We’re both laughing as he gives me a friendly squeeze and releases me. “I hope to see you and Jasper back in Honeywell someday soon. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him as happy as he was yesterday.”
My cheeks heat again, this time from pure pleasure. I’m telling Liam about Gwen’s idea to do a couples or family trip near Christmas when the others join us. There are handshakes all around and thank-yous for Liam’s help yesterday with setting up the park for the photoshoot. He declines Evan’s invitation to join us for breakfast, saying he has to go meet his business partner, but promises to take a rain check for the next time we’re in town.
When Liam is gone, I turn to the others, clapping my hands together. “Time to eat? The smell of coffee and pastries from inside Sweet Escapes is making my mouth water.”
The other three are silent as an indecipherable look passes between them. Gwen meets my eyes briefly, giving me a small, rueful smile as she and Evan step away and disappear inside the café. Baffled, I turn to Jasper just as his fingers clasp mine and he pulls me out of the way of the foot traffic in front of the café.
“What’s going on?” I ask.
“Something has come up and I need to return to Toronto sooner than expected,” Jasper says. “I’ve asked Evan and Gwen to give you a ride back since you’re all going to Bellevue anyway. I’ve already transferred your bag to Evan’s car.”
The weight of disappointment lodges in my chest. “Oh. Okay. Is everything all right? Is it the family or—”
“No, no, everyone in the family is fine,” he assures me. I hadn’t realized he was still holding my hand lightly until his fingers tighten around mine. The contact is reassuring, but only slightly. “It’s nothing serious, it’s just something at work that requires my attention. With the wedding coming up this weekend, I thought it was better to deal with it now.”
“That makes sense.” The dread I’ve tried to disregard since I woke up alone this morning intensifies, making it impossible to ignore.
Jasper releases a quiet, almost imperceptible sigh. He lifts our joined hands and clutches them to his chest. “I’m sorry about this, Willow. I’d been looking forward to the drive back with you. I thought we could stop in Maynooth to check on our dog friends.”
Despite the lightness of his words and the small smile on his face, I can’t push aside the feeling something is wrong. “Do you regret what happened last night, Jasper?”
“No,” he says without hesitation. “Not for a minute. You…you’re very special to me, Willow. I hope you know that.” He pauses to take a deep breath. Before I can respond, he speaks again. “I hate to leave, but I really do need to be on my way.”
“Will you call me when you get back to Toronto so I know you got home safe?”
His lips twitch. “Youwantme to call you now?”
The unexpected and much-needed levity has me laughing and shoving gently at his chest. “I like hearing your voice.”
His smile wavers and droops around the edges. “I like hearing yours too,” he murmurs. He releases our joined hands and grips my hips, urging me closer. We stare into each other’s eyes for a moment and then he leans in. I doubt Jasper is a fan of PDA and, with all the people passing us on the sidewalk, I expect a quick, innocent peck. His arms slip around me, though, and when his mouth meets mine, the kiss is anything but quick and innocent.
In fact, it’s so passionate, I nearly melt into a puddle right there on the sidewalk. With our chests touching, I can feel Jasper’s heart pounding against mine. I think of what I said last night about letting our mouths and hands and bodies do the talking for us, and wonder if he’s pouring his feelings into this kiss because he doesn’t yet have the words.
We’re both breathless when we pull apart. I rock forward on wobbly legs and Jasper steadies me with his hands on my hips. Even though he just kissed me like his life depended on it, I still can’t shake the feeling something has changed between us. And when Jasper releases me and takes a few steps back, the distance between us feels heavy, like it’s more than physical.
“I’ll call you when I return to Toronto,” he says, his voice rough. “And I’ll see you in a few days for the wedding.”
After telling him to drive safe, I force myself to go inside Sweet Escapes rather than watching him walk away. I find Gwen and Evan at a large round table near the back. Gwen tells me they serve full breakfasts here and that she’s already ordered for us.
“I promise the drive home will be fun,” she says. Her voice is overly bright and she’s talking fast. “I’ve got my playlist all ready, and Evan has agreed to stop wherever we want along the way. I noticed a few cute shops and markets, plus one or two roadside antique places on the way up, so I thought we could take our time driving home and enjoy the beautiful weather.” She looks at Evan, who nods and pats her hand.
“It’ll be great,” he says, smiling warmly at me with a face so similar to his brother’s it makes my heart twinge. I don’t think I’m imagining the sympathy in his eyes.
“Is that okay with you?” Gwen asks. “You’re not in a hurry to get home or anything?”
Affection swells inside me for the two people sitting across from me. I’m sure Evan knows by now that Jasper and I slept together last night, either from Jasper himself or from Gwen. The two of them are getting married in a matter of days, and yet they’re taking the time to make sure I’m okay. It makes me wonder if Jasper told them something he didn’t tell me. “I’m not in a hurry if you’re not,” I tell them. “Thank you, guys. You’re the best.”
Our food arrives and we all dig in. Gwen and Evan’s voices as they talk to each other blend in with the din from the café around us. Something is niggling at the back of my mind. Something Jasper said or did that sent up alarm bells of some sort in the moment, but faded away almost immediately.
When Gwen laughs loudly and leans in to kiss Evan, it hits me. That kiss with Jasper before he left—it felt an awful lot like a goodbye, and not the ‘see you later’ kind.
