Page 34 of Click of Fate

“Stella, look who I found!” Cassie sings-songs as Stella finally joins us.

“I see that,” she says to Cassie, giving me a brief look.

“What a wonderful night. My bestie shooting one of my weddings and meeting the sexy climber I’ve heard all about? Perfection!” Cassie says.

I grin. Stella’s face pinkens.

“To be clear, I never said sexy,” Stella mutters.

Cassie winks at me and turns, grabbing a bottle of water from the bartender. “You should take a break. Catch up. I’ve got to run. Duty calls. It was nice meeting you, Luke.” She winks at me and is gone in a flash.

“Well…” I say.

“Lilly talks about you all the time. As does Ruth. Don’t let your ego inflate. I never called you a sexy climber,” Stella tells me, obviously embarrassed but trying to pretend she isn’t.

I let it go, because I’m starting to figure out how Stella works.

“We seem to keep running into each other,” I say,

“Small world,” she mumbles, looking everywhere but at me.

“It is. I like it,” I tell her.

She fights back a smile as she shakes her head.

“Come dance with me,” I say, offering her my hand.

She hesitates for a second too long, like she’s internally checking a list of reasons not to say yes.

“I’m not setting my camera down.” She lifts it up, reminding me that it hangs around her neck.

“That’s okay, you can use it as a buffer between us,” I tell her. I want this dance. I’m not about to let her come up with excuses.

Her eyes narrow, but before she can reply, Cassie swoops back in.

“Oh! You two should dance. I’ll take your camera, Stell.” She nearly starts removing it from Stella’s person. Slightly taken back, Stella goes with it until Cassie carefully hangs the expensive camera from her own neck. “Look, safe with me.” She sends Stella big, encouraging eyes.

I reach my hand toward her, chuckling at Cassie’s eagerness as she not-so-subtly nudges Stella forward from the edge of the dance floor.

Stella shoots a menacing glare at her friend, but it’s light-hearted. She takes a slow breath, finally looks at me, and then, surprisingly places her hand in mine.

The song playing is slow. Not cheesy-romantic. The kind of song that fills the quiet without demanding attention.

I settle one hand at her waist, the other gently holding hers. She lets me guide her. No camera, no sharp-edged quips, just Stella. Here.

With me.

And it feels so damn good. So easy. Like maybe I’ve been waiting for this without even realizing it.

I let a beat pass before I lean in.

"So what do you think? This crowd’s got nothing on our meatball nights."

A smirk tugs at her lips.

"It’s missing the IPA pairings."

We laugh. And for a moment, the space between us feels nonexistent.

---