Page 34

THIRTY-THREE

ETHAN

Andre and I pulled into adjacent parking spots in front of Special Blend. It’d only been a few minutes since we’d left my house, but my heart leapt at seeing him again. We grinned at each other through the car windows.

“Good morning.” I kissed him, oblivious to any curious eyes behind Special Blend’s windows. Somewhere, I imagined, phones were buzzing with texts confirming that we’d been spotted together and that we’d made up. “Again.”

“Hi.” His gorgeous brown eyes sparkled in the sun. “Please tell me we can have a relaxing morning when we get to the weekend.”

“Sunday,” I said as we both reached for the door. We laughed. “I got that.”

Andre stepped inside, and I followed.

“This camp session ends on Saturday around noon, and then we don’t start again until Monday.”

The cafe buzzed with its usual morning crowd. Several patrons smiled in our direction.

“Good. I’m going to tell Clara the library is all hers on Sunday.”

Jenny’s face lit up when we stepped up to the counter. “It’s good to see you here. Together!” Her hands were already reaching for cups. “What’ll it be today?”

I decided to go for something different and ordered a sausage, egg, and avocado spread on a toasted everything bagel. Andre also mixed it up with egg, maple caramelized bacon, pepper jack cheese, and sun-dried tomato spread on a maple bagel. For our beverages, we both went for lattes.

Jenny nodded. “Grab your regular table. I’ll get all this right out to you.”

“Could you add a couple maple croissants too?” Watching them slide into the display case, I wanted to pounce on those because they never lasted long.

“Good call,” Andre added.

We settled into our spot, our knees brushing under the small table.

“I like the constant smile that’s been on your face since we talked last night.” Andre took my hand.

“I’m not sure I’ve ever been this happy.” I squeezed his fingers. “There are a lot of great people and things in my life, but I understand now what it means when someone says they found their person.”

Jenny appeared with our drinks. “I’ll have the rest out to you in a couple minutes.”

Once she left, Andre took a sip of his latte, leaving a bit of foam on his upper lip. I reached over and wiped it away with my thumb. He caught my hand and pressed a kiss to my palm. My heart stuttered, and I was sure his affections would always do that.

“I’ve never been happier. I’m glad we got past our… fight? Hurt? Whatever you want to call what went down.” He bumped his knee against mine and left it there. “Let’s not do that again.”

“Hopefully, we learned enough to avoid it in the future. Couples’ therapy should help. Keep us from reverting to our past selves.”

The arrival of our breakfast paused our conversation.

Jenny set down plates with our sandwiches, the croissants, and—surprisingly—a maple tart and maple scone.

“Enjoy your breakfast and maybe the extras later in the day.” She also offered a couple of to-go containers.

“Just in case you need to take some with you.”

“Aw, thanks, Jenny,” I said, touched at the thoughtfulness of the goodies and the to-go boxes.

A perfect nod to yesterday and the foods that paved our path to reconciliation.

“This is quite the breakfast feast.” Andre’s eyes lit up as he surveyed the spread that had taken over most of our table. “Though I might steal a bite of your bagel. That avocado combo is calling to me.”

“Only if I can get some of yours.” I cut my sandwich in half and offered it to him. “Trade?”

“Yes!”

He halved his and we exchanged. I appreciated the comfortable domesticity of sharing food. These simple moments were things I didn’t realize had been missing from my life.

After a few bites, Andre set down his sandwich and took a sip of coffee. “About this summer…”

I gave him my full attention.

“I’m going to read over all the Library Association materials again so I can go over all my questions with them,” he said, breaking off a piece of a croissant.

“And there’s so much to do here before I’d go.

The superhero-themed reading challenge starts next week and runs until Labor Day.

The kids are already excited about earning capes and other goodies for meeting their reading goals.

Plus we’re doing evening story times in the park this year. ”

He paused, meeting my eyes with a slightly overwhelmed expression. “I need to transition my current duties. Plus I want to spend as much time with you as possible.”

“We can probably spend most evenings together, and most Sundays should be ours too.” I reached under the table to squeeze his knee since there was too much on the table to get to his hands. “And Seattle in the fall… well, that’s perfect timing, isn’t it?”

His eyebrows rose. “It is, yeah.”

“It’s going to make dating so much easier.” I broke off a piece of the croissant and washed it down with coffee.

“What’s your travel like during the season?” Andre asked.

I took an extra sip before answering. “Depending on the month, I could be away ten to fifteen days. The trips could be as short as a couple of days, but sometimes I can be gone for a week. And when I’m home, there’s practice and games.

The team is great about issuing schedules so everyone knows exactly what to expect whether we’re in town or traveling. Any idea about your travel?”

“Not yet. Since the program’s new, they know there will be travel, but they don’t know what yet.” He took another bite of his bagel before he continued. “Do you think we could visit Seattle in the next couple of months if I accept? I want to see it through your eyes before I live there.”

“Absolutely.” Showing Andre around my second home would be so much fun. “I can figure out some time away from camp. Between reaching out to have more guest coaches here already and Ry and Bellamy being based here, it’ll work.”

He nodded enthusiastically. “Perfect. It can be part vacation, part fall planning.” He paused, a slight blush coloring his cheeks. “And see your place. Check to see if it’s big enough for two?”

My heart did a backflip. “You’d want that?”

“I know it’s fast,” he blurted out. “And we don’t have to decide right now. But the idea of coming home to each other…” He trailed off, uncertainty in his eyes. “If I’m honest, I’ve loved finishing the day with you on the deck, going to bed, and then starting the day together.”

“Yeah. It’s been great.” A shudder reverberated through me, and I wondered if Andre caught it. The happiness washing over me was nearly overwhelming. “We could take the summer to figure things out, see how we mesh together.”

“These next few weeks are going to be the best.” He raised his coffee in cheers before taking a long sip.

“Speaking of places to live.” I leaned forward. “Would you help me finish settling into the house?”

His face lit up. “I’d be thrilled to. I have some ideas already.”

“Of course you do.” I chuckled, remembering his comments on the small changes I’d already made. “What about having people over this week? Part housewarming, part festival celebration…”

“Part announcing us?” Andre finished with a grin.

“Exactly. Perfect time to celebrate with friends. How about Thursday night?”

“That sounds good, especially so we don’t have to give up our together time on Sunday.”

I glanced at my watch. “We should get going soon. I hadn’t realized the time. Liam’s probably wondering where his coffee is.”

We started putting our leftovers into the boxes. I’d be set for snacks later.

Andre also checked the time. “And I need to learn more about the job offer and catch up from the festival.” Andre took another bite and covered his mouth as he spoke. “Dinner tonight?”

“Of course.” Though I hated for the lovely morning to end, at least I had the promise of seeing him again in a few hours.

“At my place?” Andre asked after a sip of his beverage. “I’ll pick up dinner, and tomorrow I can make you breakfast.”

“Yes, please. I’ve wanted to try out your breakfast specialty.” I stood and he followed suit.

Jenny had Liam’s coffee ready, with the 3 on the cup to identify it, when we reached the front. She wished us a good day as we exited. We walked to Andre’s car, our hands linked. At his driver’s door, he turned to face me.

“Thank you,” he said softly.

“For what?”

“For giving us a chance.”

Instead of words, I pulled him close and kissed him. His hands framed my face as he kissed me back, the world around us fading to nothing.

We reluctantly parted. Andre slipped into his car while I watched him back out and drive away, his little wave through the window making my heart flip.

“Well, isn’t that just the sweetest thing?” Mom’s voice came from behind me.

I turned to find both my moms watching with knowing smiles. “Hey! Breakfast?”

“We were headed that way,” Momma said, linking her arm through mine. “And it looks like you’ve already had yours with a certain someone.”

“Come sit with us for a minute,” Mom said. “We’d love to hear how you’re doing.”

Liam would understand the delay in getting his morning fuel. We grabbed a table near the window, and Jenny brought coffee for my moms. She also took Liam’s, promising to keep it warm.

“So,” Momma said, stirring cream into her coffee, “you and Andre made up?” The lilt in her voice indicated she already knew the answer.

I nodded.

“Are you both being careful with your hearts?” Mom asked.

“We are,” I assured them. “We’re taking things slow, even talking about therapy together. But we don’t want to miss out on seeing where this could go. Especially with his Seattle opportunity.”

Momma’s eyebrows rose. “Seattle?”

I explained Andre’s potential position and our plans to take a summer trip there.

“That’s wonderful that you’ll be in the same city.” Concern threaded Momma’s voice even as she was acknowledging the good news.

“We’re not rushing into anything permanent,” I said to clarify. “We’ll use this summer to get to know each other, discover how we fit together.”

Mom reached across the table and squeezed my hand. “I’m glad you’re on the same page.”

“I’ve never felt like this before.”

Their faces softened with understanding. After all, they’d known their own hearts quickly too.

“Just promise us one thing?” Mom asked.

“What’s that?”

“Keep talking to each other. Especially about the hard stuff.”

“That’s the plan. We have a troubled history. The whole town witnessed that over the weekend, so we want to make sure we’re communicating well so we don’t do that again.”

Jenny returned for their orders.

“Would you come to the house Thursday night? It’s an impromptu housewarming and celebration of the Pride festival’s success.”

Mom’s eyes widened. “Your first party together.”

Heat rose in my cheeks. “Yeah. Just a few close friends and family.”

“We’ll be there,” Momma said.

“I’m glad. There hasn’t been time to have you visit yet.” I checked my watch. “I should go. Liam will think I abandoned him.”

“Love you,” Momma said.

“Have fun with the kids,” Mom added.

I kissed them both on the cheek before grabbing Liam’s coffee and heading out.