"I'm not sure." I had no idea what any of that stuff was. "They aren't new recipes of yours, are they?"
"No, dummy. They're Lebanese."
"Do you think Royce's trip to Florida was his way of giving you the boot?" Mel asked suddenly, cutting into our conversation.
Business forgotten, my stomach dropped. I hadn't considered that.
"I would sob if Colin dumped me," Kera said, fighting a smile.
"We know." Mel sent me a will-you-shut-her-up gaze.
"No boot," I said firmly. All right, hopefully. Royce had said he wouldn't be with another woman while he was gone. He'd said that he wanted me, that no other woman would do. He'd proven himself trustworthy so far. "I like Royce," I told them, swirling milk in my glass. "And I miss him. I do. More than I should. He's an amazing lover and I-"
Kera: "Wait. Back up. Amazing lover? You told us you'd kissed him, and that's all. You've slept with the guy and this is the first we hear about it?"
Meclass="underline" "I should have guessed from the way your skin is glowing."
I plopped my elbows on the tabletop and dropped my head into my upraised hands. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I just… I don't know. I wasn't ready to give details."
"Why? I always share my details." Mel again.
"We know," Kera and I said in unison. Over the years, we'd heard all about Mel's love life in vivid description. Way too much description. The girl liked it wild, no doubt about it.
"What if he finds someone else while he's gone?" Mel asked, pouring more of the yellow gravy mix over her meat. "In fact, what if the man comes back married?"
Again, I hadn't thought of that. Nausea churned in my still bottomed-out stomach.
I must have gone seriously pale, because Kera said, "Don't listen to her. The man is obviously in love with you. He asked you to marry him, not some other woman. He'll come back to you. Single," she added with a firm nod.
"So what should I do?" My voice cracked. How long would Royce be content to wait for me? "I'm not ready to give him up. Should I marry him like he wants? He said he won't sleep with me again until we're committed."
"The bastard," Mel said.
Kera's shoulders hunched as she considered my words. Her lips dipped into a soft, little frown. "I honestly don't know what you should do."
Life sucked.
"We need to think about this," Kera added. "Why don't we spend the rest of the day and night thinking about Naomi's problem, and we'll meet back here in the morning."
The next morning:
"Okay, I've thought about it." I sat across from my cousins, buttering a piece of toast.
"See, I knew a day and night of reflection was all you needed." Kera passed me the strawberry jelly. Praise the Lord, she hadn't cooked today. "What have you decided?"
I closed my eyes, opened them, preparing myself to remain strong. "I'm going to seduce him until he forgets about any type of commitment issues."
Kera rolled her eyes. "Good luck with that." She munched on a bite of her cereal, thoughtful as she chewed. "In theory, I'm sure ignoring his desire for a commitment seems feasible. But in actuality, you'll start to feel guilty."
"She's right." Mel nodded. "You're better off ending things now."
Now they offered advice. After I'd spent the night agonizing. "I hate how complicated this is."
"You're such a complainer, Naomi." Mel pushed her bowl away. "If Royce were to ask me for advice, I'd tell him to never see you again."
"And that would be the best advice you've given all week," I said with a frown.
"Well, I think you're in lu-ve," Kera sang.
"Me, too. What's so bad about marrying Royce, anyway? I know you think you're not ready. But hey, if it doesn't work out, get a divorce. It's as easy as one, two, three." Mel snapped.
"Divorce isn't easy. It's hard and it hurts and it can turn into a blood bath. Hello, did neither of you pay attention during my divorce from Richard?"
Kera: "If Colin asked me, I'd already be at the altar."
Meclass="underline" "Will you shut up about Colin, Kera? I'm sick to death of hearing about him. You're dating him, but he calls me. Comes on to me."
Kera smiled, barely managing to hide her gloating. "He's probably got you confused with me."
"Maybe I should marry Royce," Mel snapped. "Then this entire conversation would be moot. I'd never have to hear about Royce or Colin again, and I could go back to my peaceful existence."
I stiffened, not liking those words at all. "You can't marry Royce. The two of you would never get along."
She ran her tongue over her teeth. "Oh, really?"
"Yes, really."
"Why not?"
"Because you don't play backgammon, that's why. The article in the Tattler specifically stated that Royce wants a woman who plays backgammon."
Mel chuckled. "You'll have to do better than that, Naomi. You don't know how to play backgammon, either, and he asked you to marry him."
"That's not the point."
"What about green?" Mel asked. "Green is my best color, or so I've been told. And Royce's favorite color is green."
"So what?" I said defensively. "He prefers women who don't talk back. You're disqualified for that alone."
Kera tapped her fingernails on the tabletop. "So are you, Naomi. I mean, you could tear the flesh from someone's bones with that razor-sharp tongue of yours. Especially recently." To soften her words, she smiled. "Maybe we should get Jennifer's opinion about your tongue. She would know better than any of us."
We stared at each other for a moment before bursting into laughter. Tears trickled from the corners of Kera's eyes, she laughed so hard.
"Look," Mel said between chuckles. "The point I'm trying to make here is that you don't like the image of Royce with other women. So there's your answer. You want him all to yourself. So take him before it's too late."
Wise words. Could I do it, though? Risk everything?
"Hey!" Kera exclaimed. "Why don't you take on another client? That'll keep your mind off of Mr. Sexy."
"I can't," I said after swallowing a bite of toast.
"Why not?"
"Royce dictated at the very beginning that I couldn't work on another project while planning his mother's party. Which makes it impossible to bury myself in work." My legs kicked out and rested on the empty seat across from me. "You and I have discussed the menu. I've ordered the flowers, reserved a DJ. I've already ordered some of the decorations and drafted an invitation. There's nothing left to do now except wait for him to contact me once he's back in town."
"Don't wait for him to call. Take the initiative. Pick up the phone and call him. You have his cell-phone number, right?" Mel downed her glass of apple juice. "Men love phone sex."
I rubbed a hand down my face, considering the idea. "You know, before walking into Royce's office, I had my life mapped out. No men. No relationships. Then Royce rocks my world- several times-and it's changing everything. The jerk."
"Yeah, a real bastard." Kera rolled her eyes. "How dare he change your life for the better."
"Hey! Let's TP the asshole's house tonight," Mel suggested. "We haven't done something like that in years."
Grinning, I shook my head. "I am not toilet papering his home."
"Then we're going club hopping tomorrow night and drowning our sorrows in beer and sexy men."
"Now that I can do," I said.
My phone was ringing when I walked into my apartment. I hurried into the kitchen and picked it up. "Hello."
"Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant?" my mom demanded.
"Wha-What are you talking about?" How did she know about that?
"There's a picture of you in the Tattler with a very large, very pregnant stomach. The article says you're having triplets. The next words out of your mouth had better be that you're getting married, young lady."
"Mom, I'm not pregnant," I said, wishing I knew the truth of those words. "Nor am I getting married." I wished to God I knew the truth of those words, too. "I've got to let you go now. I'm going to sell all of my vital organs on eBay."