Lotus Oden.
Squeezing her mother's hand, Lila felt bad for her mom, and a little bit for herself, too. She'd been standing in for Nati for so damn long—was she now turning out just as bad in her own right? "I'm sorry. I don't want you to worry about me, but please don't." She breathed in deep. "About Lotus… you're right, I do like him.". No, he's not married or on the move or celibate that I know of. I don't think he's interested, but maybe we'll never know, will we? Maybe I'll take your advice and make a move.
"But meanwhile, I don't want to be pressured about it. If and when it's the right thing, I'll know."
Her mother smiled faintly, nodded faintly, and leaned back in her chair. "He does have magnificent shoulders, doesn't he? I've always been a shoulder type girl."
"Mom. Now I'm ac
