Page 30 of The Way Home
“Bummer. Do you want to go somewhere else instead?”
Jeremy pulled into the parking lot and pursed his lips before looking over at me. His expression morphed from disappointment to something hopeful. “You know… Italian might be nice. We could make a date out of it.”
His brows lifted as he watched my response. “A date?” The word was… complicated.Wewere complicated. I wanted so badly to give in and let this thing be real. Stolen kisses were one thing, but giving it a label meant something else entirely, and I wasn't sure I was ready for that.
Before I could say anything, Jeremy grabbed my hand. “It can just be dinner, Ri. We don't need to define it. This can be whatever you want it to be. No pressure, okay?”
I squeezed his hand and blew out a breath. “Thank you. Dinner would be nice. Only…” I looked down at my clothes. “I'm not really dressed for a nice dinner.”
Jeremy grinned. “You look great. Just ask the science lady. She wanted to get all up in Uranus.”
“Shut up,” I snickered.
“She was cute, though.”
“For a nerd?” I supplied the typical response I got.
“She was cute. Full stop. I happen to like nerds.” Why did that ridiculous waggle of his eyebrows make my belly flutter? Because it meant that someone like me could actually have a shot with someone like him. Except…Icouldn’t. God, I was such a mess.
“Should we go in, then?” I asked, trying to redirect my runaway thought train.
“Yup, let’s do this.”
When we walked in the door, a familiar, older woman was working the front. Her eyes locked onto Jeremy and recognition sparked in her eyes. “Well, I’ll be. Is that Jeremy Rodriguez?”
I couldn’t help but smile at how she instantly knew the man at my side. Everyone knew him.
“Doris? You’re still here? I figured you must have retired if you got rid of Sal’s Pizza,” Jeremy said before getting pulled into a hug.
Doris released him. “Oh, no. There’s no way I could stay home and stare at Sal all day. We would both end up in jail or worse. Nosirree. We’ll be right here until they bring a hearse to take us away.”
“What happened to Sal’s then?”
She waved a hand. “Well, we’d been making pizzas for twenty years, long before the pub and the diner came along. And we loved it, don’t get me wrong, but as more tourists show up in the summers, we found people wanting a nicer sit-down experience. So here we are.”
“And Sal?” Jeremy asked.
“Oh, he’s still in the back where he belongs. Did you know he was classically trained? He just happened to love pizza, but it’s been a good change, I think.”
“That’s great, I’m happy to hear it. Though, I will admit, I was really hankering for a cheeseburger pizza.”
Doris leaned in close, whispering conspiratorially, “Well… I heard rumor that you might be moving back to town.”
Seeing the way Jeremy’s face lit up made my heart swell for him. This was where he belonged. People knew him and loved him, and he was such a great fit here. “It’s possible. I’m just waiting to hear.”
“Tell you what… you get the job, and we’ll be putting the cheeseburger pizza back on the menu as our Coach’s special, just for you.”
“Really?” Jeremy’s voice cracked slightly, and I could see his eyes grow misty.
Doris squeezed his shoulder. “Really. It’ll be good to have you back, and I think you’d be a great fit for the team.”
“Thank you, that really means a lot to me.”
“Sure thing, sweetheart. Now, who’s this with you?”
I may not have spent my entire life here like Jeremy had, and even in high school, I tended to disappear into the background, so I wasn’t surprised she didn’t remember me. Even if we’d come to Sal’s several times that summer.
Jeremy’s hand went to the small of my back, a simple gesture, but one that laid claim to me in a way that made my heart want to burst out of my chest. “This is my friend, Riley.”
