Page 43 of Spring Tide

“She is,” Luca confirms.

“Aw, and does she still call you Lucky?”

“Yes.”

“I miss her so much. So does Danny. He talks about your family all the time.” Sofia nudges her boyfriend. “Right, babe?”

“Yeah.” Danny nods his agreement. “We both miss them.”

“Right,” Luca murmurs. I can sense another oncoming flash of irritation. This time, I don’t hesitate to curve my palm around his thigh, urging him to mask his temper. “Well, my family can’t wait to meet Harper. I talk aboutherall the time.”

The couple is quiet, seemingly stunned by his response.

“You two seem like a great match,” Danny says, finally managing to find the right words. He’s being sincere, but it comes out as slightly condescending. “We’re so happy for you, Luc.”

Our attempts at chitchat finally die out, replaced by the sounds of quiet chewing as we enjoy our meals. I take every opportunity to touch Luca during this time—to act like a truly domesticated couple—just to rub it in their faces.

I swipe the corner of his lip with a napkin. I hold his hand on top of the table. I lean against his shoulder and take a bite off his plate. And to top it all off, I take a long sip from his fresh beer, stealing the thin layer of foam. We both ordered the same type of ale anyway—something smooth, sweet, and fruity.

I usually wouldn’t be so over-the-top, but the circumstances have propelled me into action. It’s too difficult to give these two the benefit of the doubt. Not after what they’ve done to Luca. Not after how they’ve made him feel.

By the time we finish up our dinner, it’s nearly nine o’clock. The four of us shuffle out of the restaurant together, lingering under the awning as we say our goodbyes.

Sofia pulls Luca aside, right out of earshot, as she wraps her arms around him. She leans onto her tiptoes and whisperssomethinginto his ear. It may be painstakingly difficult, but I manage to tear my prying eyes away to focus on her boyfriend beside me.

“I’m so glad we all got to do this tonight,” Danny says, pulling me into a friendly side-hug.

“Me too.”

“I hope we can come back and visit sometime soon,” he says eagerly, balancing on the back of his heels. “Maybe you could help convince Luc to let us visit the fam?”

I raise one brow. “If he wants to do that.”

“Right, yeah, of course.” Danny nods his head emphatically, as if I simply misunderstood his meaning. “He seems really happy, you know?”

“We both are.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

It’s not long before the ex-couple rejoins us. Danny gives his friend the ultimate bro-hug, and Sofia wraps me up in her slender arms. They’re very touchy-feely people, these two, at least in comparison to Luca. It’s usually my MO, but something about all this hugging tonight is making me cringe.

While I’m lost in my own head, Sofia takes that as her cue to whisper some nonsense into my ear. “Treat him right,” she says, and I almost spit up my entire dinner on her designer dress.

As we break apart, Danny and Sofia head across the street while Luca and I wander toward the back of the building. I’m not sure why, or who initiated it this time, but we’re holding hands as we walk through the parking lot.

“Well, that was really something,” I murmur, cutting the silence.

“Thank you for that,” Luca says, squeezing my hand as we stand in front of his car. “For tonight. For everything.”

I squeeze back. “What are friends for?”

“Yeah.”

“Hey, um, did you know that it’s only nine o’clock?” I prompt, unsure of where I’m headed with this. Maybe I could ask him to come over tonight, to watch a movie or something, or maybe we could even get a drink downtown.

Just as friends, to debrief this wild night.

Before I can offer up a useful suggestion, he drops my hand and takes a step back. “Right, I forgot you had plans with Nate. Did you want me to drop you off at the bar or something?”

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