Page 174 - It Ends with Us

Chapter Eighteen

“Oh, God. I thi nk I might thro w up.”
R yle puts hi s thu mb und er my chi n and tilts my face up to hi s. He
grins at me. “You’ll be fine. Stop frea king out.”
I shake my ha nds out and bounc e up and down ins ide the el ev ator.

“I can’t hel p it,” I say. “Ever ythi ng you and Allysa ha ve told me about
your mother makes me so ner vous.” My ey es widen and I bring my
ha nd s up to my mouth. “Oh, God, R yle. Wha t if she asks me ques tions
about Jesus? I don’t go to chu rch. I mea n, I rea d the Bible when I was
young er, but I don’t kno w ans wers to any Bible trivia ques tions .”

He’s rea lly laughi ng no w. He pulls me to hi m and kisses the side of
my hea d. “She won’t talk about Jes us. She alrea dy loves you, based on
wha t I’ve told her. All you ha ve to do is be you, Lily.”
I start no dding . “Be me. Okay. I thi nk I can pret end to be me for
one ev eni ng . Right ?”
The doors open and he walks me out of the el ev ator, toward
Allysa’s apartment . It’s funny watchi ng hi m kno ck, but I gues s he

tec hni cally does n’t live here any more. Over the last few mont hs , he
just sort of slowly beg an staying with me. All of hi s clothe s are at my
apartment . His toilet ries . Last week he ev en hu ng tha t ridiculous
blurr y pho tograph of me up in our bed room, and it rea lly fel t offic ial
after tha t.
“Does she kno w we live toget her?” I ask hi m. “Is she okay with tha t?

I mea n, we aren’ t marri ed . She goes to chu rch ev er y Sund ay. Oh, no ,
R yle! Wha t if your mother thi nk s I’m a blasphem ous who re?”
R yle nu dges hi s hea d toward the apartment door and I spin
around to see hi s mother stand ing in the door way, a layer of sho ck on
her face.
“Mother,” R yle says. “Meet Lily. My blasphem ous who re. ”
Oh de ar God.