Envy by Victoria Christopher Murray

Author:Victoria Christopher Murray
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Touchstone

20

Keisha

I hoped Gabrielle didn’t live too far away from this restaurant, because this here lobster roll was the truth and I wanted one every single day.

“So you like it?” Gabrielle smiled.

This time when I nodded, I nodded for real.

“Do you want another one?” Elijah asked.

Even though I did, I shook my head. I’d figure out a way to come back here.

“So yesterday, when I asked you about California, you hadn’t seen all of this”—Elijah waved his hand toward the ocean—“right? What do you think now?”

“I can’t believe the beach is like right here in front of me. I’ve never seen a beach in person before.”

“Did you travel much out of White Haven?”

I nodded. “We’d go to Little Rock and Pine Bluff sometimes. Especially since the bigger malls were there.”

He asked, “Have you ever traveled outside of Arkansas?”

I shook my head. “Not until I got on the plane with Regan.”

He nodded. “So what do you do down there in White Haven?”

Okay, this was like the third question, which meant he was leading up to something. That made me put my guard up, though I kept a smile on my face.

“I don’t do too much,” I said, being careful. “I spent the last year taking care of my mama. She had just died when Regan got there.”

Elijah shook his head a little. “In her letter, your mom said you didn’t have any relatives.”

This wasn’t a question, but he was still fishing for information. “We didn’t. But that was cool. It was just me and Mama; we took care of each other.”

I guessed that was a good answer, ’cause that made Gabrielle and Elijah smile.

He wiped his face with his napkin, then rested both of his arms on the table. “Keisha . . .”

Seemed like I was about to find out the real reason for all of his questions.

“I really want to get to know you,” he said.

He paused like he wanted me to say something. So I said, “Yeah.”

He took a deep breath. “What do you think . . . what would you say if I were to ask you to stay in Los Angeles?”

I frowned, not understanding what he was getting at.

He added quickly, “Not permanently—I mean, I’d love you to live here permanently, but if you don’t like it and you miss home, you should definitely go back. But if you’re able to, I’d like you to give us, to give Los Angeles a chance. I’d like for you to think about living in Los Angeles for a while.”

From the moment I got here and saw how they were living, this thought had been in my mind. I didn’t want to tell him that, though. So I said, “But in White Haven, I’m working . . .”

He waved his hand. “You can find a job here.”

“You definitely can,” Gabrielle piped in. “Because if you take Daddy up on this offer to stay, not only can you live with me, but you can work with me, too.”

“Oh, sweetness”—Elijah grinned—“that would be great.

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