Page 99 of Falling Backwards
Scoffing and hanging my tie around my neck, I go up beside her.“There’s no wrong way to load a dishwasher.”
“Sure there is.”
She’s carefully trying to find a home for the cup.I reach for it, but she holds it away.
Without much effort, I grab it anyway.She holds on tight, though, and tugs farther in the opposite direction.
It makes me sigh.“I didn’t bring you here so you’d clean my kitchen.”
“I know.”She adds her other hand to the cup, determined not to let me have it.
“Let go,” I insist.
“Youlet go.”
I swiftly step behind her and copy how she’s standing—my arms encircle her, and the sound of her surprised gasp hides my quieter one.
Now I can use both of my hands to pry the cup from hers.She fails at holding on this time.“Luke!”
“Admit defeat.”I withdraw and step away again, then start jostling the cup into a small spot in the rack.Gotta be honest, though: thinking about the shape of her between my arms makes it hard for my fingers to manipulate the dishes she already resituated.
She swats lightly at my wrist.“No.Stop.It doesn’t go there.”
I get the cup wedged between some plastic food storage containers.“There isno wrong way—”
“If you don’t organize things, they’ll miss out on getting cleaned properly.”
I point at the cup.“Well, it fits, so it sits.”
Maggie puts her hands on her hips and stares at the thing.She’s genuinely discomfited by its placement, I think.
In a way, I find that endearing.However, I want her to stop thinking she has to tell me what to do so often.
Her inhalation is slow.
I’m prepared for her to—
Yep, she rushes for the cup again and I stop those hands with mine, then pull them away from their target.
She stomps her foot, frustrated.“Luke, come on!”
And even with my nerve endings sparking, I can’t keep from chuckling.
A lot.
Partlybecausemy nerve endings are sparking—the way her skin feels rattles me.
But not in a bad way.
“Will you please let me rearrange this shit?”she complains.
My amusement is short-lived.
I release her hands.“I don’t need you to.I’m not hopelessorhelpless.Do you think I eat off dirty dishes all the time ’cause I don’t know how to load my dishwasher well enough?”
Crossing her arms, she looks to the front of my shirt.“I’m just trying to help.What’s wrong with learning something new?”
“What’s wrong with leaving this the way it is?It isn’t the worst setup in history.”
