Bookishly Ever After (Ever After #1)(16)

I pulled a face. “Try telling your parents you want to review books or own a yarn store. Those went over really well with mine.” I took the lid off of my milkshake and ran a pretzel along the side before popping it in my mouth. “I’m sure your mom and dad won’t be too devastated when you’re, like, starring in impromptu Bollywood flash mobs across the country and becoming an Internet sensation.”

That caught him off-guard and he nearly choked on a pretzel. “You know, I never see you outside of school and band. You’re fun. In an amped-up book lover kind of way.”

I gestured at my outfit. “Comes with the territory.”

“I bet.” His phone rang and he stared at the screen for a second with a frown. “I really have to go now. Sorry I couldn’t stay longer.”

I held up my book. “I think I’ll be fine. Maeve was about to kick some enemy butt when you interrupted me.” I cringed slightly. Why do I say stuff like that?

He didn’t seem to notice my cringe. “Have fun with that.” Something caught his attention and he paused midway through standing up. He leaned in closer and my breath caught in my throat. “That’s incredibly cool,” he said, fingering the silver ‘chainmaille’ hanging off the bottom of my corset.

“I knit it. Out of stainless steel wire,” I forced out. As soon as he let go of my costume and finished standing, I breathed again.

“I didn’t know you could knit this kind of stuff.”

“You’d be surprised what you can do with knitting needles.” As soon as I said that, I regretted it. It was like every other sentence out of my mouth could be made into an innuendo. What was wrong with me?

Thankfully, Dev just raised his eyebrows. “Speaking of, when am I getting those socks?”

I lightly whacked his leg and then regretted it. He just laughed. “See you later, Feebs.”

Just before he stepped on to the escalator, I called out. “Thanks…for the food and entertainment and stuff.”

“I aim to please.” He turned on the escalator to face me and bowed with a flourish as it lowered him out of my sight.

“Your boyfriend is insane,” the girl behind me said as soon as he was out of hearing range.

“He’s not my…” I paused at her look of utter indifference. “Yeah, he’s just weird.”

“That kiss in the scene Niamh just read? Best kiss in the entire series, am I right?” The girl in front of me said, bouncing impatiently as the line inched closer to the signing table. Without waiting for anyone to actually answer, she added, “I need to find me an Aedan of my own. Too bad real boyfriends aren’t as awesome as book boyfriends.”

The kiss had been amazing, with just the right amount of perfect prebattle training and swoonworthy dialogue thrown in.

“At least real boys don’t get brainwashed by the enemy and try to kill you?” I said, trying to play devil’s advocate.

“It wasn’t Aedan’s fault, though. If Carma—”

“Hey, no spoilers!” The girl behind us said, poking her head over my shoulder with a massive scowl.

“But that’s right at the beginning of the book,” I said, my brow furrowing. “Which we were all reading while waiting.”

“Well, some of us might actually want to enjoy our books instead of speed reading straight through.”

The girl in front of me rolled her eyes and flipped open her copy to point at the cover flap. “It’s on the cover. I don’t think it’s a spoiler if it’s in the book’s description.”

Spoiler Girl narrowed her eyes. “Whatever. Just stop ruining the book for us real fans.” She popped in a pair of earbuds and went back to ignoring us and craning her neck to see the front of the line. The girl in front of me shook her head at the ceiling and mouthed “Nutcase.”

When we finally made it to the front of the line and Niamh was signing her book, the girl in front of me handed me her phone. “Can you take our picture?” she asked as she rounded the table and squished behind it next to Niamh.

“Sure.” I framed them on the little screen, taking two pictures just in case. This close, it amazed me how, even after practically just getting off a plane and reading an entire chapter to a packed, overheated bookstore, Niamh still managed to look like she’d just breezed in from a salon appointment. She held up the book and scrunched next to the girl in a perfect book-signing pose.

When they were done posing for the picture, Niamh handed girl-in-front-of-me her book and grinned at me. “Maeve’s battle outfit! I love it! I want a picture with you, if that’s okay.”

“Sure?” I said, my voice shaking, and I switched phones with the girl when we traded places, practically floating. Niamh Adams liked my outfit. I couldn’t wait to text Trixie about it. I grinned at the camera, trying not to look too squeeful, like a rabid fangirl.

The girl turned the phone around so we could see the screen. “How’s that?”

“It’s so cute, like I’m taking a picture with a brunette Maeve,” Niamh said, then looked over at me for my reaction.

I squinted at the screen. While Niamh looked so puttogether with just the right size smile and Grace-worthy perfectly blown-out crimson hair, I had a ridiculous grin on my face, my eyes were too squinty, and a random piece of hair was sticking up in the back. The rest of my hair was practically plastered to my head and neck from the heat of so many bodies in the bookstore.