The Game Has Changed by D. L. Wu Read Free Book Online Page B

lips as she noticed his twisted expression.
    He set the tray down before her and then sat in
the booth beside her. “Coke for breakfast?” He scrunched his
nose.
    “What's wrong with that? It's caffeine, just
like your coffee.” She pointed at his steaming cup.
    “Coffee is a normal thing to drink for
breakfast,” he replied.
    “Well, you already know that I'm not very
normal.” She giggled and bit into her hash browns as if she were
famished.
    “Join the club.” He winked at her as he sipped
at his coffee.
    “Besides, I never had coffee before,” she
added.
    He looked up from his cup with surprise.
“Really? How come?” he asked with curiosity.
    She shrugged, feeling a tad hesitant, unsure if
she should get into a personal conversation with him. It would be
like inviting him into her private life and she wasn't quite sure
if she was ready for that. “I don't know,” she sighed, thinking
about her father again. Then it just came out, almost as if she had
no control. “I guess because my dad never drank coffee.”
    Evan nodded with understanding as he began to
eat his breakfast. “When did your father die?”
    She shuddered a little with both sadness and
mistrust. But then she figured, What could
it hurt? “Just a little over a month ago now,” she
whispered.
    Evan was immediately sympathetic. He stopped
eating and placed his hand across hers as it lay on the table. “I'm
so sorry, Luv,” he whispered. “Must still be hurting an awful
lot.”
    Tears rose to the surface and immediately
blurred her eyes. She didn't want to cry again because of her dad.
Not in front of Evan, nor ever again. She was so tired, but a few
tears still escaped her eyes and she swiped at them with her other
hand.
    “Do you want to talk about it?” he asked
softly.
    She shook her head. “Not yet,” she
whispered.
    He nodded with understanding.
“Okay.”
    After a moment of silence between them, with
only Jaime's sniffling cutting in between, Evan spoke up and held
his coffee cup toward her with a sweet smile. “Try it,” he
offered.
    She gave him an uneasy smile and a small watery
laugh. “I don't know, should I?”
    “Sure. Make this whole adventure about
experiencing wonderful and new things and then maybe it won't seem
so bad,” he said enthusiastically.
    She couldn't resist his precious smile and his
sweet demeanor. She took his cup of milk-laced coffee from him and
carefully sipped at it.
    He waited for her verdict with wide eyes.
“Well? What do you think?”
    She nodded with a smile, handing the cup back
to him. “It's good. Makes you feel all warm inside.”
    “There you go!” he murmured happily.
    Jaime silently watched as Evan finished his
breakfast. She really did feel all warm inside and it wasn’t
because of the coffee. She began to wonder if this was the way it
felt when you were falling in love with someone.
    “Want anything else?” he asked as they prepared
to leave.
    She shook her head dutifully, albeit
dreamily.
    Evan noted her faraway look and he couldn't
help but to smile. “What's up? You okay?”
    “Yeah,” she said airily.
    “Shall we hit the road again, then?”
    She nodded once more. This time, she reached
out for his hand as they stood up. He promptly took hers and led
her out of the restaurant.
     
    ***

    “Before we stop for the night,” Evan said as he
drove along, “we'll get some clothes and more supplies,
okay?”
    “Okay,” she agreed and suddenly felt the urge
to ask him some personal questions. It took her a minute or so to
summon the courage to do so. “How come you don't want to tell me
why you're running?”
    He looked at her for but a moment as he drove
and then turned his attention back onto the road. He shrugged,
moments later. “Maybe because I feel like it's none of your
business.”
    Her eyes widened with surprise at the answer,
yet she didn't let it go. “Well, it kinda is my business,” she rationalized, “seeing as
how I'm here on the run with you and have