Page 63 of Tension

He followed behind me, clearly annoyed. “Don’t do that. Just order the damn food, Chris.”

“No,” I said, crossing my arms. “You already called me fat. Just leave me alone.” My throat tightened. I hated that something so small was getting to me, but it did.

Vel stepped in front of me and turned me toward him, finally noticing how close I was to crying. His face softened, confusion written all over it.

“I didn’t call you fat,” he said gently, hands settling on my hips. Pulling me in, he rested his forehead against mine. “Honeydew, I’m sorry if it came out wrong. I’m just hungry and rushing. Please, just order us some food.”

I sagged against him, suddenly feeling dramatic.

“Okay,” I said quietly, taking the card. I was glad he was hungry, too.

“Keep that card, too, and use it whenever you need anything, and I'm not around.”

Vel went to unlock the gym doors while I pulled up the Japanese restaurant I’d saved in my phone. I did a little happy bounce as I placed the order.

When I looked up, Vel was smiling at me like I was the cutest thing he’d ever seen.

VEL

I wasn’t hungry…but I wasn’t about to tell Chris that.

Normally, I would’ve pushed back. But with Chris, I was all in. So I compromised and adjusted instead.

She demolished her Beef Yaki Soba, stole half my rice, and finished my shrimp while I handled interview prep and made sure everything ran smoothly.

The first candidate was Jacob Brooks. He was a certified personal trainer, had a degree in health education, solid references, and a client list that would follow him wherever he landed.

“You already know me,” I said, motioning between us, “and this is my girlfriend and business partner, Christina.”

Chris extended her hand smoothly. “Hi. You can call me Chris.” She didn’t act fazed by what I said, just rolled right into the interview.

Jacob nailed it. He got the job on the spot. I looked at Chris and knew she felt the same.

As soon as he left, she turned to me. “Business partner and girlfriend?”

“I think I said girlfriend first,” I corrected.

“Well, I don’t remember being asked to be either of those.”

“I’m asking now.”

She tried not to smile. “Wow. What a way to ask.”

I dropped to one knee in front of her and pulled out a small box.

All the color drained from her face. She froze, just staring at me.

“Christina,” I said calmly, opening the box to reveal diamond teardrop earrings with a matching necklace, “will you be my girlfriend?”

She burst out laughing. “Get the fuck up. You play entirely too much.”

She took the jewelry from my hands and helped me to my feet, folding into my arms as she did.

I kissed her forehead. “That a yes or a no?”

She hesitated. “Do you think I’m ready?”

There was doubt there. We’d talked about healing, about what moving forward looked like. She knew I was ready for something serious.