Page 84 of All Your Pucking Secrets

A warm glow suffuses me. He knows just what to say to make me feel better. God, I hope he’s being honest.

Our dinner arrives, and we dig in. I offer him a slice of pizza, and he swaps me a little of his risotto.

“It’s good,” I admit. “But it’s not pizza.”

He folds up the last bite of his slice of pizza and stuffs it in his mouth. “S’great pizza.”

I can’t help being charmed by him. He never completely lost the shadows beneath his eyes when we were together years ago. He wouldn’t have let go enough to act like a goof. But now, he doesn’t seem to be wound as tightly. I wonder if it’s the loss of his dad that has made it possible, or something else.

When our meal is done, we order a tiramisu with two spoons. Tyler shifts around the table, sitting beside me so we can share the dessert more easily. I eat most of it, but he has a few mouthfuls, and the noises of appreciation he makes are sinful. His body heat radiates toward me and it’s all I can do not to lean into him.

“I got you something,” he says as he pushes the empty dessert plate away.

“You didn’t have to do that. You know you don’t actually have to buy my affection, right?” That may have been his experience with others, but I hope he knows that isn’t necessary with me.

He raises himself off the chair and reaches into his back pocket to withdraw a folded sheet of paper. “I wanted to.”

He passes it to me, and I promptly unfold it and scan the text.

The star at the coordinates…

Raising my eyes to his, I frown. “What is this?”

He glances at the tabletop, his cheeks coloring. “I named a star after you, since you’ve always been my shooting star, lighting up the darkness.”

Emotions riot in my chest, tumbling over each other so rapidly, I can’t recognize them all. Wonder, shock, confusion, and something else I can’t put my finger on. This is an over-the-top gesture, but it’s so him. My eyes prickle, and I squeeze them shut.

“Go big or go home?” I joke, opening my eyes again, unable to think of anything appropriate to say.

He shrugs awkwardly. “It’s probably a scam, but it’s the thought that counts, right? Maybe one day we could use the astronomy department’s telescope to check it out.”

“That would be amazing.” I clutch the paper to my chest. “Thank you, Ty. I can’t believe you did this.”

He named a star after me.

A literal heavenly body.

I read the certificate again. Even if it is a scam, it’s a romantic one, and it reminds me of how things used to be between us. Of how he used to look at me and make me feel like the only person in the world.

His star.

“I love it.” Another swell of emotion clogs my throat and I do my best not to tear up.

He clears his own throat, perhaps also choked up. “Good.”

At that moment, the waitress interrupts to ask if we’d like coffee. We both turn her down.

“That must be our cue to sort out the bill,” Tyler says.

“I’ll get it,” I tell him.

He stiffens, and I can see he doesn’t like the idea, but if we’re going to have an equal relationship, he needs to let me play my part. For a moment, it looks as if he might protest, but then he sighs.

“Only if I pay the tip.”

I beam. “Deal.”

We pay, and I drive him home. When I park outside, I leave the engine going, assuming he’ll jump out and head back in, but he doesn’t move.

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