Page 73 of Give Me a Reason

“Yeah, my house was next to hers, and I spent many days and nights at hers. I loved her big, loud family. It was fun to hang out at the pizza shop. Her dad was a little upset when I stopped working there to come work for Gia.”

“I bet he’s proud of her for building her own business.”

“He wanted his whole family working at their pizzeria. Her dad has a tough time saying I’m proud of you. I think that gets to Gia. It’s why she works so hard.”

“She’s trying to prove herself to him.”

“I’m afraid it will never be enough. She’s the type of person who will work too hard. She’ll neglect her needs if something in the business needs to be done. And there’s always something that could be done.”

I didn’t know much about business, but that made sense. “That’s too bad. I think my parents would be proud of me no matter what I did.”

“That’s sweet.”

“Yeah, they’re great.” They had trouble supporting us financially growing up, but we never lacked love. Now that I’d seen how the other half lived, I hadn’t grown up lacking. I had everything I needed to succeed in life—love and support from my family.

“I’d better go see if the bride and groom’s ride is here. We can do the send-off and start cleaning up.”

“Sounds good to me.”

I’d gotten a little complacent. I was supposed to be looking for an apartment for me and my sister. Instead, I’d gotten a little too comfortable at Ireland’s.

On Sunday, I woke up to the smell of something burning. When I stumbled out of the room, certain the fire alarm would be going off at any second, Ireland was opening windows and fanning the air. “Sorry. I was cooking.”

“What did you burn?” I asked her, looking at the mess she’d made of the kitchen. There was flour on the counters and the floor.

“Pancakes. I thought they would be easy. Everyone makes them, right?”

“They’re easy because most people make them from a mix. Did you make them from scratch?”

“Yes.” Her shoulders fell.

“Don’t worry about it. We’ll get some mix for next time.”

“I’m sorry. I completely suck.”

Her phone dinged. “Oh good. Finn is on his way with food.”

“He’s picking me up, and I’m not ready. I’m going to jump in the shower.”

Ireland followed me down the hall while I grabbed clothes from my dresser drawers. “Where’s he taking you?”

“I found this art class for Paisley.”

She rested a shoulder against the doorjamb. “You’re taking Paisley to an art class?”

Suddenly uncomfortable, I busied myself in my shirt drawer. “Finn’s coming too.”

“Interesting.”

“I feel bad if I’m intruding on your time, but Finn said he’d hang out with you later.”

“I don’t care about that.”

“I’d better jump in the shower. He’ll be here any minute.” I brushed past her, hoping she wouldn’t stop me and ask more questions. I hadn’t thought about how this would look to Ireland. I was doing something with Finn, and it probably looked a little cozy from the outside.

This wasn’t something a sitter would do. I wouldn’t have involved the dad. I was crossing all sorts of lines I shouldn’t be. I never should have agreed to this morning.

I flew through my shower routine, throwing on jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. I wrapped my still-wet hair in a messy bun on my head and came out. I heard Finn’s deep voice before I saw him. I wished he was here for me. That this was a date.

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