Page 159 of With Us

I gave myself a mental shake. “Yes, sorry.” Turning, I started through the parking lot toward the sidewalk. I’d walked the same route what seemed like a million times, but it felt unfamiliar.

Before I knew what I was doing, I stood in front of Java Brew. The doors were open, the faint smell of coffee still clinging to the interior. Wendy stood on a ladder, using a drill to take a painting off the wall. The place was mostly gutted, only a few odds and ends from the office and décor still there.

I should ask her about the smoothie bar offer. Smoothies and coffee can’t be too different. I could eventually get used to kale.

Maybe.

Instead of following through, I continued walking. I slowed when I approached my old building, but an SUV pulling to the curb grabbed my attention.

The window rolled down and Niall offered me a small smile. “Ready to go?”

I began shaking my head, but I nodded instead. “Yeah, okay.” Climbing into the backseat, I watched as Niall entered the address into the GPS. “Where are we going?”

“Mr. Amato is waiting at the restaurant.”

“Which one?” I asked, looking down at my clothes. For some reason, I could’ve sworn I’d put on black pants and a nice blouse to go to Weggies. Instead, I was wearing the watercolor skirt and crop top with a pair of white high heels that were splattered in colors to match the outfit exactly.

“A new place near his office. Everyone else is already there.”

“Everyone else?”

“Luc, Rosa, and all the other business associates.” He met my eyes in the rearview mirror. “Don’t worry. It’s been rented out and dinner is buffet style, so you’re not holding them up.”

I grimaced. For the most part, I had no problem attending events with Theo. I even enjoyed some of them. But being thrown into it unexpectedly left me feeling frazzled and off kilter. Plus, Theo and I still weren’t in a good place. We weren’t in a bad one either. We just… were. As if we merely existed in a shared space.

It was depressing.

When we stopped, I saw how crowded the restaurant was through the large windowed front. I wanted to stay in the SUV with Niall, or better yet, have him take me home. Forcefully, I exited the SUV and walked quickly across the sidewalk. When I opened the door, I saw Theo standing at the bar. I stepped inside, and his eyes locked onto me.

There was nothing contained or forced about the dimpled grin that spread across his face. He met me at the halfway point, pulling me into a hug that lifted me off my feet. “I missed you, gattina.”

“You just saw me this morning,” I reminded him.

“No. I missyou,” he whispered against my neck. “The real you. Not in your head or holding back from me. I miss us being easy and happy. Let me bring us back there.”

When he set me down, I kept my wobbly smile in place. “I miss us, too.”

Theo wrapped his arm around my shoulder, his whole posture both possessive and filled with pride. “I can’t wait to show you off.”

For almost an hour, Theo whisked me around the room to meet different people who worked for Amaric and the other companies under their control. I sipped at delicious cocktails and ate hors d’oeuvres, each one more mouthwatering than the last.

When we sat for dinner, Theo at the end of one of the rectangular tables, he made sure I had the seat facing the window. Fun pots of cheese fondue were positioned within reach of everyone.

Actually, cheese had been in all the hors d’oeuvres, too.

When I raised a brow at Theo, he winked and said, “Who needs Wisconsin, right?”

Theo began a conversation with some of the people at our table about a new expansion for a green energy internet service. Throughout the salad course, I split my attention between their words and the outside view. Lights twinkled in the streets, breaking through the darkness and giving me a quick view of passersby.

It was mesmerizing, having that tiny little picture of their day. It was an infinitesimal blip in their timeline, but I was a part of it, if only as a voyeur. I saw couples pass, embracing each other in warm affection. Another went by, their fighting almost audible as they bickered. A third rushed by a little while later, and sadness filled me as I watched their cold indifference before they were gone, too.

A mother and her young daughter walked together, their steps bouncy and playful. They were almost out of the light and my line of sight when the mother was snatched backward, but I couldn’t see by whom.

I gasped, clutching Theo’s arm. “Outside! You’ve got to help her.”

His eyes were filled with regret. “I can’t.”

“Why not? Someone grabbed that woman!”

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