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“Definitely.” He flagged down a waitress. “I hope you don’t mind, I told Dunc to meet us here. He just got into town tonight.”
Duncan was Brady’s best friend from college back in Vail. He was supposed to be the best man at our wedding. That was going to be my first time meeting him, but of course the wedding never happened. I’d heard about him for years, but according to Brady, he’d been through a tough period and had apparently pulled back from everyone. I tried to fight the bitterness creeping in. The mere thought of Duncan reminded me of the canceled wedding and Brady’s abandonment. I already had a negative association with the poor guy and hadn’t even laid eyes on him.
Forcing a smile, I said, “It’ll be nice to finally meet him.”
“Yeah. He’s coming here straight from the airport, but who knows what kind of traffic he’ll hit at this hour.”
“Oh, that’s true.”
The waitress finally came around to take my order. I opted for a Cosmo. Brady also ordered a medley of olives, cheese, and crackers.
“If you’re hungry, once Duncan gets here, we can get out of this place and find a proper dinner.”
“No, that’s not necessary. This place is great. I can nosh on appetizer kind of stuff all night.”
He placed his hand on my back. “Okay. Just let me know if you get more of an appetite.”
The contact of his hand caused me to shift in my seat.
His eyes lingered on mine, to the point that it actually made me blush. “You look fucking amazing tonight, Hazel.”
“Thank you.”
“I want to kiss you so badly, but I don’t know how you’d feel if I did.” He groaned. “I wanna do a lot more than just kiss you, actually.”
I couldn’t remember the last time Brady had said something like that—expressed a need for me in such a way. It was definitely a turn-on to be wanted. I knew he wasn’t lying; I could tell from the look in his eyes. It was interesting how much more attractive I seemed to be now that I was somewhat unavailable.
I decided to continue on the path I knew to be better for me.
“I think it’s best if you don’t…kiss me.”
He looked a little defeated. “I figured.” Then he smiled. “But I understand. I’ll be patient.”
The waitress brought the cheese and olive plate, and I began snacking while enjoying my drink, which was thankfully pretty strong.
My eyes wandered over to the door. And that’s when my heart dropped.
I blinked.
Holy shit. I must be hallucinating.
I blinked some more.
There was a man at the door who looked just like…Milo.
My heart raced with every second that passed, and it felt like everything I’d just eaten was coming back up. I then remembered Milo had had plans to visit a friend in New York a few days after he left Atlanta. He’d never actually said how long he was staying.
Could it be him?
With eight million people in New York, there was no way we both happened to be in this same tiny bar at the same time. It just couldn’t be. What were the odds?
I squinted.
Panic set in.
Oh my God.
The longer I looked over there, the more I was sure. It was him.
It was Milo.
Milo was in this bar!
Holy shit.
Holy shit.
Holy shit.
I froze.
Do I sneak into the bathroom?
Do I stay in this corner and hope he doesn’t notice me?
Do I grow some balls and go up to him?
What do I tell Brady?
I couldn’t put Milo in the situation of having to meet Brady, either.
I wanted to cry.
How could this be happening?
As I struggled to catch my breath, Brady turned to look at me. “Hazel, are you okay? Your face is, like, turning white.”
“I’m fine.” I panted.
“You don’t look fine.”
Things only got worse from there as Milo started walking in our direction. It felt like the room was spinning.
Then his eyes landed on mine, and it felt like the world had stopped spinning.
Milo looked straight at me.
His mouth dropped open, and he began walking faster, like he couldn’t get to me fast enough as he weaved through the crowd.
I knew I had no choice but to deal with this situation head on.
Except I had no clue what I was in for.
Because when Brady turned around to face him, the last thing I ever expected occurred.
He raised his hand, waving Milo over. “Dunc! There you are.”• • •What the hell is happening?
What. Is. Happening?
Duncan is Milo?
Milo is Duncan…Brady’s best friend?
As soon as Milo got to our table, he hugged Brady and let his bag drop to the floor. He took one look in my eyes and pretended not to know me. What choice did he have? Before Brady could introduce us, Milo excused himself to the bathroom, saying he had to go badly after his flight. But I knew better. I suspected he needed to get his bearings. He had looked just as shocked as I felt in this moment.
