Page 59 of Like First Love, Again

“Mia.” He gently stroked the back of her hand with his thumb, dragging Mia’s nervous system out of the red zone. “You’ve always talked about her like she was your first love.” His smile was soft and gaze softer, like he held both pity and love in the same space. “And I think maybe she was.”

Thirty

Nine days without Mia, and Tori was already over the gnawing ache of missing her. Mia didn’t have an exact date for her return, but she’d already listed her house in Philly and put a ton of furniture up for sale. The overt acts of actually moving were comforting, given that she wasn’t sure Mia had packed a single box at her mom’s house.

But Tori couldn’t help but worry. Worry that Mia could change her mind. Not just about moving back to Miami, but about wanting to be with her. Mia was talking to her therapist every week, and it wasn’t impossible that Mia might discover that she’d chosen Tori as some kind of grief response. That Tori had been an unintentional means to an end. That they’d moved too fast, or taken the wrong path, or confused comfort for the familiar with something more.

Tori tightened her grip on the steering wheel and turned down her parents’ shaded street. If that was the case, she’d make good on her promise. She would still be Mia’s friend. No matter what.

But God, it would suck to be so close to something real, something bright, only to lose it again. She shook off the sad-sack vibes, as Mia would call them, and sat up. Every instinct told Tori to be patient. To trust Mia.

The last to arrive for Sunday lunch, Tori had to park on the street a block away and walk. Before she jumped out and grabbed the bags of ice she was too distracted to drop off at the house, Tori reached for her phone.

Tori:Made it.

Mia:Are you going to partner with Manny for dominos?

Tori:I’m not playing dominos.

Mia:WHY?!

Despite herself, Tori chuckled. She imagined Mia’s exaggerated indignation over a meaningless game.

Mia:You can’t let him think you’re scared. Or, actually. Maybe that’s genius. He’ll forget how good we are and then we can kick his ass when I’m back home.

Chest warming, Tori dropped her head against the seat. Manny’s only tactic was to do what was affectionately calleddump the fat onesin Spanish. He just got rid of the highest value tiles without paying attention to anything else. Tori was going to remind her of that when Mia texted again.

Mia:I miss you. I wish I was there with you. And not just because I miss your mom’s cooking so bad I might expire. But I miss them and being there and playing and ugh I just miss you. I can’t wait to be home already.

Tori grinned, fears assuaged. Mia was coming back.

Tori:I miss you more.

Mia:Prove it.

Looking around to make sure no one could see her debase herself, Tori freshened up her freshly cut wavy bob in the mirror. When a neighbor moved on with her yapping Pomeranian, Tori made the most pathetic frowny face and snapped a selfie.

Mia:OMG YOU’RE SO FREAKING CUTE! COME HERE AND LET ME EAT YOUR FACE.

Tori was laughing until Mia sent her own photo back. Lying sideways on a modern gray couch, Mia’s eyes were soft and sleepy. The lips Tori missed desperately curved in a tiny smile. It was like Mia had caught herself thinking of Tori and snapped the picture without overthinking it.

A thousand irresponsible thoughts rampaged through Tori’s mind at once. She opened the calendar on her phone, desperately searching for what clients she could move around, what tasks she could delegate. All she needed was to see Mia. To hold her and inhale her perfume and feel her soft lips against hers.

A knock on her window nearly gave her a coronary. “Shit!”

Her mother, face screwed up in worry and hand on her hip, was peering at her like she’d caught Tori making counterfeit checks.

“Mom, you scared the crap out of me,” Tori said when she opened the door with trembling fingers. “Jesus.”

“Your uncle has nothing to do with this.” She peered at Tori like she could will herself into mind reading. “What’s wrong? Why are you hiding out here? The neighbors will think you’re selling drugs like that awful Ochoa boy.”

Jarred, Tori pressed her palm to her racing heart and tried to make sense of what the hell her mother was saying. “What?”

“What’s wrong?” her mother repeated, worry vibrating off her like a neon sign. “Did something happen with Mia?”

Tori cut the engine and slid out of the Jeep. “What would happen with Mia?” She opened the trunk before slipping her phone into the pocket of her shorts. In that moment, she weirdly missed being able to stuff her things into Mia’s purse. “We were just texting and I lost track of time.”

Her mother breathed a sigh of relief like she’d been bracing for terrible news. Tori waited to grab the heavy bags of ice andturned to her mother standing in the shade. “Why were you so worried?”

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