She smacked his arm. “Jerk.”
A step up from dick, I guess. “If I have any news worth sharing with the family, I promise you’ll be the first one I tell.”
She gave him a long look. “If she breaks your heart again, I may have to kick her ass.”
Spencer laughed—Rachelle didn’t have a violent bone in her body. Never had. Never would. “I’ll be fine.” He checked the time on his phone. “Shit, I’m late.”
Chapter Six
After three outfit changes and two panicked drive-bys, Hailey parked her car in front of Mangiarelli’s. It was better if no one knew she was meeting Spencer. She grabbed her purse off the passenger-side seat and scanned the parking lot. There were no other cars. She looked down at the clock on the dashboard.
Five minutes late.
And he’s not here.
There was a slim chance he was inside. Mangiarelli’s was within walking distance of their old college. Would he have parked there? Perhaps re-creating even that part of their old visits.
Dressed in a navy pantsuit, Hailey stepped out of her car and entered the restaurant with her head held high. If he doesn’t show, that will be a different kind of closure. I’ll know that despite what he says, he really doesn’t care.
Lunch had always been a busy time at the pizzeria, and it still was. Most of the tables were occupied by what looked like college students. She scanned the crowd. Groups of friends. Men. Women. Mixed tables. Some were laughing. Some looked hungover. One couple caught her attention. In the corner booth where she’d spent so many evenings cuddled up to Spencer’s side while they both studied was a young woman doing exactly the same with a young man. They looked so comfortable with each other, so blissfully unaware of how little it would take to destroy what they had.
“Sorry I’m late,” Spencer said from beside her while his hand came to rest on her lower back.
Hailey gasped and spun, confused by the mix of the past with the present. “Let me guess, you were working on something and almost forgot.”
He frowned.
They stood there, looking into each other’s eyes without speaking. She waited for him to back down or apologize again.
Instead, he brought a hand up to caress her cheek. “I couldn’t sleep last night. This morning dragged on and on. All I could think about was this—” He brushed his lips tenderly over hers.
Whoosh. The crowd around them disappeared until there was only Spencer and the way he made her body hum with need. Her lips parted, and their kiss deepened. He tasted like—coming home.
“Get a room,” a female voice called out.
“Or don’t,” a male voice chimed in. “It might be interesting to see how old people do it.”
Spencer raised his head, but his gaze didn’t waver from her face. “We’re old?”
“To them.” The smile that spread across her face felt as natural as breathing. She told herself to keep her defenses up. This was one last, cathartic meeting. Her hand went to her lips. Goodbye shouldn’t feel this good.
His breath was a hot caress on her cheek. “Are you hungry?”
Oh yes, but not for anything I could have with an audience. Her stomach was churning from nerves rather than hunger. “Not really.”
“Me, either.” He turned and began to guide her out of the restaurant. “Let’s go for a walk.”
“Don’t go,” a male voice called out. “We didn’t mean to scare you off.”
Spencer turned slowly and Hailey tensed. The Spencer she’d known didn’t have a temper, but she realized she didn’t know this new Spencer at all. The room quieted as he looked around. He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it without saying a word. A twitch of a smile pulled at his lips before he turned away and began to walk out of the restaurant with her again. Oddly, he looked pleased with himself.
It wasn’t until they were walking beneath the shade of the trees of their old campus that Hailey said, “I thought you were going to cut those kids down.”
“I almost did. A couple of really good zingers came to mind.”
The light humor in his voice put Hailey at ease. They walked, matching their steps naturally. “Really? What was your best?”
He shot her a quick sidelong look. “You shouldn’t encourage me.”
That’s what I keep telling myself, but so far I’m not taking my own advice. “Was it something like: ‘I’ve beaten men twice your size with one hand tied behind my back’?”
He laughed. “Although that’s an impressive claim, it probably would have gotten my ass kicked. Boys that age have more testosterone than brains. It wouldn’t have scared them.”
“Really? Then tell me, wise old Spencer, what did you almost say?”
His chest puffed with pride, and he cleared his throat. “‘Funny thing about old people—we own shit. When you apply for your next internship, do yourself a favor and don’t attach your photo to your résumé. I have a very good memory for faces.’ I debated whether or not to mention that I owned my own company, but I thought a vague threat left more to fear.”
“Oh, you’re good,” she said with a chuckle. They walked a little more before she asked, “Why didn’t you say it?”
He shrugged. “They were just being stupid.” He stopped and turned toward her. There was a look in his eyes that set her heart racing. “And I didn’t want you to think I hadn’t changed at all.”
It was too easy to get lost in those beautiful eyes of his. She struggled to focus on the conversation and not raise herself on tiptoes to kiss him with all the boldness he’d kissed her with. “You wouldn’t have threatened them when you were younger, either. You never cared what anyone thought of you.”
“That’s not true,” he said huskily. “I cared what you thought.” He looped his arms around her waist and pulled her forward to rest against him. “I still do.”
The temptation to give herself over to the heat that sizzled between them was almost too much to resist, but Hailey reminded herself that Skye was more important than how he made her feel. It’s too risky.
Instead of making her feel better, seeing him again was making the acute loneliness of her present life that much more painful. She pulled herself out of his arms. “I can’t do this.”
“Talk to me, Hailey.”
The irony of his timing was not lost on her. There was a time when she would have given anything for him to utter that request. It was too late, though. “I came for closure.”
“Closure?” He ground the word out. “That’s what you want?”
She took a step back. “Especially considering what you thought I’d done. I thought we needed it.”
He took a step toward her. “So you met me today because you wanted to talk before moving on?”
“Yes,” she said, licking her bottom lip as she retreated another step.
“Bullshit.” He advanced again.