Page 196 of Revv

Mami dries her hands slowly and leans back against the sink.

“Do you really believe that?” I ask.

“No. I’ve told you, that man looks at you like you hung the fucking moon, mija. He sounded happier about dinner than you did.”

My throat tightens. Mami reaches over and squeezes my arm.

“Whatever happened, forgetting you was not it.”

And somehow that hurts even fucking worse.

Because I know she’s right. Revel doesn’t forget. Not when it comes to me.

He remembers stupid shit I say once and never bring up again. He remembers how I take my coffee, what candy I like, what time I need to leave, and what side of the bed I sleep on. He remembers every little thing like it matters.

And today, he looked me in the eyes and promised he’d be here.

I reach for the towel again, mostly because I need something to do with my hands, but Mami catches it before I can start wiping down the same spotless counter for the fourth time.

“Mija.”

“What?”

She takes the towel from me and sets it aside. “Stop trying to keep yourself busy so you don’t have to feel this.”

A laugh slips out, dry and completely humorless, but my throat is already tightening.

“Feel what?”

Her expression softens in that way that somehow makes it worse, because now she’s looking at me like she knows exactly what I’m trying not to say.

Absolutely fucking not.

We are not doing this.

I grab one of the containers off Mami’s counter and start shoveling rice into it because apparently if my hands are busy enough, my brain can’t spiral.

It can.

I snap the lid onto the container harder than necessary. “He knew what this meant to me, Mami. He knew it mattered.”

That comes out quieter than everything else, which somehow makes it worse.

Because it did matter.

Not because I’ve been secretly dreaming about introducing some man to my mother like this is a fucking Hallmark movie.

I don’t even know what Revel and I are.

That was kind of the whole point.

I let him into something real.

Dinner at Mami’s house. With my family, you know, normal shit.

The boring shit Revel stood in that hotel room and told me he wanted.

Then the first time I actually give it to him, he doesn’t show.