Page 54 of Cold Front
I forced a smile. “Hi, Mom.”
My dad leaned into the frame, concern etched into his features. “You look tired, son. You okay?”
“I’m fine.” I plastered on the brightest grin I could manage. “How was the cruise? You guys still living the high life?”
Mom didn’t look convinced, but Dad sighed, letting me have the deflection. “The Mediterranean was great. We stopped in Santorini for a few days. Your mother wouldn’t stop taking pictures of the blue rooftops.”
Mom rolled her eyes. “As if you weren’t right there beside me, snapping twice as many.”
My smile turned more real as they launched into their stories—laughing about the food, the people, and the overpriced souvenirs. It was easy to let them talk, to listen to them be their usual selves—vibrant, in love with life. And I wanted them to stay that way.
Because the last thing I wanted was to give them more to worry about.
After everything. Dad’s mild heart attack last year. The disaster that was my ex. They deserved peace. And I refused to be the reason they lost sleep.
“So,” Mom said after a pause, giving me that look only mothers could master. “How’s Michigan treating you? Made any friends?”
I swallowed hard, pushing away the memory of Niall’s lips on mine. “Yeah, I have.” I lifted my shoulders, keeping my tone light. “Nothing crazy to report. Asher and Gigi have been great. Asher does beautiful art, and Gigi’s his sidekick and basically the queen of campus. She knows everyone. They kind of adopted me, made sure I wasn’t completely out of my depth at a new school.”I huffed a laugh. “Gigi even dragged me to get a mani-pedi last weekend. You’d like her, Mom—she’s nosy as hell.”
Mom’s eyes narrowed, but her lips twitched like she was trying not to smile. “I like her already.”
Dad nodded. “Good. I’m glad you’ve got people looking out for you.”
I forced myself to relax a little, glad I’d given them something real to hold on to. They didn’t need to know how much I felt like I was still figuring things out.
“I swear I’m fine,” I said quickly. “Really. Classes are solid, everything’s cool.”
Mom still didn’t look convinced, but Dad squeezed her shoulder. “You know where we are if you need us, right?”
I nodded, guilt tugging at my chest. “Yeah. Always.”
After a few more minutes, I ended the call, staring at my phone like it might short-circuit from all the half-truths I’d just fed my parents.
I needed to talk to my sister.
I dialed her number.
It rang once before the call dropped. My stomach twisted for a second until a text popped up immediately after.
Little Big Sis: Give me ten. Just leaving the library.
I exhaled, gripping the phone.
True to her word, ten minutes later, my sister’s face filled the screen. She was in her dorm, dark curls piled high, a knowing smirk already in place. “Okay, spill.”
I blinked. “What?—”
“Don’t play with me, Eli. That’s your ‘I did something and don’t know how to feel about it’ face.” She tilted her head. “And judging by the way you’re avoiding eye contact, it’s relationship trouble.”
I groaned. “Can you at least pretend not to be psychic?”
She grinned. “Nope. Now talk.”
I hesitated, fingers tapping against my comforter. “It’s… complicated.”
Cheyenne snorted. “It always is.”
I sighed, rubbing a hand over my face. “I kissed my roommate.”
