Page 13 of Art of Love

“I like that,” Juliette said. “Stormy and Blaze.”

“Then it’s settled.” Max lifted his beer glass. “To Stormy and Blaze.”

They all cheered and then drank.

“Oh!” Juliette cried out, then she jumped up and crossed the pizzeria.

They watched her go, and his heart did a skip in his chest when he saw her walk over and hug Dylan, who had just walked in.

For a split second, he saw Dylan drop her guard and smile and hug Juliette back. Then her eyes landed on him and the veil lifted again.

To his surprise, Juliette dragged Dylan over to their table.

“Max, Abe, this is Dylan Beck,” Juliette said happily. “She’s back in town for the summer. I missed talking to her the other night at the bonfire. Dylan, you have to sit with us after you get your food.”

“Right,” Dylan said, her eyes landing on him. “Sure.”

He hid a smile by taking a sip of his beer.

Juliette sat back down next to Max, and the three of them chatted while they waited for Dylan to order.

“What does Dylan do for a living?” Max asked.

“I’m not sure. She was going to school for law, I think, the last time I heard. Her father died last year, leaving her this beautiful cabin and a ton of land up not far from our place,” she told him.

He thought about the loss of his own dad. Not from death, but by absence. The man had never been part of his life.

“Does she have any other family? Siblings? What about her mother?” Max asked.

Juliette shook her head. “No, no one else. Her mother died in childbirth, along with her baby brother, a few years after she was born. Her father was the veterinarian in town way back when. He retired after being kicked in the chest by a cow. All I know is that the last few years of his life were pretty tough.”

Abe leaned back in his chair, letting Juliette’s words settle in. He glanced towards the counter where Dylan stood, her arms crossed as she waited for her order. She looked relaxed, but he’d spent enough time around guarded people to recognize when someone was holding back.

No family. No one left.

He understood that kind of loneliness. Maybe not in the same way, but enough to recognize it in someone else.

Max took a sip of his drink, his brow furrowed. “Tough how?”

Juliette sighed, lowering her voice. “I don’t know the full story, but I heard he struggled after his accident. He drank a lot. Isolated himself. Dylan was the one taking care of him towards the end, during those last few weeks.” She shook her head. “She never really had it easy.”

Abe’s gaze drifted back to Dylan. There was something about her that intrigued him, something beyond her sharp wit and the way she acted like she didn’t care who he was. She had an edge, a quiet strength, but there was also a weight there. A past she carried with her.

He knew what that was like.

The bell over the door chimed, and a couple of teenagers walked in, whispering and sneaking glances in his direction. Abe sighed. He’d been hoping to keep a low profile.

Dylan turned, her gaze flickering between him and the teens before she grabbed her pizza box and made her way back to the table.

“Looks like your fan club found you,” she said, setting the box down and sliding into the booth next to him.

Abe smirked. “Looks like.”

She arched an eyebrow. “You thought you could just waltz into town and no one would recognize you?”

He shrugged. “Worked for a couple days at least.”

Dylan rolled her eyes, but there was a hint of amusement in them. She reached for a slice of pizza but paused when she noticed the look on Juliette’s face.