Page 71 of Perfect Pairing
“How could you bring himhereof all places?” I asked quietly.
Brie deflated a bit. “I didn’t have a choice.”
I scoffed. “You always have a choice. Your name is on the door, Brie.”
“He…he didn’t know who I was. You saw. It was nice to be wanted for me and not what he thought I could give him. That guy…”
“Who the hell was he, anyway? I’ve never seen him around here.”
“A really popular TikTok food blogger who wanted to do a segment on the bakery. And he was great when it came to work. Seemed to genuinely care about me and the shop, as well as the town. But I saw a different side of him tonight, and I hated every second. Still, by the time I realized you’d be working, we were already walking inside.”
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I took nights off here and there, but they were few and far between. Brie knew that, so it was a weak excuse.
“I think you wanted me to see you with someone else,” I said. “I think you wanted to make me jealous.”
“In case you forgot,” she started, backing up a bit, “I’m not the one who ended things. That wasallyou.”
“I did what I did because of Hansen,” I argued.
“That’s a cop out. I know you love him, and I don’t begrudge you that, especially with Shannon gone, but it didn’t have to be one or the other. I know Shannon hurt you, but…God, Ez.Youhurtme. And now you don’t get to go all caveman and have some pissing contest with another guy because he asked me on a date. That’s not how this works.”
“It’s not the same as it was with Shannon, and you know it. I spent nearly three years with her, knowing she didn’t love me or our child, nor did she particularly even want anything to do with either of us. Our marriage was over long before the accident, and Hansen was without a mother long before she got sent away. But then you waltzed into my life and…fuck, honey.” The old nickname slipped out unbidden, but being here in the place where I’d first used it had the veil between past and present blurring until it seemed like every iteration of us and our relationship stood in the room with the people we were now. “I’ve been trying so hard, but I’m so fucking tired.”
“Tired of what?”
“Of fighting this.”
And then, I did the dumbest thing—or maybe the smartest.
I closed the distance between us and crashed my mouth to hers.
God, kissing her again was like coming home. Everything in me settled then ratcheted up again as she met every greedy swipe of my tongue with equal fervor. I wanted to consume her, to mold our bodies together until we didn’t know where I endedand she began.
She fisted her hands in my chef’s coat, I thought to pull me closer.
But she tore her mouth away and shoved me backward. I was caught so off guard, I stumbled a step. Brie’s hand flew to her mouth, eyes wide with shock as she stared at me.
A whole slew of emotions crossed those emerald depths, and I waited for one to settle in place, bracing myself for whatever came next.
But they shuttered quickly, and with lethal calm, she said, “Don’teverdo that again.”
And then, she disappeared, and I was left wondering why I couldn’t seem to stop fucking up where Brie Delatou was concerned.
In hindsight, I recognizedmy tantrum at work was less about the steak and the jackass who didn’t know how to order and more about the fact that said jackass had been on a date with my girl. And the kiss after—another dumbass move on my part, but I couldn’t bring myself to regret it. The way Brie had clung to me before ultimately pushing me away only stoked the fire of my desire to win her back. I’d made a lot of mistakes where she was concerned, but I was determined to rectify each and every one. I’d worship at her feet every day if she’d let me.
Which is how I found myself at Birdie’s the following week, surrounded by her entire family after inviting myself along to their weekly dinner.
I’d been to plenty of events hosted by the Delatou family before, but the pressure hadn’t felt as suffocating on those occasions as it had tonight. The stakes were so much higher, especially with Brie covertly glaring daggers at me.
I’d also brought along my dad and Hansen, and Delia hadn’t batted an eye. Secretly, I thought she was rooting for me and Brie to find our way back to each other. I didn’t know what the youngest Delatou had told her big sisters about us, but I could guess they were aware thatsomethinghad gone down. It was theonly explanation I had for Delia offering up Brie’s bakery kitchen to me and the silent death threats Brie conveyed to her sister in the aftermath.
Delia was stirring the pot, and if I hadn’t spent the last three years absolutely wild about her sister, I could kiss her for it.
That, and Owen would probably break me in half if I even tried. Being ripped apart by an ex-NFL quarterback wasn’t high on my bucket list. He and Delia were still figuring their own shit out, but it was obvious how much they cared for one another, and I figured it was only a matter of time.
On the flip side, it was clear Brie didn’t want me anywhere near the sanctuary of her kitchen—orher, for that matter—and I couldn’t blame her.
The morning after we slept together…I had handled everything so poorly, deciding to cut the ties between us before we could inextricably weave them together. I’d only been attempting to be the best father possible. Hansen had to come first always, but I wish I’d gone about everything with Brie differently. I wish I’d sat down and had a real conversation with her instead of a rushed, half-assed explanation while I made my escape.
