Page 42 of Bottle Rocket
He and Rosie had kept their relationship a secret because there was too much at stake, mainly her grandma’s position. His mom and dad would not have been happy about him dating Rosie, not only because she was one of their employees but also because she wasn’t part of their country club set. But, Leo had to admit, the main reason he and Rosie had snuck around was because he’d enjoyed pulling one over on his family. It had fueled that defiant flame inside him.
Things were different now, though. Running away seemed to have cured his parents of a lot of their expectations for him. They accepted him. They wanted him to be happy. Sometimes, he was pretty sure they were even proud of him.
He wanted it to be different with Rosie too.
“That seems … strange to me,” she said.
“How so?” he asked.
She huffed. “Are you in the habit of introducing your fuck buddies to your mom, Leo?”
He started to say that she was more than a fuck buddy but decided that was the wrong tack. Shewasmore than a fuck buddy. He was going to figure out a way to make this work between them without either one compromising pieces of themselves. He could do it, but he needed to play his cards a bit closer to his chest when it came to Rosie Holiday. She would bolt. He saw the fear in her eyes.
“They’ve met Dean. I think we can leave thefuckpart out of the explanation, don’t you?”
Her expression was mutinous. “I suppose.”
“It’ll be fun. I promise.”
“I’m trusting you.”
“I swear, Rosie, that’s all I’ve ever wanted. Other than spending the night together. I want that too.”
They’d never gotten that as teenagers. It wasn’t exactly easy to have sleepovers when you were stuck under your parents’ or grandmother’s roof. He wanted to revel in it. In having her against him. In the warmth as their bodies pressed together. In their eventual morning breath.
She smiled and tucked her head under his chin. “The week after Landon moved out, Sasha came and slept with me. I was in shock, I think. I was glad he’d moved out. I didn’t want to be around him, but I also kept searching for him in my sleep. It was hard.”
He couldn’t imagine what that had been like. He’d never had a constant in his life. With Mal, their time together had been so disjointed that they hadn’t really had routines. “I’m so sorry you went through that.”
She snuggled closer. “It sucked, but I learned a lot about myself. I don’t want to rely on anyone else for my happiness. I don’t want my identity to be wrapped up in other people. I want to be Rosie, not Landon’s wife. Or anyone’s fucking wife. I don’t need a perpetual bed partner, you know? Cuddling is nice. Sleeping with you will be fantastic. I won’t take it for granted, but it’s also not the core of what I need long term.”
Leo’s heart thumped. “What do you need long term?”
A beat of silence passed between them. Finally, she said, “Security. Independence … Respect.”
He could give her all those things.
“Love?” he asked.
“No.” Her voice was starting to fade with sleep. “Love hasn’t ever given me anything but pain.”
Chapter Ten
One of thebest things about summer for Rosie was not having to wake up at the butt crack of dawn. Thus, she was distinctly unhappy to find herself in the parking lot of a skating rink at seven in the morning, but Leo had bribed her with the possibility of food samples, so she’d rolled out of his bed, showered, brushed her teeth, and donned a baseball cap to cover her wet hair.
Leo grabbed her hand as they walked through the parking lot to the front of the farmers market. Her heart jumped into her throat. The morning sun was pleasant and golden. The scent of produce and flowers was in the air. Leo was holding her hand.
It felt like a date from a rom-com, but it shouldn’t have felt like a date at all! They weren’t dating.
She kind of wanted to have a big long pout about the fact that he was making this feel so nice. She didn’t have time to pout, though. She had to gird her loins for encountering Mirabella Shawcross-Whittaker, who was frankly the most terrifying woman Rosie had ever met and also possibly the most badass.
“Leo, darling,” said a posh voice from behind them.
Rosie flinched. She’d meant to drop Leo’s hand before they saw his mother. She hadn’t expected the woman to sneak up on them.
They let go of each other and turned around. Leo gave his mom a kiss on the cheek. Mirabella had changed a lot in the last thirteen years. Granted, Rosie had only ever seen Mirabella when she was in boss mode at Froth and Forage.
Today, though, Leo’s mother seemed carefree and relaxed. She was wearing a tennis dress, dazzling white sneakers, and a visor. She had one of those ageless faces, probably via Botox—which, like, good for her, she looked amazing—and feathery white-blonde hair.
