Page 134 of Love Among Vines

Cindy: How’s it going?

Jade sent a poop emoji and slid her phone back into her bag.

By the time dinner was actually plated and on the table, the atmosphere had relaxed. The frost between Rett and Alexa had melted a bit, and Chris had taken over the majority of conversation.

As they scraped the last bit of the—admittedly delicious—food from their plates, Chris was on his third retelling of a memory from a family vacation. A New York accent seemed to become stronger with each subsequent glass of wine.

“And then,” he said, face slightly red. He had had most of the second bottle of wine himself. “The wave just absolutely wrecked Rett. I’m talkin’ obliterated.”

Alexa laughed.

“That sounds awful,” Jade said, turning to Rett. “Were you okay?”

He nodded. “It’s all part of the learning experience. I still surf every time we head west.”

“Do you do much surfing, Chris?” Jade asked pointedly. So far, most of his charming family anecdotes had highlighted embarrassing moments for Rett. Her hackles had been raisedand she wouldn’t hesitate to go for the jugular the second things inevitably went south.

“Nah,” he said after another gulp of wine. “Not many waves in New York. But you know that. Where do you live, again?”

“Midtown. For now,” she said. “I’m moving at the beginning of next year.”

Chris slapped the table, rattling the dishes. “No way. We should meet up for brunch sometime.”

“Sounds fun,” she said with false cheer. She would rather have an intimate dinner with a pack of wolverines than this grifter.

Alexa set her sights on Rett. “Rett, I was wondering if we could talk before dessert. Briefly. Maybe out on the patio?” Her tone was casual, but it seemed like a calculated move. Why was she trying to get him away from the rest of them?

Jade’s hand curled into a fist at her side.

Rett stiffened again. “Sure,” he said. He finished his wine and dropped the glass on the table.

He stood, and they disappeared through the patio doors.

CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

RETT

Rett crossedhis arms and stared at the woman who had dropkicked him in the heart. There was a time when he would have done anything to get her back. He’d had their entire future planned out. Marriage in two years, kids in five. He knew her favorite band, her Taco Bell order, her ring size. But in this moment, she might as well have been a stranger.

“Thank you for agreeing to talk,” Alexa said.

He stared back at her and said nothing.

“I just wanted to apologize.” Her cheeks had turned pink. “For everything that happened between us—and the way it all went down.”

“It was a long time ago,” he said flatly. He turned to look over her shoulder, where the lake lapped at the edge of the dock. Maybe it was time he got a boat. Even if its only purpose was to be an emergency escape for stupid conversations like this one.

“Still. It was unkind and inappropriate.”

He raised his eyebrows and barely bit back a laugh. “Sleeping with my brother in my own apartment? Inappropriate?”

“I’m really sorry,” Alexa continued. “I don’t want you to think that what we had didn’t mean anything. You were an amazing boyfriend.”

“Not as amazing as Chris, apparently.”

“I wish I could explain.” Her voice was softer now. “We were just drawn to each other.”

His eyes narrowed. If he wasn’t mistaken, that was the same bullshit excuse Nate had given Jade. Alexa was trying to butter him up for something. It was about time he found out what.

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