Page 11 of One Night Valentine

She tilts her head. “I didn’t realize you’d be so affectionate, Cruz.”

Tense now, I ask her the question even though I don’t know if I want to know the answer. “Does it bother you?”

She pauses and then shakes her head side to side. “No, it’s a surprise, but it doesn’t bother me. If anything, I like this side of you.”

With that, she gives me a little wave and disappears into the store. Before the door shuts, I can hear the squealing from inside. I stand at the window, watching inside, and Tara is surrounded by smiling women. Well, they’re all smiling except for Tara’s sister. She has a frown on her face, and I’m not sure what to make of it. You would think she’d want her sister happy.

I stand here longer than I should, wanting to go in and protect Tara from whatever is brewing with her sister. As I stand here with my arms crossed over my chest, I get some reprieve when a customer draws Tara away and her sister gets on her phone.

I look at my watch and then stuff my hands into the front pocket of my jeans. I’ll see Tara in less than four hours, and it’s crazy that I want to stand here and protect her from her own sister. I walk away and realize that for the first time today, I almost forgot about my retirement.

7

TARA

I’m fidgeting as I walk side by side with Cruz through downtown Whiskey Run. I tried to talk him out of this, but he wasn’t having it.

“You okay?” he asks me.

I look up since he’s so much taller than me. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

He grabs my hand to stop me from twiddling. We walk hand in hand, and as we pass the big bay windows of Red’s Diner, we see that it’s packed inside and there’s a line out the door. I’m trying to figure out what’s going on as Cruz opens the door and puts his hand on my lower back to lead me inside.

Every head in the restaurant turns our way. “Hey, Kathy. It’s busy in here tonight, isn’t it?”

With a huge smile on her face, she nods her head and points to the only empty table in the restaurant. “Yes, but we have a table for you right here.”

“But…” I start, and Cruz holds my hand again. I swear there is a collective gasp in the restaurant.

I put my head down and follow Kathy to the table. Along the way, there are people calling out congratulations to Cruz for hisbig win last night. I’m not sure how I thought we could come here and not be noticed. I wasn’t thinking.

I slide in, and instead of Cruz taking a seat across from me, he sits next to me. I put a smile on my face even though my stomach is doing somersaults. All eyes are on us, and I can feel them judging me. Cruz must sense my unease because he turns to me, putting his back to the restaurant. “You okay?”

I nod, wide-eyed.

He puts his big hand on my thigh and squeezes. “Take a breath.”

I do what he tells me, and he nods his head. “Good girl.”

I sit up a little taller as my body reacts to his praise. He tilts his head and talks low. “I think a few people found out we’d be here tonight.”

I point to myself. “We? They don’t care about me. They want to see you.”

“Tara! Cruz! Crazy seeing you here. There’s not one table open. Do you mind if we sit with you?”

I’m shocked as my sister and my ex-boyfriend slide into the booth across from Cruz and me. “Brynn… you knew we were going to be here.”

She shrugs like I didn’t say a thing. “Cruz, this is my fiancé, Grant Dalton. Grant is a huge fan of yours.”

I swivel my head between Grant and Cruz. The differences between the two men are vast, and I’m wondering what I ever saw in Grant. He’s smirking at Cruz, and I’m trying to figure out if he’s really a fan of his or not when Cruz just nods his head. “Hey, Grant.”

I lean across the table toward my sister. “What are you doing here, Brynn?”

She is all smiles, looking at me. “Tara, you’re being rude. We had to eat, and I didn’t feel like cooking. Plus, I thought this would be a good way for Grant and Cruz to meet.”

“Sure, you did,” I mumble.

Kathy comes over. “What can I get you?”

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