Veronica Kanter.
I bolted to my feet. Confusion, then this fierce drive to go to her overcame me. It was Veronica, here, alone. I started towards her, weaving around the tables to where she stood, still scanning the tables. Yup, it was definitely her. Right height, right shape, right face. Why the hell was she here? No, wait a minute, what the hell was I doing?
I watched her as she finally noticed me. We locked eyes, and her lips parted. She stood still as I walked up to her. It was too late to act like I hadn't seen her now. I didn't want to do that, anyway. I wanted to talk to her, but it had been a year and I was here because I was supposed to be on a date with another woman. I hadn't thought about this moment that much, but I hated that I had nothing to say to her. This was Veronica, she wasn't a stranger.
"Roman," she said first as I approached.
"Ronnie. Hey," I said.
"Hi," she said, smiling a little. That was good. Smiles were always good.
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
"I could ask you the same thing. I didn't know you were back in town."
"Hasn't been that long, just about a week," I said. "You look great," I added honestly. She really did. Now that I was close enough to get a good look at her, she looked even better. She looked like she was here for a date.
"Thanks. Likewise." A couple awkward seconds of silence passed.
"Are you here with someone?" I asked. She had walked in alone, but that didn't mean the answer to that question was no. Even though I sort of hoped that it was.
"Actually, I am," she said. Fuck, of course she was. Tiff had said she was with someone. They were here on a date. "It's kind of a funny story."
"What happened?"
"I let Tiffany set me up on a blind date," she said, looking down like she didn't really want to tell me. All I had heard was the words “blind date.”
"Are you kidding?" I said.
"I know. She said she knew this guy from her work that she thought I would like... Sorry. I sho
uldn't be telling you this. You're probably here with someone."
"Ron. She told me the same thing," I said. She blinked a couple times.
"What?"
"Tiffany. She said the same thing to me. Blind date with a girl from her work." Her brows scrunched up as she looked at me.
"No, she didn't."
"I swear."
"No. Then that means..." She paused, and I didn't need her to finish to know what she was thinking.
"I thought for a minute I was being stood up," I said, trying to lighten the mood. Her face was still puzzled, and I didn't want that to turn into anger. Call me a dog, but fuck, I had her. I hadn't even had to try and she had just shown up. I wasn't going to just let her get away.
"This has to be a mistake," she said.
"It was Tiffany; she planned this every step of the way. Do you want to call her and ask?"
"Would you mind?"
"I mean, I've got a perfectly good table and it looks like she got both of us, so we might as well get a good meal out of it," I said. She looked unsure, like she was thinking about it and wasn't convincing herself that it was a good idea to stay.
"Could you give me a minute?" she asked. I nodded. She said she was using the ladies' room. I showed her where the table was and went to sit while she was gone.
I started feeling nervous. I wasn't worried that she would tell me to wait for her and then ditch. I just hadn't been ready to see her again. This, an awkward meeting where we were set up without knowing it, was the last way I would have picked to see her again.