Page 31 of Roses in Summer

Lincoln: Stop calling me that. What don’t I know?

A reply comes instantly, though it’s not an annoyingly sarcastic reply from Dante like I expect.

Grey: Call me when you can.

Pulling up his contact information, I call him immediately and breathe when he answers on the first ring.

“The hell is going on?”

“Hey, man.” My eyes narrow at his tone; he sounds happy, almost like he’s laughing, which is unusual since he’s a grumpy asshole unless Ava is in the vicinity.

“What’s going on?”

Grey clears his throat, rumbling directly into the line. I wince at the sound.

“I asked Ava to marry me.”

My eyes widen at his words, shocked that he didn’t mention his plans. From the moment Grey met Ava, we all knew they were endgame, so it’s no surprise they’re getting married. But I am in disbelief that he kept it to himself before the proposal.

“Well, shit, man. Congratulations to you and Aves. When did it go down?”

“Thanks, Linc,” Ava shouts in the background, her voice high-pitched yet happy.

“Last week. We just told her sisters and Rafe.”

I swallow at the mention of her sisters, keeping silent so I don’t ask the question I know I shouldn’t: she’s back?

“That’s great. I’m happy for you, bro.”

“Vixen, give me a minute?” Grey’s voice sounds distant like he’s covering the speaker. “Linc, you still there?”

“Yeah.”

“Listen, I don’t want to bring shit up, but I remember how everything went down after smalls got back together with that asshole. You going to be okay seeing her?”

I grit my teeth against the memory. It’s the second time today I’ve had to think about Seraphina, and I’d be happy to lose at least half of the memories that bombard me. When I first found out Seraphina and Mitch were getting back together all those years ago, I didn’t handle it well. I didn’t understand how such a smart, beautiful girl could fall for the manipulation a guy like Mitch employed. When Ava told me that Mitch hurt Sera and they ended their relationship, I felt for her, and even tried contacting her, but I never got through. Eventually, I stopped trying. I stopped asking for updates, stopped scrolling through Ava’s family photo posts on social media, and tried to forget about Seraphina Rose Gregori. I packaged my feelings for Seraphina years ago, cataloging them in the recesses of my mind. “Don’t make this about me; I’m with Gemma. I doubt I’ll see her much outside of the shit for the wedding.”

A humor-filled chuckle hits my ear, so much delight that I wish I could reach through the phone and strangle one of my best friends. “You are so fucked.”

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I look down, letting my eyes fall to the nonslip black shoes on my feet. “You want to tell me what’s going on?”

“Yeah, just give me a minute to take this in before I ruin your goddamn life.”

“You sound pretty amused,” I comment, pulling the phone from my ear to check the time left on my break. “Listen, I have five minutes before I need to head back to the kitchen, so you want to tell me what’s so goddamn amusing?”

Grey sobers, the laughter fading from his voice. “Linc, she’s back. She’s getting her master’s at Marymount, so you sure as hell will be seeing her around.”

I don’t need to ask who “she” is.

“It happened a long time ago, Grey. We’ve all moved on. Like I said, you know I’m with Gem.”

“Whatever you say, Linc. I’ll let you go. Give Mama Dorota a ‘hello’ from me, yeah?”

“Yeah, sure. Congratulations again,” I respond, distractedly ending the call. I don’t miss how Grey didn’t bother asking after Gemma or how she was. He and Dante have never liked her, though they’ve never been honest about why.

I always knew I’d see Seraphina again. With a friend group as close as we are and as tight as I am with Ava, it was just a matter of when. I foolishly figured it’d be years from now.

Well, fuck me.

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