“Come on,” I said. “I see Celeste, and she looks like she’s about to have a punctual panic attack.”
Alongside her was Faith, stretching in her red ballet flats to stand on her tiptoes, though she didn’t need the extra height. She waved.
“Good. You made it just in time,” Celeste said, visibly relieved. She waved her hands and bustled me forward in step with her. “Lu and Ryan are already in the group about to make their way in. I told Essie to save us some extra seats when she went to sit with Gertie. I figured you’d be late.”
Celeste’s eyes remained on me before shifting to stare at Dom behind me. Without a single emotion, she took him in.
I never knew Celeste had such a killer poker face. Her attention turned back to me, as if she could see the connection between us like a string of magic, tangled and twisted. Her thin eyebrows flared as she looked forward again, excusing us as we pushed through gushing parents trying to get their extended family to sit down and stop blocking other people’s view.
“We wanted to make sure you knew where we were,” Faith added from over her shoulder. She reached out and gave my hand a tug before letting go again.
Now, it was the line of us walking toward our seats.
Dom trailed two steps behind without a word. So far, so good.
“I still can’t believe that Lu is going to walk,” I said.
“We shall see,” sang Faith.
“You really think she is going to pull an escape act at this point?” asked Essie, overhearing as we shuffled into the row of seats left open for us. She scooted over one closer to Gertie.
Faith only wagged her eyebrows at me. We both definitely believed she’d at least try. If not for all seriousness, for at least a good laugh and story to tell.
It was only then that Faith looked back over my shoulder and noticed the extra very silent person attached to me. She blinked a few times as he sat down next to me, unsure if he was real.
Is that …Faith mouthed.
I widened my eyes in confirmation. Celeste looked back at our silence, eyes catching exactly what we were talking about and taking her chance.
“I assume this is Dominic.” Celeste openly marked his presence, yet her voice remained monotone.
I pressed my lips together. I was oddly pleased at Celeste’s reaction for the first time in my entire life. Biting the inside of my cheek, I looked straight forward, waiting to see exactly what the man next to me was about to say to get himself out of that look.
“So, you’ve talked about me?” Dom attempted to joke.
Celeste only hummed, giving nothing away as she found her spot next to her daughter. She made herself comfortable while everyone else continued to chatter. “We’re lucky we weren’t late.”
Gertie leaned forward, casually taking a glance at Dom, along with Essie. Essie took her time, giving him more than a small once-over. I imagined she had with all the guys I’d gone out with and she’d seen. Tall ones, skinny ones, pierced ones, large ones that dwarfed me in size—I didn’t discriminate when it came to finding Mr. Right.
But this one was different, and she knew it. This was the man who, last summer, brought me to my knees.
Celeste tapped her daughter on the knee. Essie still met my eyes, raising her eyebrows before she sat back, as if she was impressed.
“He’s like your little lapdog on a leash,” whispered Faith, cackling softly.
I choked on the force of the laugh that crawled up my throat. I let out a little chuckle and snorted. Eyes quickly turned toward me, but I hid my face from them all.
When I peeked up to my other side, Dom stared at me. He looked much less amused.
I could only hope that he had heard my dear friend.
“I didn’t lie. I told you what you were walking into.” I tilted my head for only him to hear. There were no excuses for our coldness toward him. There were only facts. “Trust is earned in a coven, not handed out. We’ve all been through too much to be handing out forgiveness like it doesn’t cost anything, and up until now, I hadn’t shared the fine and rosy times of you.”
He dipped his head, jaw clenched. “We had fine and rosy times, Sparkles?”
I rolled my eyes at his version of pouting. “But they do give second chances.”
At that, his eyes squinted, as if he wasn’t sure what to make of my words. There wasn’t time for him to sort through them anyway as the small class of Barnett University began their final walk down the hill and into the three rows of seats in front of us.
