Page 19 of The Luminosity of Loriana Harper

“We’re both single,” Loriana rushed to assure him. Assure him? No, inform him. Because it didn’t matter one way or the other.

Right?

“I, uh, well…”

Marnie’s struggle was so apparent, Loriana’s heart ached. “We’ll play it by ear. Monday’s a long way off.” She nudged Mitch. “We better get going.”

“Sure.” He said the words with an amiable smile.

Loriana didn’t miss the flicker in his eyes. She gave one last wave to Marnie as they headed out. The automatic doors swished open, and they were hit with a wall of cold air. “I do love this time of year.”

Mitch glanced down at her. “Really?”

“Oh, yes. Snow, Christmas, New Year’s. A sense of renewal.”

“Cold, slush, and ice.”

She arched a brow. “Well, it’s better than the dead of summer when it’s too hot and humid to do anything.”

“Yeah.” He scrunched his nose. “Yeah, not so much. I love the heat.”

“On that we’ll have to agree to disagree.”

They walked the two blocks to the restaurant in silence. Loriana made mental calculations about how the night would go, while enjoying the decorations on all the street lamps on Main Street.

Mission City council might scrimp on some things, but they went all-out with their Christmas decorations. All the parked cars would be replaced with families hunkered down ready to watch the parade—waiting for the mythical Santa Claus.

Loriana might’ve stopped believing decades ago, but she did still have faith in the magic of this season. She just hoped they made it through in one piece. Things were always crazy in so many ways.

Mitch held the door open for her, and she bestowed her warmest smile upon him. He wasn’t classically handsome, but he cut a fine figure. Even in jeans and a button-down shirt, he made her heart do a little pitter patter.

Totally inappropriate.

He wasn’t truly an employee, but her having any lascivious thoughts wasn’t right. Plus, the man’d seen her break down last night. Oh, and she didn’t date. Ever.

She ordered her veggie sub while Mitch went for the meatballs.

He gave her a sheepish shrug.

“You need sustenance,” she assured him, scratching her itchy nose. Going into a warm space after being out in the cold always made her nose itch.

“But meat’s bad for the environment.”

She couldn’t argue. “I’ve been known to eat meat on occasion, so no worries. No judgement here.”

Mitch paid, and they made their way over to a table looking out over First Avenue.

Half of the meal was consumed in silence before she ventured a question. “How long have you been in town? I mean, you might’ve grown up here, and I just didn’t see you before but…” Was she blushing?

“Tall Black man. Kind of hard to miss.” He offered a sheepish grin. “I grew up in Strathcona in East Vancouver. Went to BCIT and was poached by a computer firm out in California. Lived there for almost eight years before coming back here two months ago.”

“So why not back to Vancouver?” She thought the question innocuous, but he winced.

“Have you seen Vancouver real estate prices?” He shook his head. “I wouldn’t even be able to afford a studio, let alone a two bedroom with a good storage locker.” He fingered his sandwich before putting it back down.

He looked almost broken.

“My dad and I are estranged, and that was my primary connection to Vancouver. I mean, I have a few friends, but I needed a fresh start. Mission City offered me that. I considered the interior or northern B.C., but I wanted to stay close to Vancouver. This town is the perfect solution.”

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