Famous in a Small Town

Gene nudged us aside and went to check on his food bowl. Because priorities.

“So . . . dating, huh?” I smiled. “I haven’t done this in four years.”

“I haven’t done this in seven years.”

“You win.”

It must be discombobulating. To think that you’ve found the one and you’re married and done with the whole dating scene, only to find yourself back there. But he’d asked me to dinner after kissing me the night before and so, here we were. It had been surreal, walking back into the bar together after the fight.. People sure gave us a lot of knowing looks. Then Garrett had the good mind to buy everyone in the bar another round of drinks. It distracted them just fine.

All while I tried to figure out what I was more afraid of—Garrett and me actually getting together, or him yet again changing his mind. Hard to say.

Back to the here and now: The house had been meticulously cleaned. The man had been busy. None of the chaos and carnage from the days after Grace’s birthday remained. Florence + the Machine played on the record player and mood lighting was the go.

But we didn’t stop there. He led me on into the kitchen, where the table was set and pillar candles were lit. A crystal vase of white roses sat at one end of the table, along with a bottle of wine in a bucket of ice. And dinner was served and waiting. Steak and lobster with dinner rolls, a garden salad, onion rings, and fries.

I didn’t know what to say. No one had ever done anything like this for me.

“Wow,” I said at last.

“Don’t be too impressed. I had a restaurant in Eureka do it. Claude told me what you’d like. A florist sent up the candles and bouquet.” He gripped the back of his neck and . . . oh my God. Was he actually blushing? “You do like steak and lobster, right?”

“I would have been happy with ramen. But this is amazing.”

He gave me side-eye. “You would not have been happy with ramen.”

“Eh. I might have thought you were a little slack. But in the end I wouldn’t have cared.”

“Come on, sit,” he said, pulling out a chair.

I did as told, placing the white linen napkin on my lap. “We’re really doing this.”

“Yes.” He sat opposite and poured the white wine. “How are you dealing with that?”

“Quietly terrified.”

“Me too.”

“You used to date supermodels—what have you got to be worried about?” I joked. Then I shut my mouth and hung my head. “Can we pretend I didn’t say that?”

“It’s fine.”

“My hobbies include blurting out silly inconsiderate shit when I’m nervous. And you make me nervous like . . . all the time.”

“We’re both going to get through this,” he said. “It’s what I’ve been telling myself for the last twenty-four hours.”

“No regrets?” I asked. “Because, I mean, if you’ve changed your mind, I would under—”

“I haven’t changed my mind. But let’s just take it slow and see what happens, yeah?”

“Slow is great. I am . . . yes, I’m very into slow.” I nodded and carefully started dissecting dinner. Which was when Gene nudged my elbow with a wet doggy nose.

“Don’t fall for it,” said Garrett. “He’s already had his share.”

“Nice try, puppy. But no.”

With a hearty sigh, Gene flopped to the floor. Never had a dog been so maligned.

Then Garrett said, “I know you’re sitting over there waiting for me to freak out again, but it’s not going to happen.”

“How do you know that? Just out of interest. Because you were pretty much ready to spend the rest of your days ignoring me after that first kiss.”

“I am sorry about that. But I’m not in denial about us anymore.”

“What changed?”

“Last night, when you said I’d called you ‘babe,’ you were being nice about it and giving me an out. At the time. But once you’d had a chance to think about it, you would have been hurt and angry. And you would have had every right to be. You were already trying to protect yourself and keep your distance. If I tried to distance myself from calling you babe, it wouldn’t have been good,” he said, tone serious. “I couldn’t keep playing with your heart.”

I just nodded.

“So here we are.” Garrett took a sip of wine, watching me all the while with knowing eyes. It was the difference between him and other men. He knew how to love. But he also knew how painful it was to have his heart broken. “This isn’t a mistake, Ani. I don’t know what the hell it is. But it’s not a mistake.”

“Okay.”

He winced and shook his head. “That’s a lie. The whole not-denying thing is going to take some practice. But I do know what this is. It’s just a big deal admitting it, you know?”