All I've Never Wanted(51)

“Ok,” Adriana chirped, sounding suspiciously like she was trying not to laugh. “That’ll teach me not to leave my Hermés behind anymore.”

“What I really want to know—“ I jammed my key into the lock. “—is how Roman ended up barging into my room.”

“I must’ve texted him the wrong room number,” Adriana answered innocently. “My bad.”

“Hmph.”

Likely story. Adriana was way too much of a perfectionist to get something like that wrong. She was up to something, I just didn’t know what. I was pretty sure I didn’t like it, though.

Still, I suppose I had to forgive her, since she had come up with a brilliant idea to save me the embarrassment of needing a babysitter while my parents were away. Hence, the reason why she was at my house right now.

“Whoa.” Adriana sucked in a breath as she stared at the living room, which looked like a tornado had just blown through it. “What is going on?”

“My grandmother is packing,” I answered matter-of-factly, sidestepping a stack of boxed ginseng.

Every time my grandmother visits, she somehow manages to accumulate two extra suitcases full of unnecessary…stuff, which she a) handed out to her friends back home, b) used to brag about her travel adventures, c) sold on eBay for twice its listing price, or d) all of the above (she had a tendency to take back gifts from people who offended her).

“Really?” Adriana picked up a skimpy black negligee, looking horrified. “This…is your grandmother’s?”

“Ew.” I whimpered, snatching the negligee from her hand and stuffing it under a sofa pillow so I didn’t have to look at it. “No! I guess my mom is packing too.”

I resisted the urge to gag. That was just gross. No daughter should have to see her mother’s lingerie.

“Maya! You home, honey?” My mom entered the living room, panting slightly as she set a giant cardboard box onto the floor with a small groan.

“Hey, mom. What’s going on?”

“Oh, just some cleaning and packing,” she replied cheerfully.

“Your grandmother’s in the kitchen.” She lowered her voice. “I think she’s cleaning out our sausage supply.”

“No problem here.” I shrugged. I was more of a bacon girl.

“Oh, you brought a new friend!” my mom exclaimed happily when she finally noticed Adriana. She held out her hand. “Hi, I’m Maya’s mom.”

“Good evening, Mrs. Lindberg,” Adriana said politely, shaking my mom’s hand with her own freshly manicured one. “I’m Adriana.”

“Oh, please, call me Shelley. Mrs. Lindberg makes me sound so old.” My mom made a face. “I’m so sorry about the mess, it’s usually not like this. Things are just a bit hectic this week.”

“I think Maya may have mentioned that to me earlier. You and Mr. Lindberg are going to Napa Valley?”

My mom nodded, a grin lighting up her face.

I swallowed, the tension coming back into my muscles as guilt took over again. I hated lying to her, but I hated hurting her more. Hopefully, my dad had been telling the truth and wouldn’t do it again.

I would never forgive him if he did.

“I have a family friend who owns a vineyard there. They hold some amazing wine tastings a few times a year, and I believe they’re actually planning one for next week. I could put in a call and reserve a spot for you if you would like,” Adriana offered.

Wow, that was pretty generous of her. I knew she was trying to butter my mom up, but still.


“Oh, no, I couldn’t…” My mom’s voice trailed off. We could all see she really wanted to say yes. “It’s too much trouble.”

“It’s no trouble at all,” Adriana laughed. “I just have to make a call. What do you say? It’ll make your trip really unforgettable.”

“Well…” my mom bit her lip. “If it’s convenient for you, then I suppose it would be nice.”

“Great, I’ll call them now. Please excuse me for a minute.”

Adriana shot me a meaningful look as she stepped outside to make the call.

I gulped, as my mom started sifting through the items in the cardboard box. Here goes nothing. “So, mom, about the babysitter thing…”

She sighed, pulling out a stack of dusty guidebooks. Where had those come from? “I know what you’re going to say, sweetie, but unfortunately, your father and I have already made up our minds. Now, you know I trust you, but your grandmother is right. It’s very dangerous for a girl to stay by herself for two weeks.”

“You’re right.”

My mom stopped and stared at me in surprise. “I am?”

I nodded vigorously. “Yep. It is dangerous for me to stay here all alone. I don’t think a babysitter is the solution, though. I mean, not only is it incredibly expensive to hire someone to watch over me for that long, but who knows if the babysitter is even, um, trustworthy? Besides, I’m guessing it’s going to be a girl, and two girls aren’t safer than one, really.”

“I suppose you have a point,” she reluctantly agreed. She eyed me suspiciously. “And I’m guessing you’ve come up with a solution?”

I beamed. “Now that you mention it, I have.” I tried to sound casual. “Like Adriana said, I was talking to her about it earlier, and she suggested that I just stay over at her house for the next two weeks. It’ll be like an extended sleepover.”