“Yeah.” I kissed the top of her head. “Let’s go get some bread into you.”
We rounded the corner, nearly bumping into the same girl from before. She eyed me up and down and then Keaton.
We both smiled at her but her eyes were narrowed into tiny slits like she was doing really hard math in her head.
I ignored the feeling in my stomach that said something was off and took Keaton back to our seats.
The rest of the dinner was nice, quiet, no interruptions, and once Keaton ate she was totally fine.
I was suddenly thankful I had taken the chance on the dress.
Thankful that I listened to my mom even after her death, even when it hurt, and thankful that the girl sitting next to me had actually joined us.
If only I could hold her hand and shout it to the world, that she was mine and I wasn’t letting her go.
“So how is the book coming along?” Izzy asked once the dinner plates were cleared and dessert menus were distributed.
I let Keaton answer; it was her book. I was just helping her get it off her chest, sharing the emotional load, and learning about her every day, because his story was also hers.
“Well . . .” Keaton eyed the menu, then looked up. “I think we’re almost done. Julian’s been a typing machine. I don’t know why but it’s just easier talking out loud than typing it. Typing it feels so . . . final to me, and I get stuck, but talking about it just feels like a conversation, keeping the memory alive.” She smiled over at me. “He’s saved my entire book deal.”
“Well, that’s what Julian does.” Bridge shrugged like it was normal. “He saves people.”
“True,” Izzy joined in. “When Bridge was struggling with his mom and they had absolutely no money, Julian built them a trust fund that would set them up for life. He wanted to make sure that Bridge wasn’t cut out of something he was owed.”
I didn’t know what to say to that.
“Sounds like him,” Keaton agreed as if I wasn’t even at the table.
I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. “If you guys are trying to make me look good, it’s working.”
Bridge scowled. “You don’t need help looking good. You have the better hair.”
I laughed at that. “True.”
Keaton and Izzy joined in until the entire table was laughing. And somehow, it wasn’t awkward. The four of us together.
It felt a lot like coming home.
Like finding forever.
Finding my family again.
“Any dessert?” I nodded toward the menu in Keaton’s hand.
She scrunched up her nose. “I think the chocolate mousse, wanna share?”
I gave her a knowing look. “If I say yes, you’re going to grab your knife and hold it at my throat with one hand while you finish the entire thing, aren’t you?”
She sucked in a breath like she was outraged, then said, “Yeah, probably.”
“Sure, yeah, I’ll share.” I laughed, earning a curious look from my brother that basically said I was a goner when it came to Keaton, so I shot him a look that said Shut the fuck up, earning a wide smile and quick middle-finger flash that had me laughing more with him than I had in a long time.
They settled on the buttercream cake to share, though the minute it arrived, Izzy took both forks. Then again, she was pregnant, so Bridge didn’t even argue.
Keaton dug in to hers with fervor. I enjoyed watching her eat it, and then she rolled her eyes and moaned. “Okay, I’m only sharing a bite so you understand this is why I would stab you in the throat, ’k?”
“Violent, isn’t she?” Bridge said out loud.
“Threatened to kill me when we first met, so I’d say that’s a yes,” I joked and turned to Keaton. “Alright, let me have it.”
“Oh, I’ll let you have it so hard . . . ,” she said more to herself and then looked up. “Sorry, I have a thing for chocolate.”
“My kinda girl.” Izzy reached across her table with her fork, they clanked them together in some sort of secret female ritual that basically conveyed not sharing. Ever. And laughed.
Then Keaton’s fork was in front of my mouth. “Open.”
I did as I was told, because Keaton and chocolate together were irresistible, and tasted the best chocolate mousse I’d ever had in my entire life. She pulled the fork back. I clamped down with my teeth and licked the rest of it, my hand grabbing her wrist while she laughed.
“How could you!” a voice shouted, causing Keaton to drop the fork.
My gaze darted around the room and settled on the girl holding her phone up at us, shaking with rage. “You promised to love him forever!”
Keaton opened her mouth. I shook my head at her and stood and went in search of security. Luckily, they were already on their way. It wasn’t normal for any of us to be accosted during meals, but the restaurant always knew to be on high alert whenever a Tennyson was around—we had changed lives within the same breath of ruining them, and while my brother and I were trying to make the company better, we still had to deal with the aftereffects of our father and his ruthlessness.