His eyes meet mine, but not with the spark of joy I’d expected. And while he seems comfortable with Angel, the two of them aren’t fizzling over with chemistry. In fact, his dark eyes appear a little sad. I try to read him more deeply, but he glances toward Liam, and I realize the pastor is talking.
“That’s beautiful, Desiree.” Liam nods. “Serving the less fortunate is one of the best ways to find healing, because it takes our minds off our own pain.”
“Speaking of service ...” Vincent clears the area in front of him, sliding his utensils and water glass out of the way to make room for food.
Our waitress appears amid the tantalizing scents of all the meats. She balances a tray on one hand and sets my plate down first. The large whitedish overflows with crispy chicken, a cup of coleslaw, and shoestring potatoes.
While it’s probably true that we can find our healing while serving, there’s also something to be said for the gift of being served. And I am ready to partake of whatever that is.
An air raid siren rips through the air. I jump, then remember it’s the special ringtone I gave Crew Scheduling. My first good restaurant in Seattle, and I’m being called out.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Nathan
Andonce youhave tasted flight youwill walk theearth with your eyes turned skyward; forthere youhave been, andthere youwould return.
—FREDRICMARCH ASLEONARDO DAVINCI, SAGA OFWESTERNMAN
Someone needs to clip Angel’s wings. After I admitted my feelings for Claire to her on our date, she’s been purposely throwing us together. All while she claims to despise cheaters as much as I do.
The problem with the temptation to steal a girlfriend from a guy I don’t believe deserves her is that it doesn’t feel wrong. In fact, it feels pretty right. And Angel’s not helping.
Apart from all that, I am glad she brought Claire to church with her. I hadn’t invited Claire for my own selfish reasons. Like not wanting to sit across from her at lunch afterward and endure her playful kicks and soulful glances, all while knowing I shouldn’t reciprocate.
But then to have her called out for work in the middle of our meal and be the most plausible candidate for driving her back to her crash pad so she’s not late for her shift. That’s what happens when you’re the single guy who lives across the street.
It isn’t that I didn’t want to be alone with Claire. It’s that Idid. More than anything. Even if she’s just grilling me about why I won’t keep dating her roommate.
I don’t tell Angel’s divorce story. That’s hers to tell. I just say Angel doesn’t want to ever get married, at which point Claire drops it.
But my feelings for Claire have been eating away at me so much that it’s not until I meet Vincent at a Seahawks game that I remember this is my first game since I proposed to Joey on the Jumbotron. Not until we climb to our seats in the nosebleed section and turn to face the giant screen framed by our downtown skyline does the memory hit.
“Huh.” I expected my stomach to clench or pain to zing through my chest like a heart attack. Nothing.
“Huh?” Vincent challenges. “I know I used to have better seats, but I’m paying for a wedding this year, man. I give you a Seahawks ticket on your Thursday off, the roof is open because it’s not raining for once, we’ve got a sunset view of the Seattle skyline, and all you can say is ‘huh’?”
I sip my fizzy soda, breathe in the beefy scent of hot dogs, take in the peaks of skyscrapers beyond the field, listen to the hum of excited fans, and fight to keep a straight face as I repeat, “Huh.” A smile cracks, so I explain. “This is my first time here since I proposed to Joey, and it doesn’t sting the way I expected.”
“Oh man.” Vincent slaps me on the back. “I wasn’t going to mention it because I was afraid I’d scare you away, but that’s fabulous. What a great place to be emotionally.”
I nod and settle into my cold bench seat, wondering if any season ticket holders are nearby who might recognize me from the proposal aired to the thirty-seven thousand fans in attendance last year. If anyone asks where my bride is, I’ll simply answer, “It didn’t work out.”
Before today I’d always make sure to let people know Joey had cheated. And I was always afraid they were secretly thinking something like, “I don’t blame her.”
The fans around us start booing, as if they understand how I feel, but they’re just reacting to the opposing team taking the field. Naturally, we’re playing the 49ers, whose quarterback had hit on Claire.
“There’s Claire’s boyfriend—Andrew James.”
Vincent stands, as if that position will help him boo louder.
I join him. “Boooo ...” If only we could boo her real boyfriend this way.
Finally the noise calms and we return to our seats. “Claire knows you’re over Joey?”
“Yeah.” Not that it matters now, because she’s still in love with someone else. “She set me up with Angel, and I invited Angel to church.”
Vincent nods, though he’s watching the pregame show. A reporter is interviewing the owner of our team’s falcon on the Jumbotron. A giant bird with a white belly, grayish wings, and a yellow beak perches on the man’s arm as he answers questions over a blaring sound system.
