Page 97 of Breakaway Hearts

“Thanks for cooking,” I tell her. “This all looks delicious.”

“Fingers crossed,” she murmurs, looking a little anxious.

I press my lips to hers, wanting to kiss the frown off her face, and she reciprocates for a moment, her mouth warm and soft against mine. Then she pulls away, turning to everyone and telling them to dig in. We take our seats at the table, and I find myself glancing at her surreptitiously as we do.

Did I kiss her because people are here to watch? Is that why she kissed me back?

It would technically be against the rules if not, but I’m not quite sure I did that for anyone but us.

I do the honors of serving everyone, and once the plates are all loaded high, we dig in. There’s silence around the table for a moment as everyone takes their first bite, and when I pop a Brussels sprout into my mouth, I almost choke.

Oh no.

It tastes like it’s been doused in soy sauce and vinegar, both extremely salty and extremely sour.

Noah coughs, and Margo takes a long drink of her water. I keep chewing, resisting the urge to pucker my lips at the overly sour flavor. When I look over at Callie, and she’s pushing around her food, staring at everyone with a nervous, expectant expression.

“This is delicious, Firefly,” I say. “Really good.”

“Really?” Her eyes light up, and I can’t stop the smile on my face from taking over. “I’m so nervous I can barely taste it.”

“Yeah,” Margo chimes in. “It’s so good. I didn’t know you could cook.”

“I can’t, not really.” Callie shakes her head, waving a hand. Each compliment eases some of the tension in her neck and shoulders. “I mean, I have simple things I make for myself for lunches at school and stuff. But I don’t cook for a crowd very often. Nothing like this.”

Everyone nods, and I keep an eagle eye on the rest of the table as I deliberately pick up another Brussels sprout with my fork and eat it. My friends are polite enough that they’re all doing their level best to look like they’re enjoying the meal, but I’m a little worried about Jake. Fortunately, Sawyer told me not to give him any Brussels sprouts, and although the salty/sour mixture from that dish has mingled with the other dishes, it’s nowhere near as potent on the chicken, and the bread is perfectly edible.

Jake grimaces a little as he tastes the chicken, but Sawyer leans down to whisper something in his ear as Margo and Noah ask Theo if he’s got plans for any new tattoos. I see Jake glance Callie’s way, and a serious expression overtakes his face. With a look of child-like determination, he digs into his meal, and warmth floods my chest. I’m not sure what Sawyer told him, but whatever it was, it’s clear that Jake knows this meal is important to Callie.

“Oh, shoot!” Callie straightens suddenly. “I forgot to bring out butter for the bread. Hang on.”

She gets up and disappears into the kitchen, and I take advantage of her absence to lean over the table, shooting a look at all of my friends.

“Just eat it,” I murmur. “Please. She worked really hard on this.”

Theo puffs out his cheeks, grabbing his wine glass and downing a large swallow. His voice is a little choked as he gasps, “Oh my god, it’s so salty.”

“Give me yours then,” I say quickly, gesturing for him to dump them on my plate. He does, and I grab a few off everyone else’s plates too. I shove several into my mouth, chewing and swallowing so fast that my eyes almost water from the overpowering flavor.

I swallow just as Callie comes back into the room. She puts the butter tray on the table, and I rest a hand on her knee as she sits back down next to me.

Fortunately, everyone else seems to be able to handle the Brussels sprouts of death better than Theo could. Noah and Margo exchange a look as conversation picks up around the table, each of them alternating bites with copious mouthfuls of water or bites of bread.

“So, Jake,” Callie says, grinning at Sawyer’s kid. “What are you studying in school right now?”

He can be a little shy around people he doesn’t know, but he clearly doesn’t lump any of us into that category, because he lights up at the question. The meal passes quickly as we talk about Jake’s school, how his favorite subject is math, and how he wants to be the governor of Colorado one day. Callie commends him for this goal and asks him a million more questions about his school, drawing him out in a way that not a lot of people can. She’s so good with kids that it blows my mind sometimes.

When the plates finally start to empty, Callie picks up the serving spoon, graciously offering to serve up seconds.

Subtle looks of panic flash across my friends’ faces, and I quickly hold up my plate. “I’ll take more of those Brussels sprouts, Firefly,” I tell her, giving a silent apology to my blood pressure.

She smiles at me and spoons some more onto my plate, leaving just a few left in the bowl.Good. She won’t be faced with a ton of leftovers when the meal is done.

The conversation moves on to how wedding planning has been going for Margo and Noah, and I use that opportunity to demolish the last of the food on my plate, polishing off the final Brussels sprout with a feeling of relief.

It’s done. There might be a hole in my tongue, but it’s done.

At a little before nine, Sawyer glances at his watch and winces at the time.

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