✅ My Cousin's Keeper [NaNoWriMo 2021]

64. My Ultimatum

"Love you!"

"One of these days, you're going to answer the phone like that and it's Dave the glazier or somebody, offering you a special discount," Ffrances chided.

"Who else but you is going to be calling from your phone?"

"Someone who kidnapped me? And I hope you don't love them so much."

"Depends. Are they cute?" While she chuckled, I took advantage of the pause to tap the speaker button, so I could continue looking through the fridge. I was feeling hungry, and I'd already started thinking about what to make for dinner. It would have to be something good; I needed her to be in a good mood so she'd tell me what she was setting up with Tess. I needed to know the details before I could use the new trigger, and I wanted to make sure I had every tool at my disposal to help her become a perfect little.

"Okay, I won't probe into how much you like my future abductors. But before we get too distracted, I need to tell you what I called for."

"Yeah, you should do that. Or come home and tell me, that's more fun. So I can see you, and other things."

"Oh, yeah, I'm going to be late back. Don't know how late yet."

"Should I hold off making dinner?"

"I'm not hungry yet. If you are, you can treat yourself. I can warm something up later."

I hesitated, but kept looking through the available food. "Look, how about I do that spicy pasta bake, the one with the salami and stuff?"

"The one where you started making paella and switched pasta for rice because you got distracted in the middle?"

"Well, you said you liked it," I said, blushing slightly at the memory. "And I can serve mine then stick it back in the oven on low if you're not back yet. See how it goes. How long are you going to be? Do you need me to pick up Tess instead?"

"No, it's fine," she said, which somehow made me even more determined that I was going to impress her today. She sounded a little frustrated, and I really hoped that I could distract her from whatever was causing it. "I got to Raybridge fine. But she's hanging out with all her friends. Last day of school and all that, you know? They want to end on a high note if they're not going to see each other for a couple of weeks. I'd guess it'll take them thirty minutes to say their goodbyes, maybe an hour because some of them have got pizza to share. So I'll get to know the other people in Tess's life, maybe see who this Ciertowczki girl is so I know who to keep an eye on. I'll bring her back when she's ready, okay?"

"Babe," I said, doing my best to seem stern. It was harder than you might think; Ffrances was a naturally assertive person, and I was always nervous about upsetting her. I knew I had a strong maternal instinct, and I have been known to go into stern mother mode when talking to subordinates or others when I could see they weren't taking enough time for self-care, or were shooting themselves in the foot on some issue. But my girlfriend was the one person I would never be able to treat as a child. She was too mature, too powerful, too commanding. Even if she joked about it, I knew that even a hint of condescension would make her uncomfortable.

"I'll be good, I promise. I'm not going to leave you for some high school girl."

"You try so hard," I told her. "You could give her ten minutes then tell her it's time to go, you know. You don't have to put yourself out."

"I do if you want to have a happy little," she corrected me. And I knew she was right, but I still worried that she might be stretching herself too thin. "I'll make sure they're okay, and I'll bring her home when she's comfortable with it, right? And I'll take the scenic route, so we can talk on the way about what kind of hypnosis she wants. It might end up being a choice between this Christmas thing and whatever she's asking for, but I'm sure she wouldn't mind if her present has to wait for the new year."