Eating ice cream with my sister was one of the finer pleasures in life. I was already rubbing my stomach while watching Tess cross the road.
We both devoured it like we were competing in a who-eats-faster show. We hadn’t turned the sign to Closed, so we were just keeping our fingers crossed that no customers came in.
“Sneaky ice cream tastes even better,” I said.
“I agree. How’s the lemon?”
I grinned. “Lemon-y. Reminds me of dishwasher soap, but I like it.” I yawned, suddenly feeling not only relaxed but also sleepy.
“I’m all over the place today.”
“Maybe it’s PMS,” she said.
“I don’t have PMS though.” I’d never had mood swings, cravings, pain, extra tiredness, or any symptoms.
In a conspiratorial whisper, she said, “Things change as you get older, just saying.”
“Hey, I’m not old. You’re old.” I pinched her arm. She giggled, pinching me right back. I’d always teased her for being older. When we were teenagers, my favorite tactic to annoy her was to point out imaginary wrinkles. But maybe she was right. Come to think of it, I was a few days late.
“I’ve always had a regulated cycle since being on the pill,” I said out loud.
Tess cocked a brow. “I think you forgot half the sentence. What do you mean?”
“That I’m a few days late.”
Tess grimaced. “Damn, I think the stress is really catching up to you. Don’t come in on the weekend.”
“We’ll be swamped.” Even though our sales associates were handling most weekends, we had a sale this Saturday and Sunday and needed all hands on deck. “I’ll call upon the Winchester forces.”
“What if they already have plans?”
“By sheer probability, someone will have time. You have to rest and relax.”
“You sound like Rob.”
“I knew I liked that man. When’s he coming back?”
“Not sure. He said he has to stay a few more days, maybe even a week.”
“Damn, so I can’t count on him to ambush you into relaxing....” It sounded as if she was about to say “but....” She remained silent instead, but her eyes were a little narrowed as she finished her ice cream. I knew that expression. She was getting... ideas.
I didn’t have time to investigate though, because the front door opened and three customers walked in.
The next morning, I did get an inkling of what she’d been up to when I opened the door to a guy delivering food at lunch.
“Hi,” I said, feeling a little flustered and a lot tired. I’d slept in right until five minutes ago.
“Hi, ma’am. I have a special delivery.”
Even through my sleepy haze, my heart fluttered. Special indeed, because I knew I hadn’t ordered anything.
“Thank you so much.” I tipped him generously, then took the basket with goodies inside the house. Ah, I didn’t even need to see the logo of Dumont’s on the napkins to know who’d sent this over.
Clapping my hands, I rose from my heels to my toes before rocking back on my heels.
Hmmm... what to do first? Dig into all of these goodies or call Rob and thank him? It was too soon after waking up for such difficult decisions, so I decided to do both at the same time.
Grabbing my phone and a plate, I put cheese and bread on the latter before sinking into my comfy swing.