Page 75 of Sparks Fly

“Good. I was going to mess your face up if it wasn’t.” He laughed.

I adjusted the metal panel and tightened the clamp.

“I haven’t seen her since Sunday.” I said. “She’s busy. I miss her.”

“Yeah. Bridal stuff turns her into a machine. She overcommits.”

“I asked her to come over for dinner tonight. Figured I’d cook.”

His eyebrows lifted. “A real dinner?”

“Real dinner.”

He pressed a hand to his chest. “Who are you?”

“Shut up,” I muttered, though I was smiling again.

* * *

By the time noon rolled around I was restless enough that the shop felt too small. I stepped outside and let the gravel crunch under my boots while I pulled my phone from my pocket again.

My phone buzzed before I even unlocked it.

Addison: I’ve got like ten minutes. Can you talk?

Me: Call me.

I answered before the second ring.

“Hey,” I said, pacing a few steps across the lot.

Her voice came through softer than usual.

“Sorry,” she said quietly. “I’m exhausted.”

“Oh, baby,” I murmured before I could stop myself, leaning against the side of the building while the sun warmed the back of my neck. “You sound it.”

“It’s been a week,” she admitted. “And it’s only Wednesday.”

I watched a delivery truck rumble past the end of the street while I spoke.

“Do you still want to go away this weekend?” I asked gently. “If it’s too much…”

“No,” she said immediately, cutting me off. “I want to go. I’m surviving this week for that. Don’t even think about canceling.”

“Never,” I said. “Just checking. I can’t wait. I miss you.”

“I miss you too,” she said softly. “A lot.”

The silence that followed was warm and easy, the kind that didn’t need filling.

Eventually, I pushed off the wall and glanced toward the shop door.

“So, dinner tonight?” I asked. “I’ll cook. Easy. Quiet. I’ll spoil you.”

“I won’t be free until around seven thirty,” she said. “But I really want to see you.”

“That works. I just want you here.”