Page 71 of Dream House
Me: Of course not!
I scowl at the phone, watching her response dots bounce and disappear. Bounce and disappear.
Maggie: Mmm hmm.
Me: WTF? Mags, she’s a friend. Is that so hard to believe?
She doesn’t reply. I wait so long I run the risk of missing my window for the shower. Once Livy claims the bathroom, forget about it.
I give up on hearing back from Maggie, but I make it downstairs before Stella leaves for work. I know by the hour that she’s already dropped Maisy off at school. When I enter the kitchen, she’s alone at the table. A rarity.
She glances up from her phone. “Sorry. It’s just cereal, fruit, and boiled eggs today.”
“Sounds amazing.”
She sniffs a laugh and goes back to her phone and coffee, but I’m not kidding. I serve myself a bowl of granola, scoop some fruit salad on top of it, and douse the thing with milk. I grab two of the boiled eggs from the tray on the counter and sit opposite her.
“Seriously, you have no idea how easy this makes my morning,” I say gesturing to the food.
She examines my breakfast with a frown. “But you’re not even having coffee.” Her travel mug is in front of her, and I have no doubt it’s full.
“I’ll get some on my way out. Gotta have something to get me through Stratigraphy.”
Her frown turns wry. “Okay, College Boy, what’s Stratigraphy?”
I shovel a bite of cereal into my mouth and chew while I try to decide how I feel about being calledCollege Boy.
Not good, I decide.
“It’s the study of rock layers, geochronological data, and superposition.”
She narrows her gaze at me. “Now you’re just trying to sound smart.”
I rap an egg on the table to crack the shell, smirking. “I don’t have to try.”
Stella rolls her eyes.
“I’m kidding,” I say, laughing.
“Sure you are.” She’s grinning now, but her eyes are curious. “What are you going to do with that geology degree anyway? Work for Big Oil?”
I shake my head. Everybody assumes that, but I don’t give a shit about oil. It’s just, usually, I don’t bother correcting them.
“I’m more interested in mine safety.”
I’ve surprised her. That’s obvious. “Really?”
I nod, still wondering why I’ve decided to share this with her. But she’ll drop it. Most people aren’t interested.
Stella sets her phone down. “Why?”
“You really wanna know?”
Her eyes flash. “I’m asking.”
I meet her gaze. “I was joking around a minute ago, but I am smart,” I say. “And those poor bastards down there need someone smart.”
Yeah, I’ve surprised her again. Her lips part. “What poor bastards?”
