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Then again, he currently lived in my guest room.
I wanted to be doing this at my record store or house or anywhere that didn’t make it feel like we need to go somewhere to meet that’s neutral territory. Maddox said we should do it here because it was early afternoon and he wanted food.
Sure. That was the only reason.
I stepped into Gage’s Grub, and the heady scents of burgers and fries hit me. My stomach grumbled in response. There were worse places to be.
Gage was behind the counter near the register, with Evie. They stood so close, anyone who didn’t know them would think they were a couple. I didn’t know how they were so oblivious to each other’s—to their own—feelings. They’d been in love since they were kids, and neither of them had ever figured it out.
Evie saw me first, and stepped away, erasing the frown from her face. “You have customers, I’ll let you go,” she said.
Gage grabbed her arm. “You sure you’re all right?”
“It’s a free country. He’s allowed to walk around town if he wants. But if he comes in my fucking store, I’m going to kick him in the nuts.”
“That’s fair,” Gage said.
I assumed she was talking about Don, and her reaction was mild in my opinion. I held up a hand. “Don’t leave on my account. It’s just us.”
“I should.” Evie wrinkled her nose. “If there’s yelling, I’d rather hear about it after the fact.”
I raised my brows.
“Kidding.” She headed toward the door. “Probably.”
If she was making jokes about Alys still being mad instead of getting upset at me for it, especially after a conversation about Don, I’d take it as a good sign that this would go well.
Maddox and Alys showed up a moment later. I wasn’t surprised that Alys was quiet, but Maddox’s subdued mood was unexpected. What happened between when I saw him this morning and now?
We ordered, and grabbed a table in the back of the dining room. It was the middle of the afternoon, and no one else was here except us, Gage, and his business partner Knox, who was currently manning the grill.
Our food was ready fast, as if they were used to our orders. We picked one table to put our lunch on, and spread the photos over the one next us.
As Maddox laid the images out, I was in awe. Sure, I’d seen him take them, but things always looked different in the final result, and this was no exception. Even though the objects were the same in every photo, the way he’d staged them, the lighting, all of the little extras, made each shot stand out.
Alys and I muttered our appreciation. I only saw one issue. “How are we supposed to pick?”
“Um… not darts,” Maddox said. “How about each of you choose your top three, and then we’ll vote and let Gage and Knox vote.”
Alys studied him. “What about you?”
“I already picked.” Maddox waved his hand over the table.
“So, you get to pick your favorite twenty or so, but we have to narrow it down to three? Cheater,” I teased.
Alys and I had two favorites in common, so it made sense to pick between those two. When we all voted, we still didn’t have a clear winner, so Maddox flipped a coin, and we had our selection.
The entire process only took a few minutes. As we settled back in front of our food, the conversation died again. Fun was gone and an oppressive atmosphere hung in its place.
I poked at my milkshake, watching the melty bits pool around the side then vanish as I stirred them in, and Alys nibbled on fries with no sauce.
This was fun. Whee. How was I supposed to get us back on track?
Maddox set down a burger he’d only taken a bite out of, and grabbed some of Alys’s fries.
“Hey. You have your own.” She smacked his hand lightly.
Maddox dipped the fries in my milkshake, which I covered too late to stop him, and he held them in front of Alys.
