“Uh, sorry,” I muttered, even though we both knew I hadn’t forgotten a damn thing.
“You were going to bring me some of their famous lasagna since I’m taking a late lunch today.” Her gaze slid toward Tessabefore flicking it back to me. “And an order of tiramisu because it’s my favorite.”
I dragged a hand across the back of my neck. “Right.”
Subtlety had never been Susan’s strong suit, but apparently, matchmaking schemes were. She ducked out just as quickly as she’d appeared, closing the door behind her.
I turned back to Tessa and cleared my throat. “Would you like to come with me? They have that carbonara you enjoyed so much.”
I fully expected her to say no, so I was stunned when she nodded. “Yeah, I could do that.”
“Okay. Let’s go.”
I hoped she couldn’t tell how rattled I was, but her slight smile told me I failed. Which was fine because the idea of sharing a meal with Tessa had felt impossible only an hour ago.
The walk to the restaurant was short, but every step felt like unfamiliar territory. Having Tessa beside me again felt surreal. It was more than I had ever let myself hope for.
I pulled the door open for her, and she slipped inside with a quiet “thank you.”
The hostess led us to a small two-top near the window and set the menus down before walking away.
Tessa slid onto the chair across from me, smoothing her palms over her thighs. “I can’t believe you remembered the carbonara. It’s been a long time.”
“I didn’t forget anything.”
“Yeah.” Her eyes flickered to my face and back down again. “It’s hard to doubt that with everything you’ve done lately.”
I didn’t let myself smile, but I was filled with satisfaction. Not because Tessa was impressed. That wasn’t what any of this had been about. But it had done exactly what I’d intended—made her life better.
Tessa traced her finger over the name of the restaurant where it was imprinted on the front before picking up her menu and opening it. I was too aware of the weight of the moment to pretend I could focus on lunch specials.
“Before we order…” She looked up at my words, her expression guarded but curious. “I need to be completely honest with you.”
13
TESSA
Idropped the menu back on the table, my brain whirling with every terrible possibility. “What is it?”
Gage exhaled, rubbing the back of his neck like he used to do when he was uncomfortable. “Susan made up the lasagna thing. She was trying to nudge me into asking you to lunch.”
My head jerked back as I blinked. “Oh.”
Three years ago, Gage wouldn’t have volunteered information that made him look a little foolish. His confession was the last thing I expected, but it was annoyingly impressive.
He watched me carefully. “If that changes how you feel about being here, we can get your carbonara to go. No hard feelings.”
He’d just handed me the perfect excuse to walk away. To put distance between us. And protect myself.
But he was being vulnerable in a way that didn’t feel like the Gage I used to know. Unvarnished honesty looked good on him.
“We’re already here.” I opened the menu again, trying to ignore the butterflies swirling in my belly. “Let’s just have lunch.”
The relief that flickered across his face was there and gone in the blink of an eye, but I hadn’t missed it. And I was scared to admit I felt it too.
Lunch passed faster than I expected. We didn’t dive into heavy territory again, but we didn’t dodge each other either. Our conversation was light and surprisingly easy.
Gage teased me about ordering the same thing I always had, while I quipped back that he might as well close his eyes and pick a dish at random since he always wanted to try something new.
