Page 61 of All at Once

Luca meets my eyes. “I didn’t mean to look like I was laughing at you. I’m sorry if it came across that way.”

My smile quickly fades.

I recall how he told me that he’d never make fun of my lack of experience, and then immediately feel shitty for even making the joke.

“Honestly, it’s probably a good thing that I felt embarrassed. It helped me get over myself a little and not take things as seriously. So thank you I guess?” I smile.

When he doesn’t really return the gesture and instead almost forces himself to smile back, I wish I hadn’t even said that.

I try to distract myself with the blankets again, when Luca’s voice startles me. “How are your cramps by the way?”

My heart jumps a little. “Oh they’re gone now. Thanks for asking.”

He nods as he continues to prepare everything.

My stomach fills with warmth at the idea that someone was wondering if I was okay.

Before I can reanalyze our whole conversation, their friends including Clara, arrive shortly after, with Enrique coming last. I watch as he goes behind Sofia and messes up her hair, to which she flips him off as he laughs. Something about this interaction looks so natural, soeasy. I find myself wondering why it’s so hard for me, why I can’t flirt like that. Then I catch myself. They weren’t flirting.Were they?

I shake the thought out of my head as Enrique approaches and gives me a quick kiss on the cheek. He sets down the large containers of food he brought with him before making sure everyone has their plates.

I feel nerves start to set in, but they vanish as soon as I take a bite of the steak he prepared. “Okay,” I say, eyes widening, “this might be the best steak I’ve ever had.”

“You’re only feeding my ego with that,” he says with a smirk. “Thank you though.”

“I love it. I just need to try some of your dessert next.”Real fucking smooth, Jasmine.“I’m sure you know by now how it’s a habit of mine to say the most random shit ever.” This is good. At least now I’m addressing it.

His brows crease amusedly. “What are you talking about? I think you’re hilarious.”

“Be careful,” I warn. “I’m afraid there’s plenty more of that coming your way.”

“I for one cannot wait,” he says as he clicks my glass for a toast, when the side of his hand touches mine.

Remembering his scar, I softly brush along his thumb the way I used to daydream about. When my timid eyes meet his more relaxed ones, I ask, “How did you get this scar?”

He looks down at our hands. “Oh, you just noticed it?”

“No,” I admit. “I noticed it in college.”

“You noticed it back then?” he says.

When my nerves creep up again, I try to nonchalantly explain, “It’s hard not to notice someone’s hands when you’re helping them write a twenty-page essay.”

“Good point.” Enrique glances at his finger again as if remembering the time he got it. “When I tried to cook my first ever real meal from scratch.”

“Are you like a chef or something?” I tease.

He chuckles. “Not really. It would be cool to do that one day though.” His lips form a frown. “I don’t exactly have the time to do it right now.”

I don’t know why hearing this comforts me in a way. Finding it almost bizarre how even someone like him who has a stable job making probably good money is still left wanting something more in line with his interests. I guess it just makes me relate to him more in a way.

I smile and offer, “Well, when you decide that’s something you want to do, you’d be fantastic at it. And I’d like an invitation to your restaurant please.”

“That’s a given,” he says. “I’ve been actually planning the menu for the wedding recently, and this steak is one of the options. My team’s trying to test it out as much as we can before the day.”

For some reason in this exact moment, it dawns on me how Enrique never ended up checking in on me. It’s probably since it just came to my attention that his best friend cared more about my well-being than he did.

As if a magnet is pulling me, I look over my shoulder only briefly and spot Luca sitting next to his friends, everyone laughing. I’m about to turn back when I notice Luca glances up.

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