Page 85 of The Do-Over

“Sure,” Nate said. He opened her door, and she climbed in. He tipped his head toward me. “You coming? We can come back and get your car when we’re done.”

“Okay.” Like I could say no to dessert. Or Nate. Or Nate offering me dessert. He opened the passenger door. His fingers skimmed the small of my back, warming my skin through my shirt, and guided me into the seat.

He closed the door and was rounding the car when Lilah gasped and pointed out the side window. “Look, do you see it?”

I whipped my head around in time to see a cardinal swooping from tree to tree, carrying a brown feather in its mouth that resembled the very ones I’d made Lilah’s costume with.

“I see it,” I said as Nate slid into his seat.

“What?” he asked.

“It was Mommy, letting me know she was around,” Lilah said.

Nate scowled and started the car, his hands tight on the steering wheel. “We’ve talked about this, sweetheart. Cardinals live in Texas year-round, that’s all.”

“Okay, Daddy,” Lilah said in the most accommodating voice a kid has ever used.

I flipped down the visor and found Lilah’s eyes in the mirror. I winked; she covered her mouth to stifle her giggle.

Nate side-eyed us. “What was that?”

“What was what?” I asked.

“Nothing,” Lilah said at the same time.

“Fine, don’t tell me.” But his smile was indulgent and the whole bird business seemed forgotten by the time we pulled up to the ice cream shop and tumbled out of the car.

And yes, even though it was dangerous and stupid, I pretended we were a little family the whole time.

Later that night, long after I’d parted ways with Nate and Lilah, I was too restless to sleep. Instead, I scrubbed my face and pasted on a mud mask. While I waited the fifteen minutes before washing it off, I called Mathias, who was trapped in North Dakota.

“The most exciting thing we’ve done is drive two hours to take photos the client’s mother insisted on.”

“What was two hours away?”

“A twenty-six-foot-tall buffalo statue.”

“Well, you wouldn’t see that in Texas.”

“And thank God for that,” he said with feeling.

I was laughing when I heard the knock on the door. It was past ten, so I made Mathias stay on the phone in case it was a serial killer.

“It’s Nate,” I whispered into the phone.

“Kind of late for a visit from our friendly neighborhood fake boyfriend. Whatever could he want? A cup of milk?”

“Goodbye, Mathias.”

“Or maybe he wants to use your—” I hung up before he could finish.

I opened the door. “Hi.”

Nate straightened and his eyes widened. “Ah, hi. If this isn’t a good time, I can come back.”

“It’s fine. Is everything okay?”

He shook his head. “Yeah, everything’s fine. I just wanted to thank you for today—the talent show. I’m glad you were there. It was nice.”