“Amira, please.” Reena was in no mood for this blunt investigation of the pitfalls of her new boyfriend, not when she could still feel the lingering echo of his touch on her body. “Give me some time to enjoy him before you pounce on the negatives. Believe me, my eyes are open. We’re getting to know each other.” Reena smiled as she stretched her sore limbs over her cheap sheets. Good lord, had they ever gotten to know each other over the weekend. They’d spent most of Saturday together after his meeting, and most of Sunday, too, save for the few hours Reena took off for family brunch. She now knew her neighbor well. Very well. He liked his eggs sunny side up, his TV comedies British and dry, and his hands were spectacularly talented on more than just her scalp and feet. She squirmed as the warm memory washed over her.

“But what about Saira’s picture?” Crap. Amira was still going on about this? “You had all these pressing questions, but one sparkly rock and you fall into his bed? Did he tell you about his friends in London? I asked my mum about—”

Reena sat up. “Amira, that sparkly rock, as you put it, was fake, and a symbol of us not committing to anything big right now.” She bit her lip. How to make Amira understand this? “I’m unemployed, and my family is a bunch of whack jobs who will probably evict me and force me to move home and join the business when they find out I’m out of work. My head is not in the clouds. I know Nadim’s keeping secrets. I’m keeping secrets from him, too. But … ” She squeezed her eyes closed and fell back into the bed. She hadn’t been able to stop her voice from cracking, and her oldest friend would catch it.

Amira was silent while Reena squeezed her eyes shut. “You like him. A lot,” Amira finally said.

“I do. I hate the way we were forced together, and I hate my parents’ interference and Dad asking me to dig up dirt and Saira listening to gossip … but I like him. He makes me laugh. And he’s sweet. Our pasts will unfold slowly, like they are supposed to in a normal relationship.”

“Okay, Ree. Okay. But you know I’m only saying all this because I love you, right? I judge because I care.”

“I know.” And did she ever know. One could not be best friends with the likes of Amira Khan for so many years without understanding that behind those judgments was a fierce protectiveness that no one could match. She knew Amira would get her objections off her chest now, and then stand by Reena and support her no matter what she chose to do. And Amira would never, ever resort to “I told you so” if things went sour with Nadim.

But sometimes getting through the judgments could be trying.

There was a bit more silence as she heard Amira park and turn off her car. “I’ve said my piece and will let it go. Oh, and by the way, Duncan has all of his students voting for your video, so don’t get confused if you see an uptick in votes in the fourteen-to-nineteen age range from the Peterborough area.”