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My boyfriend’s chair is empty, my appetite vanishing. “He’s not ready. We agreed on baby steps, not this.”
“He’ll never be ready if everyone keeps tiptoeing around him.” His eyes soften. “You love him?”
“I—”
“He didn’t let you hide. Did he?”
I watch the still-empty chair, Elliot’s words burrowing under my skin. “No, he didn’t.”
“Then stop letting him hide.” Elliot squeezes my shoulder and heads back to the kitchen.
Brandon needs to cook again. Not just bread at 3 AM, but really cook.
I trace the rim of my wine glass. He pushed me about therapy, about eating, about facing my demons. Maybe Elliot’s right. Maybe it’s time to return the favor.
But how? Brandon’s stubborn as hell when he wants to be. Pushing him straight into cooking would backfire again. He needs something smaller. Baby steps.
My eyes land on the spring rolls. The way his whole demeanor changed when he started analyzing it.
The minutes tick by. Where is he? The food’s getting cold, and ‘getting air’ shouldn’t take this long.
I grab my purse and head outside. Cool air greets my skin, but there’s no sign of Brandon. No familiar figure leaning against the wall.
My stomach knots. Did he leave? Actually, leave?
A couple walks past, laughing about something, and a taxi honks in the distance. But no Brandon.
I check my phone.
Blake: Everything ok? You’re supposed to update me.
Naomi: He bolted. Elliot pushed too hard.
Or just right. I don’t know.
Blake: Shit. Want me to come?
Naomi: No. I got this.
I hope.
Okay, so…. Bar? Maybe I missed him.
I push back through the restaurant doors, scanning the dining room. No Brandon by the bar. The bathroom seems like the next logical place to check.
“Looking for your boy?” Elliot appears beside me, wiping his hands on a towel.
“He’s not outside or here.”
“Try the kitchen.”
My stomach drops. “He went back there? After?—”
“Don’t let him know you saw.” Elliot winks. “You know how his pride gets.”
I nod. Brandon’s walls are high enough without feeling watched.
“Window by the prep station.” Elliot jerks his chin toward the back.