Ari gave him a gentle smile. “Tom, to be honest with you, you always seem a little awkward around me.”
“That’s because,” Tom spoke softly, “you’realwaysbeautiful to me. You’ve always been beautiful to me. And so I’ll always be a little awkward around you. That’s my curse.” He looked at her,sighing a little and longing to run his hand down her arm. “A curse I’m happy with.”
Ari stared at him for a moment, her eyes as blue as the sea on a clear summer’s day.
“Are you really okay with it?” she asked him.
He stared back at her. Her palm was warm and soft within his.
“Okay with what?”
“Sasha getting married.”
Tom swallowed. “Of course I’m okay with it. I was never in love with Sasha, you know. Never.”
Ari sat back, her eyes drifting to the glass of wine before her, though she kept her hand within his.
“I think back to last year, sometimes,” she admitted. “I go over everything Sasha said about you. The things she told us about your relationship, so we could plan your wedding.”
“Sasha was never anything more than a Band Aid.” Tom sat back too, squeezing Ari’s hand. “Not having you... it was like a gaping wound, like being torn in two, and Sasha was something I used to piece myself back together. That was all. I’m not proud of myself for it . . . I’m ashamed of myself for so many of the things I did.”
“I don’t want to talk about Tom Miller tonight.” Ari squeezed his hand back. “There’s nothing more to say there.”
“I thought I’d lost you forever,” Tom replied with a sigh. “If only I’d known... Well, I didn’t. And I can only keep going forward from here.”
“Yes,” Ari agreed. “Going forward is good.”
Tom licked his lips. “Reine told me you’re painting again.”
Ari blinked in surprise. “She did?”
“Yeah. I’m glad. I love your work. I was crushed to hear you’d stopped because of me.”
“I didn’t stop because of you — well, not directly. I just... I didn’t have time. Or the inclination, perhaps. But now, with you here, and helping with Reine... I have both again.”
“How’s it going?”
“The painting? Slowly. I’m out of practice.”
“Just keep going. I believe in you.”
“I know,” Ari replied. “You were always my biggest fan.”
“I want first dibs on your newest work if you decide to sell it,” Tom joked.
“What? You want to make your collection a neat thirty-eight?”
Tom felt himself go red.
Ari squeezed his hand again. “I’m glad you bought them. You inspired so many of them. It’s fitting that they belong to you.”
There it was again, that ocean blue in her eyes.
Tom cleared his throat, looking down quickly. “So, my mom’s seen your newest work?”
“And Luis. And Sebastian. And Stella and Corentin. Oh, and Brandon too. We had coffee last month.”
“Everyone but me, then.”
