He leaned against the workbench. “I’ve been thinking about that.”
“I know.”
“I still don’t have a great answer.”
A laugh escaped her. “Neither do I.”
The honesty helped. No promises. No declarations. Just the truth.
The expo ended tonight. The investigation would end eventually. The question waiting underneath both facts remained stubbornly unresolved.
She stared into her coffee. “I go back to Raleigh.”
Evan nodded. “Yeah.”
“And you stay here.”
“Probably.”
A gull cried outside. The mist shifted. Neither of them seemed interested in looking away.
Five years ago, he would have hidden behind the investigation.
Five years ago, he would have found a broken engine, a damaged dock, a loose piling. Anything but this.
Lauren had once hidden his tools because she was tired of competing with them.
At the time he’d thought she was exaggerating. In hindsight, she had not.
He set his coffee down. “I don’t know what happens after.”
Margot waited.
“But I know I don’t want tonight to be the last time I see you.”
Simple.
Honest.
Terrifying.
For a second he wondered whether he’d said too much. Then relief crossed her face so quickly she didn’t quite manage to hide it.
“Good.”
One word.
Enough.
Because it answered the question he’d been carrying since the bookstore. Good. His shoulders came down.
She set her coffee on the workbench. Then she stepped forward.
He barely had time to process the movement before her arms went around him. No kiss. No crossing that line. Steadier than that. Better.
His arms wrapped around her automatically. Her forehead settled against his shoulder. The top of her head fit beneath his chin.
He closed his eyes. Just for a second.
