Page 105 of The Overtime Kiss

She smirks. “Sort of. But let me tell you a little secret. What’s the best part of a Thanksgiving meal?”

I narrow my eyes, like this is a trick question, but then say, “The rosemary mashed potatoes? The stuffing? The cranberry sauce with orange slices that Mom makes?”

Her whole expression lights up like I’ve just won a game show. “Yes! Exactly. It’s the sides. The sides are better than the main course.”

“So…I need to stock up on sides?” I ask since that kind of makes sense.

“Yes! Think about it—creamy mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables with rosemary, sautéed Brussels sprouts, fresh-baked rolls straight from the oven, a savory butternut squash soup, a delicious salad…That’s the good stuff.”

I nod slowly. “That does sound good.”

“If you really want to make something substantial, do a mac and cheese with a breadcrumb topping, a butternut squash risotto, or a rice pilaf with cranberries. But you don’t have to replace the meat,” she explains. “And you definitely don’t need to make it look like meat. Most of us aren’t craving things that look like meat. Personally, I can’t stand those fake beet burgers that ‘bleed.’ It’s just wrong.”

“That does sound disgusting,” I say.

“And look, the fact that you’re thinking about this andmaking sure your guests have a variety of things to eat? That says a lot.”

Good. I’m glad. I want Luna and Sabrina both to know I’m thinking about them. That I care about their choices, and that it’s a privilege to be able to accommodate them, not a pain in the ass. But I also would never have known this.

“Thanks, Charlie. I would never have thought of that,” I admit.

Charlie squeezes my shoulder. “That’s why you brought me.” Then she points at me, shooting me a searing stare. “Also, don’t you dare forget pumpkin pie. No soul alive can resist it.”

“True.”

“Do you think you can make one?”

I scoff. “I can buy the fuck out of one.”

“That works too.” Then she grins mischievously. “But there’s one more thing most herbivores love above everything else.”

This is going to be good. “Tell me. I need to know all your secrets.”

“Are you ready for it?” she asks, lowering her voice.

“I sure am.”

She leads me toward the beauty aisle.

I stare at her, baffled, as she picks out several face masks, cruelty-free shampoo, and some ethically sourced face serum. I glance down at my cart, then back at her. “For them?”

She bursts out laughing. “Oh, no. These are for me. Service fee for today.” She winks, then tosses a few extra face masks into the cart. “But I bet they’d like them too.”

I laugh. She was always the sneaky one.

As we wander down some more aisles, I let out a sigh of relief. Charlie hasn’t cross-examined me and I’ve gotten what I came for.

But I’ve definitely spoken too soon. When I’m grabbing some edamame, she says, “So I’m guessing if you’re making food for her, that crush might not be so unrequited?”

It’s like an icy dose of cold water. My grip tightens on the handle of the cart, and I focus way too hard on the bag of edamame in my hand. “What are you talking about?”

She laughs at me. “It’s funny how you play clueless.”

“No idea what you mean.”

“Fair enough. You are often naturally clueless. But I think in this case, we both know exactly what I mean.” She levels me with a shrewd stare. “You’re shopping specifically for her. Is this because of your unrequited crush, or has it turned into something more?”

I couldn’t be more transparent, but I’ve got to find a way around this. “It’s for Luna. And Sabrina is a great nanny, so I really want to make her feel at home. She hasn’t had a lot of that,” I say, and that’s the truth and the whole damn truth. “Her parents didn’t even invite her for Thanksgiving. Her dad is a grade-A asshole. The least I can do is cook for her.”

---