Page 9 of Belonging: KT & Lolo (Good Hope: The Next Generation #2)

“I ate before I came.” Lolo gestured toward the other end of the table, where Zoe was making Daisy and Jake laugh with one of her animated stories. “I didn’t realize we were going to eat. What’s your excuse?”

“Excuse?”

“For only having two.”

“I wasn’t that hungry.”

The look she gave him said she didn’t believe him, but he didn’t elaborate. That would’ve only made her more suspicious.

The truth was, Jake’s mention of Mitch earlier had killed his appetite. Even years later, just hearing that name made KT’s stomach twist. Mitch Peskin had taken advantage of KT’s mom when she’d been young, vulnerable and trying to do her best.

“KT.”

The brush of Lolo’s fingers against his arm made him look up. She was smiling.

“I’m glad I ran into you today.”

The warmth that swept through him had nothing to do with the heat of her touch. “Which time? This afternoon or now?”

“Both.”

“Same for me.” As he spoke, KT’s gaze was drawn past her to a couple standing near the bar. A young woman with fiery red curls stood beneath a flickering neon sign, her head tilted up toward a man with jet-black hair and a heavy beard. They were caught in their own world.

“I’d paint that,” KT said, nodding toward them. “Her hair, the neon—so much energy in the color. And the bar behind them, the way the wood absorbs and reflects the light? It’s all heat and friction.”

Lolo followed his gaze, studying the two. “I’d use charcoal. There’s something in the contrast between them. His profile is all edges—sharp, defined. She’s soft curves and warmth. Color would shout. I’d want to whisper the tension.”

KT turned his head slowly, a smile tugging at his mouth. “You always saw structure first. I remember that.”

“And you always chased the light.” She didn’t look at him as she said it, just watched the couple beneath the neon. “It’s what made your work impossible to ignore.”

He remembered her sketches—clean, expressive, with more depth than she’d given herself credit for. She might have stepped away from drawling, but the artistic spark hadn’t gone out. He could see that now.

“You have talent.”

She flushed. “Not really.”

“Don’t sell yourself short.” His voice gentled.

Those were the same words of encouragement his family had offered him when he’d nearly lost hope, those times when he’d doubted his path, when success had felt distant and the rejection too personal. But he’d kept going. And now, though he wasn’t where he wanted to be, he wasn’t lost either.

“I want to tap into a different side of my creativity,” Lolo said, a bit wistful. “Relax into it. Maybe find the fun again.”

“You mentioned you’re designing the Stillwell space?”

“I am,” she said, then waved a hand as if brushing the topic aside. “But let’s not talk about him. Or the project. Not tonight.” Her gaze met his. “Let’s talk about you. It has occurred to me that I never asked if you’re dating anyone back in New York?”

“Not right now.” He kept his tone light. “My longest relationship lasted just over two years. Sonya. She’s a corporate attorney who grew up in Michigan, so we bonded over that.”

Lolo traced the rim of her glass with the tip of her finger. “How long ago did it end?”

“Six months.”

She didn’t ask for more, but he gave it to her anyway. “We weren’t what the other needed. She didn’t really understand the art side of my life. She respected my ambition, not my process.”

When he paused, Lolo met his gaze. “She didn’t respect the painting?”

“She respected the success,” he said simply. “Not the mess behind it. Not the quiet part where I need time and space before I even know what I want to say.”

“It can take time to fully know someone,” she said, her voice soft. “Even when you think you do, you can be wrong.”

He looked at her for a beat. “Is that what happened to you? With the person back in Lexington who you were dating but aren’t anymore?”

She shook her head. “Not a conversation for tonight. But yes.”

Her words were simple. But the way she said them—quiet, certain—held the kind of weight that made KT wonder just how much she’d been carrying.

And whether she’d let him help carry it now.

The music throbbed around them, but the space between Lolo and KT felt quiet, anchored by old memories and the kind of comfort that came from being seen.

Eventually, Daisy nudged Zoe and announced she was heading out.

Jake drained the last of his beer and followed, promising to text them about tomorrow’s pickup soccer game at the park.

Zoe lingered just long enough to hug Lolo and shoot KT a curious smile before heading off with a cheery wave.

Suddenly, it was just the two of them.

KT rose first and held out his hand. “Walk you out?”

Lolo hesitated for only a moment before slipping her hand into his. “Sure.”

The noise from the Ding-A-Ling faded as they stepped into the warm night air. The sky stretched above them in velvet blue, dotted with stars. Crickets chirped. A slight breeze rustled the trees, bringing with it the scent of lake water and something faintly sweet, maybe someone’s backyard firepit.

They paused near her car.

“I still can’t believe I saw you at the Ding-A-Ling,” he said.

She smiled. “Maybe I needed a little noise tonight.”

“Did you get what you needed?”

She tilted her head, studying him. “Maybe more than I expected.”

Something in her voice caught him, made him want to step closer. So he did, just enough that the space between them hummed with something unspoken.

“I meant what I said earlier,” he said. “I’m glad I ran into you.”

Lolo smiled, but her voice was teasing. “Both times?”

“Both times,” he confirmed. “Now I’m tempted to hang around the fountain every afternoon, just in case.”

She laughed, and the sound went straight to his chest .

“I guess I’ll see you back at Paintbrush,” she said finally, fingers curling around her keys.

“You will.” He hesitated. “Maybe tomorrow…we can sketch? Or paint? Something just for fun.”

She looked up, her expression softening. “I’d like that.”

He started to turn, then paused. “Don’t eat the rest of the Cherry Garcia without me.”

“No promises,” she called after him.

KT walked away with a smile—and a feeling in his chest he hadn’t felt in a very long time.

Something was shifting.

And maybe, just maybe, it had started with spoonfuls of ice cream…and a girl who used to draw with charcoal like her whole heart was in it.