Page 49 of A Little Too Late
I put my elbows on the bar and bury my face in my hands. Not that it helps. “Yeah, you are pretty amazing. But I’m kind of a mess.”
“I’m getting that,” Harper says, taking a sip of her wine. “What did you do to your ex?”
It’s hard to even put it into words. “She was my first real girlfriend. My first love. Then things got a little complicated, and I left her, like an asshole.”
“A little complicated how?” my father asks.
“Dad…” I sigh. But maybe saying this out loud is how you finally get past it. “When I was twenty-two, we lost a pregnancy.”
Both Harper and my father stare at me for a long beat. “Apregnancy,” my father echoes in a hushed voice.
“A baby?” Harper corrects.
“A baby,” I repeat, as my heart seizes up inside my chest. “And I didn’t handle it well.”
My father braces his hands against the bar and drops his head as if it suddenly weighs too much. “Poor Ava. And you, too, son. That’s a big loss.” Then he actually reaches over and covers my hand with his for a brief moment.
I inhale, and something loosens just a little bit inside my chest. Maybe only ten percent. But still.
Then my father steps back, removing his apron as another man arrives to resume bartending duties. “Alexander, this is my son Reed and his friend,” he says to the young man. “No tab for those two.”
“Yessir,” the youngster says.
“Nice meeting you, Harper. Enjoy your stay with us.”
“Oh, I will,” she says cheerfully. She studies me for a moment as he takes his leave. “You know, that’s a big secret to sit on for ten years. It explains a few things about you.”
“Does it?” I mumble. I’m really not in the mood to be psychoanalyzed.
“Totally. You aresoemotionally unavailable, Reed. You even choose shower sex over the bed, because then you won’t have to cuddle me afterwards.”
The young bartender’s eyes widen. He moves quickly down the bar to give us some privacy. He’s definitely getting a tip. “That is not true,” I hiss. “I just feel really horny whenever there’s warm water around.”
She lets out a low laugh. “Okay, dude. Sure. Now what are you going to do to fix this thing with your college sweetheart?”
“Fix it?” That’s not possible. “The best I can hope for is some closure. I keep thinking up new ways to say I’m sorry.”
“It’s a start,” Harper agrees. “I’m a fan of roses.” She kicks my foot with her stylish winter boot. “But not everyone is. What was your love language when you were in college?”
“Hmm. I guess it was pizza.”
“Really?” Harper giggles.
“It wascollege.” I glance up and signal to the bartender. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Probably,” he says. “But don’t ask me to take sides, here.”
“All I want to know is whether you have pizza and whether it’s any good.”
The kid looks relieved. He reaches for a menu. “The veggie option is a little bland unless you ask for extra garlic. But the rest of them are great.”
“Ooh, pizza,” Harper says. “Pass me that menu when you’re done. And also? Forget the roses. I need a room for the weekend.”
“Uh-huh,” I say, eyeing the pizza choices. “I’m sure you do.”
CHAPTER 19
BECAUSE THERE IS PIZZA
