“That wasn’t so bad,” he said softly.
“No,” I agreed, squeezing his hand. “It wasn't.”
He pulled me closer, and I let myself lean into him, breathing in the familiar scent of him, soap and something warm and distinctly Luke.
“We’ll figure this out,” he murmured against my hair. “Together.”
And standing there in the fading light, surrounded by the remnants of crawfish boil and family chaos, I believed him.
Whatever came next, we’d face it together.
And that was enough.
38
LUKE
As usual,Bob Reardon turned what should’ve been a crisis management session into a stand-up routine at my expense.
“Explain this to me like I’m five,” my manager began, “You’re supposed to be out of sight, prepping for your role, and instead, you’re… what? Helping out the Crescent City’s favorite girl-next-door?”
I sighed, pacing the length of the library. “I’m dating her, Bob.”
There was a beat of silence, then a slow, drawn-out “Ohhhh.” He let the word hang in the air like a bomb about to go off. “So, we’re just fully leaning into this rom-com life now? That’s the vibe we’re going for? Because I gotta tell you, Luke, the studio’s gonnalovethis.”
“It’s not like I planned it,” I shot back, stopping to lean against the bookshelf. “It just… happened.”
“Uh-huh.” Bob’s tone was flat. “And what exactly ‘happened’? Did you trip and fall into her arms? Was there a jazz band playing in the background? Please tell me there was a jazz band. It’ll round out this love story for the press.”
“Can you not?” I groaned, pinching the bridge of my nose. “She’s not just some girl. She’s… she’s incredible, okay? And yes, I’m in love. Happy now?”
I mean, I hadn’t told Anna that I loved her yet, but I knew it was how I felt.
There was a pause. “Wait. The way you just said that... Have you toldherthis?”
“Not... exactly.”
“Not exactly?”
“I mean, not in those specific words, no.”
Bob let out a bark of laughter. “Oh my. Fisher, are you telling me I’m the first person hearing this? Yourmanagergets the ‘I love you’ before your girlfriend does?”
“It’s not—that’s not how?—"
“This is amazing. This is peak Luke Fisher. I’m putting this in my memoirs.” He was full-on cackling now. “Chapter Seven: The Time Luke Fisher Told Me He Was In Love Before Telling The Actual Woman.”
“Are you done?”
He was not.
“Do you want me to call her? Break the news? ‘Hi Anna, Luke’s manager here. Just wanted to let you know he’s in love with you. He told me first, obviously, as one does.’”
“I hate you.”
“You lovemetoo? Fisher, you’re really spreading it around today. Does Anna know she has competition?”
“Did you want to do some actual planning for how we’re going to talk to the press about this?”
