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“Because…”
“Because?”
“You’re having a very casual day…” His gaze lingered on her hair, then her clothes, and finally on her makeup free face. “Nothing wrong with that,” he said, holding his hands up, “But I figured you wouldn’t want Gabriella back here today.”
“You know I’m not interested in her, right? I feel like I’ve told you that before. And I don’t even think she’s really interested in me. She’s just friendly, and her restaurant isn’t even three months old. She’s networking. Getting all the other local businesses to stop by for lunch or dinner after work.”
“Oh no,” Danny said with a smirk. “She’s interested. You should have seen her face drop when I said that you were busy and that I’d bring it to you.” His eyes suddenly grew wide. “You should take her to your sister’s vow renewal ceremony. You’ll need a date.”
“No.” Vanessa was already shaking her head. “No. Absolutely not. Too complicated. My sister would jump at the idea that we were dating. I could never show up with someone I wasn’t actually seeing. She’s almost as bad as you are now that I think about it. Always trying to set me up with someone. If she thinks I’m dating Gabriella, that will be all I hear for the next year. At least.”
“Yeah, but you could be dating her,” Danny said. “You can’t just ignore when a beautiful, single, gay woman in her early forties, if I had to guess, walks into our small town. She opened a business, which means she’s here to stay. It’s practically fate.”
Vanessa sighed. “I’m going to strongly disagree. Now, get back to work,” she said with a smile, and Danny left without another word, although she couldn’t miss the smile he was trying to hide.
Vanessa opened the paper bag and lifted the lid off the container, her mouth watering at the sight of the shrimp pasta dish. The aroma of garlic and fresh herbs wafted up to her nose, making her stomach grumble with anticipation.
She picked up her fork and carefully twirled a strand of spaghetti around it, bringing it up to her mouth. The pasta was perfectly al dente, the sauce rich and flavorful. The shrimp were tender and succulent, their natural sweetness complementing the savory sauce.
Vanessa closed her eyes, savoring the taste of the dish. As she ate, Vanessa couldn’t help but think about Gabriella. She was undeniably beautiful, with her dark hair, caramel brown eyes, and flawless complexion. She was probably just a few years younger than her, a business owner too. She had a warmth and charisma that was infectious, yet Vanessa felt nothing.
In the week after she’d come back from New York, Vanessa had allowed herself to daydream about Heather. All she needed was just a few seconds of idle time, and Vanessa was right back in that wine bar, replaying how the night had unfolded.
At night, when she couldn’t sleep, Vanessa couldn’t keep the memories of that night away. The feeling of Heather’s hands moving up her thighs, her fingers threading through Vanessa’s hair, the way Heather’s lips had kissed her so thoroughly.
But for the last three weeks, Vanessa had been trying to forget about her, and she didn’t know how she was still thinking about Heather a month later. This was not normal.
A few days ago, she’d come out of this office to see a woman with long, light brown hair with golden highlights, sitting with her back to Vanessa, looking out the window, and for a whole three seconds, Vanessa had really thought that it was Heather, which made no sense.
Heather knew nothing about her. Not anything that she could have used to track her down. Heather didn’t know her last name, the name of this town, or the name of her coffee shop.
Vanessa finished her pasta and took out her phone, scrolling through her contacts until she reached Heather’s name. Vanessa knew that they parted ways with no expectations of meeting again, but when Heather asked for her number, she’d left a little bit of hope that maybe, at some point, Heather would text her.
Maybe if Vanessa went back to the city again, she could be the one to get in touch with Heather.
But what would that achieve?
Other than another amazing night together.
Danny was right. Gabriella was all of the things that she was looking for. Maybe, in time, she would feel something.
Vanessa shook her head. She almost wished she’d taken a selfie with Heather. Right now, she’d love to have a photo to look at, but she was in the same position as Heather. Vanessa didn’t know her last name or where she worked. The only way she was ever going to see Heather again was if she reached out and sent her a text.
Vanessa opened the messaging app, typing and deleting her words just as fast.
She exhaled, putting her phone away before she did something she might regret.
There had to be a reason that Heather hadn’t gotten in touch. Maybe, she met someone. She was the one who wanted Vanessa’s number. If Heather wanted to see her again, she would have contacted her.
So she must not want to.
Which meant that Vanessa had to move on.
13
“How are we late?” Megan asked as she slammed the driver’s side door shut, pulling open the back door to get out her heels, barely sitting down for a second to put them on.
“Because we didn’t factor in traffic?” Heather suggested as she grabbed her black winter coat from the backseat and slid it on.
