“It’s lovely to meet you, too,” Rose says. She’s giving my mom a toothy grin, so wide her chin is dimpling. She catches me looking at her, and her eyebrows go up, like she’s asking if I can believe she’s meeting my mom—my mom, who knows about us. Honestly, I’m not sure I can.

“Your parents?” I nudge her, and she snaps out of her happy bubble.

“Yes.” She searches for the words, but she doesn’t seem to find them. In the end she just sighs and shakes her head. “It’ll be fine.”

Mom might not know Rose at all, but like that’s ever stopped her from giving an opinion. “I watched your speech online,” she says in a serious voice. “You did very well. It can be hard to be a good parent when your child does something you don’t think is right for them. They just want you to be happy. When they realize this is what you really want, they will be so proud of you. Anyone would be lucky to have a daughter like you.”

Rose looks touched, but a little pensive. “Thank you.”

Well, as much as I’m enjoying their meeting, I’m dying to talk to Rose one-on-one. We haven’t had a chance to all day, and it’s been a hell of a day. So, I start shoving Mom out of the room, as warmly and lovingly as I can. She goes, but not before making Rose promise to come over for dinner during the break. And making her promise to look after me. And giving her her number, while making her promise to contact her if I ever need her and I’m too stubborn to reach out. By the time she finally leaves, I’m feeling less like Rose is my girlfriend, and more like she’s my mom’s spy on the inside.

Finally, we’re alone. Rose basically melts into a puddle as soon as the door’s closed, leaning her whole body weight against my desk and linking her fingers behind her neck.

“Well,” she says. “Today’s a very different day than yesterday.”

“That’s one way to put it,” I say, leaning against the door as a barricade, like Mom’s gonna try to burst back in any second to keep making Rose promise stuff. “Do you know if Alfie’s seen it all yet?” I ask, and she winces.

“Right. I forgot to tell you.”

“Tell me what?”

“Hmm. Well, to summarize, he’s the one who outed us to my family last year, he ignited the online rumors, and he leaked the video of you and Harriet, so he could get his mother to expel you … so he and William could convince me to marry him.”

It’s just about the last thing I expected her to say. “What?”

“I know.”

“No, seriously, what?”