I’m alone.Vulnerable.My nerves haven’t settled since the doorbell incident, so when the silhouette blocks the light, I gasp—my heart slamming into my ribs as visions of Giovanni Russo flash through my mind.
But then the shadow shifts, and the man steps closer.
Hat.Sunglasses.Hoodie.
But I’d know the shape of him anywhere.
My heart stutters.Trips.Falls flat on its face.
“Nate?”I whisper.
He lifts his chin, and even with half his face hidden, I can feel the intensity of his gaze.
“Hello, Ad,” he murmurs.“Is it alright if I sit back here?”
My pulse is still racing, but now it’s for an entirely different reason.
“What are you doing here?”I hiss.
He rubs the back of his neck—a nervous gesture I remember too well.
“Just lending some support.Dropped off a donation earlier, and the vice principal invited me.”
I narrow my eyes.
“Oh, what—you needed some attention?So you decided to come steal it from a bunch of middle schoolers?”
“Fuck, is that what you think of me?”he snaps quietly, wounded anger threading through his voice.“Look, I wanted to see you.And the show.But no, I don’t want to steal any attention.That’s why I’m hiding back here in the dark like a creep.”
He’s telling the truth.
It hits me instantly.
And I feel like the world’s biggest asshole.
“Shit, I’m sorry,” I mutter.“Of course you can sit back here.”
I point to an empty folding chair near the bakery table.
He sits, awkward and enormous and unmistakably him.
The table is set up all the way in the back, but that just means we have an unobstructed view of the stage right down the center aisle.
We watch the first half quietly, gasping at the surprisingly clever stage design, and smiling widely when Bella makes an appearance.
The kids are great.
But I’m so fucking aware ofhim, it isn’t even funny.
“And now we break for a fifteen minute intermission!”the same kid who made the curtain call yells again.
“You wanna talk?”Nathan asks, but the intermission line is already forming—so I shake my head.
“Sorry,” I reply and smile at my first customer.
And that’s when the chaos begins.
Customers pile up.
