All Over the Map

35. Chapter Thirty-Five

Chapter Thirty-Five

We meet Mia and Gabe for dinner at a taco place down the street.

“I’m happy to buy you guys fancy dinner at the hotel,” Mom protests while we’re lined up at the counter to order.

“Thanks, Ms. Barrows,” Gabe says, “but we decided taco shops are definitely the best part of California.”

A few minutes later when she bites into hers, Mom raises an eyebrow and nods. “Yeah, that’s good.”

“Even with no meat?” Mia asks. She always teases Mom about this.

“Especially because there’s no meat. Now. Tell me what you kiddos have been up to this week. And don’t leave anything out.”

We exchange a quick three-way glance. We will definitely leave a couple things out, like the pot farm, but I tell her about meeting Seth first. “It was awkward,” I admit. “But he says he’d like to come out to Adobe some time. Or I thought maybe I could introduce you guys when we go on our Grand Canyon trip?”

She meets my gaze and smiles. “I’d love that.”

“I’ll take the next part,” Gabe says. “But, um, just so you know, Ms. Barrows, we’re going to tell our parents about this.”

“Is that your way of asking me to let you tell them first?” she asks.

“Yeah. And we will. After we’re home and they can see it all turned out okay.”

She nods. “All right. Call me in if you need reinforcements. I’ll be a glowing character witness.”

Mia squeals and gives her a big hug. “Thank you, Maggie.”

We take turns telling her about the rest of the trip, and I end with, “And then Mom walked into the conference room and nearly gave me a heart attack.” Mia and Gabe haven’t heard the details about David, and those are still too raw for me to dig into. I try to find the right words, but they’re slippery. I sigh. “I listened to his lecture. And met him after. It was super dramatic. You would have loved it,” I say to Mia, trying a joke that falls flat when my smile wobbles. “Turns out he wasn’t a sperm donor. He and my mom were dating, and he knew my mom was pregnant with me, but he didn’t want to be a father, and I’m not ready to talk about it yet. Basically, he’s kind of a jerk. I think I do have a lot of his qualities, but when you mix my mom’s genes in, it fixes them, and I’m not cold like him.”

“Tell us how you really feel,” Gabe says in a teasing tone, but his eyes are worried.

“You’re perfect,” Mia says, and I get my own hug. “Tell us about him whenever you’re ready. Or never. We’re just glad you got some answers.”

“And a brother and a sister,” Gabe adds. “Siblings are mostly the worst except for when they’re not.”

Mia punches him in the arm and he steals some of her tortilla chips in retaliation.

“ Another sister,” I correct him, stealing some chips too. “I already had Mia.”

“In all seriousness, I’m so thankful you two were with her,” Mom says. “I’m glad she has friends like you.”

I glance over at Gabe, able to meet his eyes and hold them. Yeah. I never thought it would be possible, but we really are friends now.

Gabe looks down at the table, and my stomach gives a lurch.

Mia glances from Gabe to me, then stands and gathers her trash, reaching for Mom’s too. “Hey, Maggie, I heard there’s a mariachi band performing in the hotel lounge in a few minutes. Want to watch it with me?”

“Love to.” Mom looks from Gabe to me. “What about you two?”

“Oh, I think they’d rather walk on the beach.” Mia swoops down to give me a hug. “Gabe talked to me. We need to talk about some ground rules, but I approve,” she whispers. Then she straightens. “Byeeeee.” She leads Mom off the patio and toward the hotel.

Gabe and I watch them go, then turn toward each other and burst out laughing.

“My sister is ridiculous.”

“No argument.”

He stands and gathers my empty tray, avoiding my gaze. “But I don’t hate her walking on the beach idea.” There’s a forced casualness to his words, but I sense nervousness beneath it.

“Agree.” My hands are clammy as I replay Mia’s words. I approve .

We walk for a couple of blocks as he tells me about SeaWorld. The crowds thin as the hotels give way to houses and the lifeguard towers spread farther apart. It’s after seven and the sun has slipped close to the horizon.

“Should we get a front row seat for the sunset?” he asks, like he’s reading my mind.

“We definitely should.” We make our way near the water, close enough for the brine smell to grow stronger but not quite to the retreating tide. “Sounds like SeaWorld was fun,” I say, settling into the sand. It’s still sun warm, and I slip off my sandals to dig my toes into it, looking for the cool bits.

“It was pretty good,” he says. “But just to warn you, Mia’s probably going to be obsessed with penguins now.”

“It’s okay. I survived her seventh-grade llama phase.”

He laughs. “Yeah, that was a hard one.” He falls quiet, and it’s not awkward exactly, but it’s not like the easy silences Mia and I fall into. I’m waiting, but I’m not sure for what. He shifts in the sand like he can’t get comfortable, leaning back on his hands for a minute, then straightening again.

“Look, I . . .” He trails off.

“You . . .?” I prompt him.

“I talked to Mia. I explained about . . . about this. About you. Me.” He shifts again, turning himself so he’s facing me. “Us.”

I turn too, the warmth of the sand spreading up to my chest. “What about ‘us’? Are there new developments I should know about?”

He half-scowls, half-laughs. “You’re kind of a brat, Kendall.”

I smile at him. “You deserve it.”

“Kendall.”

“Yes?”

“You’re going to make me work for this, aren’t you?”

I’m not exactly sure what he means by “work,” but anticipation ripples through me as I think about Mia’s words. Gabe talked to me . “Yes, Gabe. I am. At least as hard as I worked that night in ninth grade.”

I dig into my pocket and hold up a quarter. “Heads: you and I stay friends, and I don’t put Mia to the test.”

“And tails?”

“You kiss me.”

I flip, watching it spin a dozen times, catching the light each time before it lands in my waiting hand.

I close my eyes for a second, hoping George knows what to do. When I open them, Gabe is watching me with a half-smile.

“What did you get?”

Instead of answering, I stand and offer a hand to pull him to his feet. But then he doesn’t let go. Instead, he draws me closer to him, slipping his other arm around my waist before he releases my hand, but only long enough to slide it around the back of my neck, his thumb feathering along the line of my jaw.

“I see you, Kendall Barrows. And I like the way you look at me.”

Then he leans down and kisses me, his lips brushing mine at first, as if making sure I’m okay with this.

I answer by leaning into him and slipping one arm around his neck, pressing lightly against it, urging him toward me, and he kisses me harder, his mouth firm and warm. The sun explodes inside me, and I can’t separate the pounding in my ears from the crash of the waves.

His heartbeat speeds up beneath my palm and the taste of him overwhelms my other senses. When I pull back, dizzy and kiss-drunk, the sea air mixes with his clean cotton scent, and I know I will never love another smell as much as I love this one.

He stares at me, looking like he got tumbled by a wave. “Kendall, I . . .” he shakes his head.

“I think the words you were looking for are ‘hot nuggets.’”

He laughs, his breath a puff against my cheek. “Dammit, Barrows.”

He kisses me, deep and unmistakably hungry. “I’m glad it came up tails,” he says when we’re both breathless again.

I pull back to smile at him. “I never checked. I knew before I flipped.”

And then he kisses me again.