“Seriously, thanks for getting the critic back to the restaurant. It meant a lot to me.”
He laughed as he stroked her hair. “Ha. If I knew that would’ve been my reward, I would’ve done it sooner.”
Alma playfully smacked him. “Stop.”
He pulled her into him. “No, I’m joking. Your bar is amazing, and you deserve all the success in the world. It wasn’t fair that I ruined your chances to have a good review.”
She looked up at him and batted her eyelashes. “Thank you. And I’m sorry for going off on you that night. I was so shocked. I never thought I’d see you again.”
“Honestly, I didn’t plan on seeing you again. Ever. I did just come here selfishly because I wanted to start a tequila line. I wanted to see you, of course I did. But I wasn’t planning on rekindling anything.”
But I am now.
He kept his thoughts to himself.
“I have a question for you.”
His breath hitched. “What?”
“What are you doing in a couple of weeks?”
“Oh, I don’t know. Why?”
She pursed her lips. “Nothing. Just curious.”
Jaime didn’t press. Back when they were dating, Alma had always been cautious and slow to open up. She would tell him what was on her mind when the time was right.
They had a quiet night in. Ordered room service—juicycheeseburgers and crispy french fries for the win—and watched some cheesy rom-com on the television.
“I should get back. Tequila needs me.”
Jaime hesitated. He shouldn’t push but he couldn’t help himself.
Alma glared at him. “What? Do you want to walk me back?”
“I do. But what I really want is to spend the night with you.”
Alma’s eyes widened. “Okay.”
Jaime beamed. “You sure?”
“Yeah, it would be nice.”
He gathered his toiletry bag, and they walked to her place. She opened the door and gathered up Tequila.
“Make yourself at home.”
Jaime nodded and took in the room. It was cozy and warm. Big throw blankets, family pictures on the wall, a few pieces of brightly colored art.
She returned from her dog walk and got ready for bed.
Jaime did as well and snuggled in beside her.
He kissed Alma on the forehead. “I wanted to stay with you last night, but I didn’t want to overwhelm you.”
She grinned. “This is really great Jaime, but I want to be clear. Let’s just enjoy ourselves while you’re in town, and then when we say goodbye, we can both finally move on.”
Jaime’s throat tightened. He turned his head away, trying to conceal his emotions. “Right. Exactly what I was thinking.”
