“Maybe I’m just picky when it comes toyourfood.”
She gasps.
“Amelia has excellent taste,” he tells her. “You’ll see.”
“It’s true. I do.”
Gregory laughs, and his mom sighs. “Okay, well, let’s see what happens. I’m still ordering the clam chowder, though, because even if my son doesn’t appreciate it, it was my husband’s favorite.”
Gregory’s shoulders fall. “Well, why’d you have to go and say that? Now I feel like an ass for dissing your cooking.”
His mom laughs, and I’m glad. For a second I was worried shemight get emotional—which would have been fine, but I’d have been afraid about handling it the right way. “You should always think twice before insulting your mother,” she says. “And watch your language.” She turns to me. “Can you join us yet? If you even want to, after hearing Gregory behave so poorly.”
I put their orders in and take my other table their check. Then I’m back. Gregory scoots over and pats the leather beside him. I slide in with a little too much force, and my thigh brushes against his before I scoot back over, putting a few inches between us. I immediately register his scent, the same one I noticed that night on the beach. It’s… fresh and outdoorsy, like the sun and pine trees. I want to lean into it.
“So, Amelia,” Gregory’s mom starts, folding her hands together on the table. Her nails are bright red, and she still wears a wedding ring on her left hand. Even though a few small wrinkles frame her brown eyes, they’re bright with mirth. “Tell me what community-service project required you to befriend my son this summer.”
Gregory groans, “Mom!” at the same moment I burst out laughing. I turn to him. “I like her.”
“I don’t,” he grumbles, but the way he glares at her somehow lovingly across the table shows me how close they are. She grins back. “But I do like the music situation going on in here,” Gregory continues. “Mark Ambor and then Weezer? Top-notch.”
“Ah, so you’re a fan of my work,” I say with a grin.
Gregory doesn’t look surprised. “I should have known.”
I spend fifteen minutes with them, which is just enough to passthe time before Shelby brings their food over. Gregory prompts me to share my most interesting ocean facts with his mom, and for a second I wonder if he’s teasing me, but then I realize they’re both genuinely interested. Gregory seems almost proud to show off my knowledge, and his mom is delightful and funny, and she and Gregory banter back and forth several times. It reminds me of how my dad and I can get sometimes, and I wonder what their family was like when they were a party of three.
I leave them to eat, and rejoin Myles by the front door. He took a new table while I was chatting, but he already put in their order and is waiting for the food to come out.
Almost immediately when I lean my hip against the podium, he says, “Hey, you know how you said you miss sailing with Kat?”
I think back, unable to recall when I mentioned this to him but not surprised that I did. I used to love going out on the boat with her and her dad. I loved it so much, I didn’t even mind when Luke, her annoying little brother, came along too.
“Yeah,” I say.
“So, my family doesn’t have a sailboat, but we do have a Boston Whaler. My parents always take it out on Friday mornings, and I was gonna go with them this week as long as the weather’s good. My brother might come too. I don’t think you work that day, so you’d be welcome to join us.”
“Join you?” I repeat to buy myself time to process what Myles is asking me.
“Yeah. We know a lot of great spots to anchor and swim at.”
I can’t keep the excitement off my face. I know we’ve beenflirting, and there was that hug and cheek kiss at the beach, but this feels bigger. “Seriously?”
He chuckles. “Of course. Why do you sound so surprised?”
“I don’t know. I guess I just didn’t know I was ‘hang out with your family’ caliber.”
He rolls his eyes good-naturedly. “Obviously. You’re the only one besides my family who knows about my rare but highly sought after skill set.”
“You bring up a good point,” I say with a laugh. “Quick, what’s a group of flamingos called?”
Myles grins. “Flamboyance.”
I suck in a dramatic breath. “That’s my new favorite.”
He laughs, and I have the strangest urge to turn and see if Gregory’s looking over here.
“Should I meet you somewhere that day?” I ask.
