and I knew that his thoughts were running to the past again. “If your mother could see you now, she’d be so proud. You are the best daughter a father could ask for.”

My mom had died at my birth, so my only memories of her were from the photographs my father had saved from before they had me. I didn’t own a single photograph of the two of us together, and the only female figure in my life was Nick’s mom next door, who was a pastry chef. Marge’s store smelled ten times better than ours did, but that was because of all the frostings, fruits, and sugar creations she used to decorate her cakes, muffins, cupcakes, and cookies. Still, I bet having my mom would have been a million times better.

“I love you too, Dad. See you tonight?”

“Yes, I’ll see you tonight.” He pulled a few bills out of his pocket and handed them to me. “Have a great time at the movies.”

“Thanks!” I grabbed my backpack with the bathing suit and ran out the door. We were planning to go for a swim at the beach later on. Outside, I turned right and ran back up the three steps that led to Marge’s bakery.

“Hi, Mrs. Tuscan.”

“Happy birthday, Joelle.” She came out from behind the counter where she’d been shelving a new batch of cookies and hugged me tight. I loved it when she hugged me, especially the sweet way she always smelled, like a mother.

---