of that. “To adventure.”
Our cups clink.
“Mmm”—I swallow—“speaking of adventure, what are you doing after graduation next year?” My chopsticks fling apart, rolling across the table. “Oops. Jeez, you’d think I’d have a better command of these by now.”
He grins. “We just gotta tweak your technique. Here, hold the top one like this.” I feel a mini jolt as his hands slip around mine. He patiently curls my fingers around the sticks in a way that stabilizes them. “Long term? Not a clue. How about you? I could use some ideas.”
“I don’t know either,” I confess. “It’s not like I can make a viable career out of astrology. Plus, Gram would have a coronary. I’ve considered astronomy, but frankly, math isn’t my forte and the field is pretty saturated anyway. I guess what I’d really love is to travel.” I frown. “Not that that’s any more realistic.”
“Where would you go? If you could go anywhere.”
“Florence,” I gush, without hesitation. “You know it’s the cradle of the Renaissance. ” Using my dipping sauce dribbles, I draw little clouds on my plate with the end of my chopstick. “Italy’s just so rich in culture and history—not to mention gelato. It’d be a dream come true for me.”
“Funny you say that. I’m toying with the idea of bumming around Europe for a few months after graduation. Italy would definitely be one of the stops.”
“Hold on.” I abandon the chopsticks, splaying my hands on the table. “I need a second to explode with jealousy.”
He lifts a shoulder. “Maybe you should come.” His grin is sly. “You know, if you haven’t broken my nose or anything by then.”
“Ha-ha, funny. That would involve some very steep odds that require winning the lotto. Seriously, Seth, wouldn’t your parents pitch a fit?”
He finishes chewing. “Nah, won’t matter, really. I’ll be eighteen and have access to my trust fund.” He catches my raised brow. “Damn. Did that just sound as obnoxious as I think it did?”
“Yup. On a scale of one to ten on the Obnoxious Meter, I’d give it an eight.”
“Yeah, well, my grandpa Walker was a pretty heavy hitter in the stock market. Everything—I mean everything —the man touched turned to gold. My family inherited a pretty sizeable chunk of his fortune.”
That explains the spanking new Lexus. And expensive clothes. And Euro-bumming. I smirk. “Okay, ten, I give it a ten. Maybe even an eleven.”
He nudges my foot under the table.
Curiosity commandeers my tongue. “So, Grant’ll start college this fall? Or will he travel like you?”
“College. He’s headed out of state—University of Michigan. Guess they’ve got a good business program.”
“Business?” I croak. The dumpling plops to my plate shy of its destination. I pick it up again. “I…I would’ve thought music.”
Seth wipes his mouth. “Well, Grant’s a genius with numbers, just like Grandpa and Dad. And Mom has this thing about not living up to your potential, so she’d probably string Grant up by his nuts if he didn’t carry on Dad’s CPA firm.”
I snort.
“Yeah, and you thought the Greeks were bad.”
“She sounds terrifying.”
“I’m kidding. She’s actually pretty cool—when she’s not in overprotective-Mom mode. I swear, sometimes she still thinks I’m a little kid. I keep waiting for her to bust out a wet rag to scrub off my juice ’stache or something.”
I giggle. “Pretty sure they all do that. It’s a parental thing. Gram would’ve probably frozen me at ten if it weren’t for the sea-monkey incident.”
“You had a sea-monkey incident?”
“Doesn’t everyone?” I maintain my straight face for all of three seconds before Seth’s grin causes me to crumble.
“Uhhh…no. Guess some of us have led deprived childhoods. But enough about that, let’s go back to talking about the future.” He peers up from his dark lashes. My heartbeat zigs and zags, unclear where this is going.
Our cups clink.
“Mmm”—I swallow—“speaking of adventure, what are you doing after graduation next year?” My chopsticks fling apart, rolling across the table. “Oops. Jeez, you’d think I’d have a better command of these by now.”
He grins. “We just gotta tweak your technique. Here, hold the top one like this.” I feel a mini jolt as his hands slip around mine. He patiently curls my fingers around the sticks in a way that stabilizes them. “Long term? Not a clue. How about you? I could use some ideas.”
“I don’t know either,” I confess. “It’s not like I can make a viable career out of astrology. Plus, Gram would have a coronary. I’ve considered astronomy, but frankly, math isn’t my forte and the field is pretty saturated anyway. I guess what I’d really love is to travel.” I frown. “Not that that’s any more realistic.”
“Where would you go? If you could go anywhere.”
“Florence,” I gush, without hesitation. “You know it’s the cradle of the Renaissance. ” Using my dipping sauce dribbles, I draw little clouds on my plate with the end of my chopstick. “Italy’s just so rich in culture and history—not to mention gelato. It’d be a dream come true for me.”
“Funny you say that. I’m toying with the idea of bumming around Europe for a few months after graduation. Italy would definitely be one of the stops.”
“Hold on.” I abandon the chopsticks, splaying my hands on the table. “I need a second to explode with jealousy.”
He lifts a shoulder. “Maybe you should come.” His grin is sly. “You know, if you haven’t broken my nose or anything by then.”
“Ha-ha, funny. That would involve some very steep odds that require winning the lotto. Seriously, Seth, wouldn’t your parents pitch a fit?”
He finishes chewing. “Nah, won’t matter, really. I’ll be eighteen and have access to my trust fund.” He catches my raised brow. “Damn. Did that just sound as obnoxious as I think it did?”
“Yup. On a scale of one to ten on the Obnoxious Meter, I’d give it an eight.”
“Yeah, well, my grandpa Walker was a pretty heavy hitter in the stock market. Everything—I mean everything —the man touched turned to gold. My family inherited a pretty sizeable chunk of his fortune.”
That explains the spanking new Lexus. And expensive clothes. And Euro-bumming. I smirk. “Okay, ten, I give it a ten. Maybe even an eleven.”
He nudges my foot under the table.
Curiosity commandeers my tongue. “So, Grant’ll start college this fall? Or will he travel like you?”
“College. He’s headed out of state—University of Michigan. Guess they’ve got a good business program.”
“Business?” I croak. The dumpling plops to my plate shy of its destination. I pick it up again. “I…I would’ve thought music.”
Seth wipes his mouth. “Well, Grant’s a genius with numbers, just like Grandpa and Dad. And Mom has this thing about not living up to your potential, so she’d probably string Grant up by his nuts if he didn’t carry on Dad’s CPA firm.”
I snort.
“Yeah, and you thought the Greeks were bad.”
“She sounds terrifying.”
“I’m kidding. She’s actually pretty cool—when she’s not in overprotective-Mom mode. I swear, sometimes she still thinks I’m a little kid. I keep waiting for her to bust out a wet rag to scrub off my juice ’stache or something.”
I giggle. “Pretty sure they all do that. It’s a parental thing. Gram would’ve probably frozen me at ten if it weren’t for the sea-monkey incident.”
“You had a sea-monkey incident?”
“Doesn’t everyone?” I maintain my straight face for all of three seconds before Seth’s grin causes me to crumble.
“Uhhh…no. Guess some of us have led deprived childhoods. But enough about that, let’s go back to talking about the future.” He peers up from his dark lashes. My heartbeat zigs and zags, unclear where this is going.
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