Page 96 of Horn in My Side
“Mom, you’re suffocating her.”
Morlak let go and Jasmine could breathe again.“Apologies, I just got so excited.It’s been a while since Mal introduced a female to—”
“Mom,” Mal interrupted.“You were about to tell me what you were doing here.”
“Oh yes.”Her smile faded.“One of Karak’s old friends passed away down in San Francisco.He’d been ill for some time now and took a turn for the worse a couple days ago.”
“Came to say our last goodbyes,” Karak said.“The funeral finished this morning.”
“And we realized, well, you’re only a couple of hours’ drive away, so why not come by for a visit?We tried to call you yesterday but you didn’t pick up.”
“Your mother was worried,” Karak admonished.“And I said we should just come here and see what’s going on.”
“I didn’t have reception.Jasmine and I were camping up at Twin Peaks.”
“Understandable, then.”
“I’m so sorry, ma’am,” Jasmine said.“It was my idea to go.”
The couple looked at each other knowingly.“I figured.Butplease, Jasmine, call me Morlak, no need to be so formal.You’re my son’s girlfriend, after all.”
Her cheeks heated at the mention of the g-word.“Er, sure.Morlak.”
“I hope we’re not interrupting,” Karak said.“And we should be the ones apologizing for stopping by unannounced.”
“It’s not a big deal, really.I’m glad you guys came.But we’re actually heading to the shop.”
“The shop?”Morlak cocked her head to the side.“You mean the pet shop Vrig owned?”
“Mal owns it now, Morlak,” Karak reminded her.“And remember, he told us a couple weeks ago that he was staying to get it ready for sale.”
“That’s right, how could I forget?”
“Jasmine’s the one buying it.She used to manage it for Vrig,” Mal said.“I’m helping her out while we’re waiting for all the paperwork to go through.”
Jasmine’s mouth pressed into a tight line at the reminder.While the idea that she would own Fantastic Tails still held a thrill, there was an underlying current of unease.Once Mal had transferred everything to her, he would be out of here.She had to keep reminding herself of that.
But he called me his girlfriend.In front of his parents.
Why would Mal do that?Was it a slip of the tongue?Jasmine didn’t want to put any meaning into it, but they never talked about what they were, because really, what kind of label could they put on their relationship?They were much more than friends with benefits, but not really committed long term.
Still, his calling her his girlfriend had to meansomething.
“Would you like to see it?”Mal said.
“That would be wonderful, Mal.If that’s okay with Jasmine?”
“Of course it is.”Her voice sounded much too bright, so she pulled back a little.“And you have to meet Clawdia.”
“Clawdia?”
Mal patted his mother’s arm.“Come, it’s only a few minutes’ walk.We can tell you all about her.”
Since Morlak and Karak could only stay one night before they had to drive back to San Francisco to catch their flight home, Mal invited them to spend the day at Fantastic Tails.Jasmine wasn’t sure the couple would want to hang out at the shop while she and Mal worked.She tried suggesting that they do some shopping on Main Street or even drive out to a few interesting spots around town, but they insisted on staying.
To her surprise, the older couple didn’t mind being stuck inside.In fact, Karak, who Mal mentioned had retired a few years ago, even seemed to enjoy himself as he helped install the brand-new filtration system for the tanks.While the men were working upstairs, Morlak stayed in the office with Jasmine as she entertained Clawdia.
“She’s gotten so much better at fetch.”Jasmine picked up the ball Clawdia had dropped at her feet.She tossed it across the room, which sent the hatchling scampering off to chase it.
