Wicked in Love

Chapter 15 - are

Kara

"Honey, I'm home!" I called out.

As soon as I stepped inside the front door, a huge smile split my face. It smelled of cookies baked fresh in the oven and some savoury dish. But more than that, the house felt like a home. Maybe because of the warmth of friendship.

Ever since Veronica had moved in with me, the house always smelled amazing. It was either she was cooking or cleaning. At first, I didn't believe her when she said that those things were her hobbies. I mean, for real? But it turned out she really did like doing house chores. I'd never met anyone like her. The only house chore I liked was cleaning the fridge with my mouth.

Grunting from the weight of my gargantuan grocery bag, I finally dumped it on the floor, grabbed the long handles with my two hands, and proceeded to drag it on the floor to the kitchen.

"Ver?"

I found Veronica camped out on the dining table. It was exam week. Her thick textbooks were lined up in alphabetical order, and I could see little coloured post-it notes tucked inside of the pages. Her notebooks and pens were neatly arranged beside a stack of papers. How did she do that? When I reviewed for an exam, my desk always looked like a frat after party.

But instead of reviewing, I found her knitting a red... something.

She finally looked up and let out a yelp, her dark eyes wide with alarm. She was jumpy, this girl.

"Sorry," I said, throwing my purse on the dining chair. "I called but you didn't hear me."

"I'm knitting—"

"A sock?"

"It's not a sock." She worried her lip, lifted the red it's-not-a-sock so she could inspect it. "Does it look like a sock?"

"What is it?"

"It's a secret." There was a secret smile on her lips. "For now."

"Okay, CIA agent."

She put it down and helped me drag the grocery bag in front of the kitchen pantry.

"What's for dinner?" I asked, crouching so I could pick out the canned goods first and hand them to her. She put them away in their proper places in the pantry. "Smells amazing. I'm so hungry my organs are shutting down."

"I made vegetarian Pad Thai. Go eat, Kar. Leave the groceries to me."

"I can't. Save me some for tomorrow? I'm eating at Dad's tonight. Maybe sleeping over, I don't know yet. I'll text you."

She smiled at me. I smiled back. I folded the now empty grocery bag when we finished putting the groceries away and haphazardly threw it in the pantry shelf. I let out a snort-laugh when I saw her refolded it and tucked it away neatly.

"So, we'll go shopping soon for your dress, right?" I asked.

It was Lockhart's birthday party on Sunday, and half of the planet was invited and so was I. Unfortunately, so was Cameron Jeremiah Son of Satan Saint Laurent.

If my heart started beating rapidly, it was because I was moving my limbs too much. If my body started feeling hot, it was because the kitchen was hot from Veronica's baking and cooking. It had nothing to do with Bigfoot. Nothing at all.

"We'll sneak out during lunch break some time this week. That good?" I walked back to the dining room for my purse, looking for my phone so I could text my dad. "I have to meet another potential client tomorrow," I said loudly so she could still hear me from the kitchen.

"What?" she yelled back. "Hold on."

"It's another lady from church. They want me to help decorate their backyard. I'm so excited!" I went on. "I'm so busy I could cry, but I want to be there when you shop for your dress. Please?"