I spot a clipboard with a list of names, bend, and scrawl mine at the bottom.
“Great. I’ll, uh… get on this list… of”—I squint at the top again—“commissions. When they open. Yes. I saw that. On…” Slowly, I stand up straight. A kid bumps into me, full of chocolate, which I’m sure he’s managed to transfer to my pants. I cannot drum up an ounce of give-a-shit for anything but the woman sitting there staring at me like I’ve lost all my marbles.
“I’m trying to…” I shut my eyes, open them, and allow myself to feast on the sight of her. “Listen. You know how you helped Dorothy and pretty much everybody at Sugar? And Sam? And… I heard you helped Harlow with some spreadsheet. I also saw the sick kid on social media who…” I have got to get a hold of myself.Concentrate. “I thought you should know that you’ve helped me too.”
“I have?”
“Yes. That’s what I came here to say.”
“Okay.” She stares, clearly dazed by my off-the-wall performance.
“Uh, you are the brightest, best thing that ever happened to me, Rae. But, you know.” I manage a weak shrug. “I was too dazzled by your light. And scared. I figured I wasn’t what you need, but then… Dorothy mentioned something, and my mom’s not getting married, for once. She changed her mind, would you believe, because of what I said to her.” I pause, look at the little book nook on her table, and recognize exactly what it is. It’s us. It’s Sugar and Off the Cuff. Right beside it is her family, including the mother she lost as a kid. I look over at her and force the words out. “I figured, if my mom can change after twelve marriages, maybe I can too?”
“Wow.Wow.”
I lean in slightly. “I thought maybe you’d…” I swallow. “Sorry, I’m messing this up.”
“You’re not.” Are those tears in her eyes? I don’t want her to cry. I reach up, hesitate, and then, when she moves closer, I give my knuckles one tiny taste of her skin.
“I love you, Rae.”
A tear slips from her eye. I let my finger catch it.
“I love you more than… than… Shit!”
“Hey! Watch it!” says a passing mom, covering her child’s ears.
“Sorry. Sorry. Shi… Dammi… Ugh…”
“Come here.” Her sweet face tilts up, one finger lands on my chin, and we are… kissing. Deep and wet and thorough. I fist her hair and open my mouth, lick into hers, desperate for more. For all of her. “I fucking love you,” I mutter against her, and then she’s dragging at me, and me at her, and—
“Dude. Come on. We’ve got kids here.”
“What?” I turn to see a man with three children, all staring up at me while I maul Rae.
“Fu—I mean… Argh! Sorry. Apologies.” I swipe an arm over my mouth and glance at Rae, who is giggling behind her hand. “I just… I love her, man.”
“I get that. Congratulations.”
“Thanks. I think?” A glance at Rae. “Would you, um…? Can we… start over? Would you…?” Dammit, what am I supposed to say? Go out with me? Go steady? By my girl? No. No, I’ve got it. “Light up my world again?”
Her laugh is instantaneous, messy, and teary. She nods and mouthsyes, and then says it aloud and, suddenly, there is applause.
Oh no. There is now an audience of maybe eight people, including the three kids, who have no idea why they’re clapping. Their dad rolls his eyes and leads them away with a final grin.
Someone’s filming us, I think, which I hate.
“This is private,” I tell them. “You don’t have our consent for that.”
“Free world, old man,” says the kid before taking off, and when I think about what they filmed, I guess it’s not the worst thing to have immortalized.
The crowd moves on, leaving us more or less to ourselves. “Sorry. I… I know you’re working.”
“Worth it.” Rae’s grin is pure delight. It is everything.
“Would you, um, consider coming back to my place? Maybe? After this?”
“Your place? Like where you live? I thought that was a no-woman’s land?”
