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“Yes, please.” Holt pulled his wallet out and frowned. “I’m sorry it went down like that. I never meant to ruin what you two had. We were just making sure he was okay.”
“So was I, and we can’t regret that.”
Holt took the cash in his brown leather wallet. It had a TARDIS on it. “I guess not. He’s still barely talking to me, but I can tell he misses you.”
“I didn’t ask.”
“You didn’t need to,” Holt said kindly.
Nodding, she boxed up the pie and blinked rapidly. No. More. Crying. “That’ll be six dollars.”
He tossed a ten down. “Keep the change.”
“This isn’t a tipping establishment.”
He shrugged and picked up the box. “Call Lydia back. She’s worried about you.”
And he walked out. The second the door closed behind him, he walked over to the two other men. Mark glanced in, waved, and smiled. Lauren forced a smile and waved back. They walked away, and she covered her face, sagging against the wall.
It was over. It was actually over.
Shaking herself off, she pushed off the wall. The door opened again, and Mark came in. “Hey, Lauren.”
“H-Hi,” she said, smiling. “Can I get you something?”
“Do you have any cookies? Like, big, girly, kid-like ones?”
She blinked at him. “Yeah, over there.”
He walked over and bent down, staring into the glass case. “I’ll take the tiara.”
“Okay…”
He glanced up, grinning. “You’re confused.”
“Hey, if you like tiara cookies, I’ve got no issue with that.”
“It’s for my daughter. She’s two.”
Lauren’s jaw dropped. Out of all the things she expected Mark to say, that was pretty much the last thing on the list, underneath I’m pregnant. “You have a daughter?”
“Yeah.” He pulled cash out. “She loves princesses.”
“What little girl doesn’t? Who’s her favorite?”
He smiled, and his entire face lit up with happiness. “Elsa. Of course. She makes me sing her ‘Let It Go’ every night.”
“Wow.” A small laugh escaped her. She couldn’t help it. “I had no idea you had a kid.”
“Most people don’t.” He shrugged. “It’s not really something I talk about a lot.”
He had been set up on a blind date with her, so obviously he wasn’t still married. But she was curious. “And your wife…?”
“Is dead.” The smile left his face. And what was left behind pulled at her heartstrings. “It’s just the two of us now.”
“Oh. I’m so sorry for your loss.” She folded the bag over and handed it to him. “You can just have it. She sounds delightful.”
He shook his head and threw down two dollars. “I’ll pay. Thanks, Lauren. And, hey, I hope you’re doing okay.”
