Page 15 of And Everything In Between

His hand found the small of Paige’s back, thumb tracing slow circles across her exposed skin as he locked eyes with her and replied, loud enough for the woman to hear, “Trying to.” His head tilted slightly as he continued, “She says she ain’t what I’m looking for.”

“Snitch,” Paige muttered under her breath, but her voice came out softer than she meant.

She didn’t move away.

Instead, she allowed the contact, soaking in the heaviness of his hand, the silent reassurance behind itshold. She letherself drift, for a second, into the idea of this. Wanting it. Letting it unfold without checking for strings. But it didn’t last long as reality smacked her upside the head, reminding her that this was one night. Life was heavy enough without overthinking a man’s hand on her back. She wasn’t looking to make space for anyone new, not long term at least.

Tonight, she just wanted to remember what it felt like to be out after the sun went down. But everything about Giovanni was whispering that he would make her space ten times better than it was. She was conflicted, and she didn’t like that.

“Why don’t we eat here?” Giovanni nodded toward a small seating area in the back corner of the restaurant. “I like my shit fresh. And I’m tryna figure out if you reallyain’twhat I’m looking for.”

Paige had just picked up her phone, skimming for any missed alerts. It wasn’t blowing up, but that wasn’t the point. It gave her a moment to breathe. To dodge the weight in his words. She raised an eyebrow at him, lips twitching. “Sure. That’s cool.”

“You plan on checking that thing all night?”

“No,” she said, slipping it away. “It’s on DND, nosy.”

“Cool.” A smirk formed as they settled into a worn booth tucked away from the counter. The vinyl seats had seen better days, but the table was clean, wiped down with lemon-scented cleaner. Ms. Leah herself brought over their plates, golden catfish, wings glistening with sauce, extra hush puppies piled high on a separate plate.

“I threw in something sweet for y’all too,” she added with a wink, sliding a small container of peach cobbler between them.

“Appreciate you,” Giovanni said, genuine warmth in his voice.

When Ms. Leah walked away, Paige bit into a Hush Puppy and her eyes fluttered at how good it was, crisp outside, soft inside, with the right amount of onion.

She wiped her fingers on a napkin. “So, you must come here a lot.”

“Since I was knee-high,” Giovanni replied, flashing a grin. “Ms. Leah used to slip me extra Hush Puppies when my pops wasn’t looking.”

“She still is,” Paige noted, nodding toward the overflowing plate.

“Some things don’t change,” he said, dipping a piece of fish in hot sauce. “What about you? Where’d you grow up?”

“Born and raised in South Coupeville. Never left except for college, and even then, I was only an hour away.”

“So, you’re real Coupeville too,” Giovanni said, eyes still on her. “I dipped out for a bit, tried the Midwest. That cold and wind? Nah. I’m a tropical nigga.” He shrugged like it explained everything.

“Is that the only thing that brought you back? No woman? Babies?”

“Nice try, but no, it was family. Roots always pull you back.”

Paige nodded, her smile dimming into something thoughtful. “Families like gravity sometimes.”

“For better or worse.” They shared a look that cut a little deeper than casual should have allowed.

Paige broke the moment, reaching for her drink. “What took you to the Midwest?”

“A woman,” he admitted without hesitation. “And opportunity. Thought I’d build something bigger there.”

“And?”

“Built something, but it was shaky foundation. Didn’t take long to crumble.”

He wiped his mouth slowly. If they agreed to see each other again, he’d tell her more. But just as guarded as Paigecould be he could too. “What about you? What keeps you in the city?”

“My job and family,” she answered.

“Dig that. That bank job must be treating you right?”

---