Page 29 of Vince
Moments later, Vanessa brings out my French dip sandwich with fries and Julia’s mac n’ cheese with a heaping side of broccoli. “Anything else I can get you all?”
The girls each mutter a version of I’m good, and I shake my head in my answer. Then I ask, “Are you still getting off soon?”
“Yeah, that’s the plan. If you want, I’ll take Jules when she’s finished. I should be done in about fifteen minutes. Then we’ll meet you at home.”
“Have you eaten?” Sydney asks. “You’re welcome to join us.”
“Oh, I ate on my break about an hour ago. But thanks for asking.” Another customer waves down her attention. “It was great meeting you. I’ll be back in a few, Jules. Make sure you eat up and not talk the ears off Unks’ friends.”
“Momma…” Jules rolls her eyes, clearly meaningduh. God help us when she’s a teenager. Van’s gonna have her hands full with this one.
With the four of us digging into our food, there isn’t much time for conversation. Sure, Julia chatters from time to time about random things the way three year olds do, but neither Sydney nor Chloe are bothered by it.
As if she’d been watching from afar, Vanessa shows up to get Julia just as she finishes. “You ready to go, squirt?”
“But I’m having fun with Cw-oie. Can’t we stay a bit longer?” she pleads with Van.
“It’s okay, Julia. I’ve actually got to get going, too. I’ll even walk out with you.” Then she turns to me. “Vince, do you mind taking Sydney home? You have a car, right?”
“Yes, I have a car,” I draw out as I look to take a direction from Sydney.
When she shrugs, I take it as a cue she’s fine with this plan. I’m sure there’s still a few things we should talk about to make sure we’ve cleared the air, but I don’t like the idea of forcing myself on her either.
The minute everyone leaves, Sydney mutters, “Well, that wasn’t planned.”
“Did you want to leave with her?” Shit. Did I read her wrong?
She shakes her head. “I swear they orchestrated this. It just felt too convenient that everyone leaves at once—leaving us alone.” Then she gazes at me to read my expression as she quickly tacks on, “Not that I’m complaining.”
I feel the smile pull up at my lips as I try to remain stoic. “Well, at least we got one thing out of the way tonight.”
She cocks a beautifully shaped eyebrow up at me. “You mean the fact that I no longer think you’re married with a kid?”
“You did not think I was married,” I accuse with a scoff.
“Well… it wasn’t out of the realm of possibilities. I mean we’ve just met and barely know one another. I also read a lot of romantic suspense—so my imagination can run wild when it wants to.”
“Thanks for the warning,” I deadpan—which earns a giggle from her.
“But seriously, Syd, let’s make a deal. If you have questions—you come to me. You don’t let them rattle around in that beautiful brain of yours and jump to unnecessary conclusions. I’m not one to hide things from people. Though truth be told—there’s a lot more to my backstory that you’re going to need time to shake out. I can’t have all the skeletons coming out of my closet at once. A man’s gotta have some things to reveal later—or what’d be the fun of gettin’ to know one another?”
“I think I can handle that,” Sydney says with a smirk. “Though fair warning—I’ve got plenty of secrets of my own.”
This earns her a deep belly laugh from me.
Damn. It’ll be fun unravelling her. With her sass, I’m sure she’ll keep me on my toes.
“So, does this mean we’re past our first fight?” I ask, leaning closer to her.
She responds with a tinkling laugh. “I guess it does.”
“Good. Then let’s get out of here, so we can go make up.”
“Really?” She smirks. “And what exactly does that entail?”
“I’m fairly new to this—but I’m pretty certain it’ll involve a bit of kissing.”
With that, I stand, drop enough bills to cover our meal, and reach for her hand. “Are you ready to kiss and make up?”
The look on her face is one I don’t think I’ll ever forget.
