Page 39 of Sugarlips
Chloe’s dad stood and dropped a quick kiss on the top of her head. “That may be, pumpkin. But none of us can force that to happen.” He offered me a hand to shake, which I did as he kindly smiled at me. “You have some tasty products here. I think you two will do well.”
Her mom stood as well and after giving Chloe a hug, she hugged me. “In two days, this town won’t know how it survived before, without a food truck.” She winked and pinched Chloe’s chin before they, too, left.
God, I hoped she was right.
13
Chloe
Ididn’t see Elaina at all the next day. Or the next evening, even though I had cooked us a squash casserole for dinner. I left her a plate covered with a note, and at around ten that evening, I heard her come home.
The next morning, I was up early. The coffee was made. I scrambled some eggs. Elaina came downstairs, dressed in her normal pant suit and sputtered to a brief stop, eyeing me carefully. “You’re up early. Doesn’t the truck open at lunch time?”
The flutter of excitement in my belly jolted, making me feel like I might throw up my coffee. “I couldn’t sleep,” I said calmly. “Nerves. Plus, Liam’s been up since three in the morning. The least I can do is help him load the truck up with the prepped food.” I slid a plate of scrambled eggs across the counter to Elaina.
She lifted a brow at the plate. “Breakfast this morning… casserole last night. You trying to butter me up?”
I shook my head no and poured myself more coffee. “Nope. Casseroles by their nature are pretty big, so I figured I’d share. And like I said this morning…nerves.” I cleared my throat and stirred my spatula into the eggs, breaking them up. “You were late coming home last night.”
“Yeah…” Elaina started, sounding uncharacteristically quiet. I glanced over my shoulder and poured my eggs onto a second plate, turning off the burner and joining her at the island counter. “… I, um, was meeting with a realtor and went to see a couple houses.”
My heart sputtered. “You’re moving out? But… you just got here?”
Elaina sighed and took a tiny bite of eggs. “I’ve been here a couple weeks and… I don’t know, Chloe. Maybe it’s time we get back to normal. Each have our own place. Hell, I haven’t ever even had a place that was entirely mine. It’ll be good for me. For us.”
“Is this about Liam?”
“No.” She answered too quickly, and based on the shifting movement of her eyes, she knew it. With a sigh, she added, “Okay, maybe a little. You two seemed…closeyesterday.”
“Well, weareclose. We’re opening a business together. And we’re friends. He was here for me the night Dan left me.”
With her eyes cast down, she refused to meet my eyes and instead pushed the eggs around her plate. “You promised me…”
My gaze narrowed and even though she didn’t finish the thought, I knew the promise she was referring to. The promise that I wouldn’t date Liam. “And I’ve kept that promise. Nothing’s happened between Liam and me.”Other than that one kiss the night things ended with Dan.But I reassured myself that that was before our pinky promise.
She held my gaze a moment longer, and I could see the wheels turning as she assessed whether or not I was telling the truth. Finally, she gave me a nod, her features relaxing. “Okay,” she said. “I trust you.”
“Have you talked to Neil at all since the breakup? … Other than last night’s disaster, I mean.”
She sighed and stood to put her plate of barely touched eggs in the sink. “Hardly. I tried calling him a couple of times when we first got back from the reality show. But I don’t even know what to say to him. He wants to get married and I’m just not ready for that yet.”
She shrugged and finished her coffee. With a sigh, I swallowed my words. My sister was a strong, sometimes obstinate woman. I had no doubt that she attempted to talk to Neil… but I also would bet a thousand dollars that her pride prevented her from laying out her feelings for him explicitly.
But I let the subject drop. I was pretty sure Elaina wouldn’t listen to me anyway. When it came to serious things, she rarely did. Hell, she rarely listened to me when I told her to wear her hair down instead of up. “So, you’re getting a house, huh?”
She smiled into her cup of coffee and nodded. “I’m really excited about it. I think I’ll have enough money left over for a down payment after I donate the amount needed for the healthcare outreach center.”
For months, Elaina has been trying to get this health center off the ground—which would change the lives of the people here in the Lakes Region in so many ways. But in order to get the project off the ground, the town needed a larger budget than they had the funds for… so, Elaina being Elaina, decided to make it happen by entering and winning that reality show contest with Neil so she could donate her half of the winnings.
“I’ll miss living with you,” I said, honestly. It was fun having my sister as a roommate again. “But I’m really excited for you.”
“And I’m really excited for you today, too. Even if I don’t always show it.” Elaina smiled, ever the more reserved sister between the two of us.
“Awwww,” I cooed and crossed over to her, my arms outstretched. “Prepare yourself for a sister hug!” She rolled her eyes but caught me as I launched myself into her arms.
“Is this a good time to ask you to give me a ride to Beefcakes on your way to work?” I hugged her tighter, not letting her out of the embrace until she answered my question.
I felt the movement of her whole head as she rolled her eyes and nodded. “As long as I don’t have to go in.”
