Page 50 of All I Feel

“I’m looking forward to it.” He gave my arm one final squeeze, pulled his hand back, and gestured toward my plate. “All finished?”

I nodded.

“Want to go out for one more round of skating?”

“Try and stop me.”

With that, we got up, threw out our trash, and returned to the rink for more fun. It was just as enjoyable as it had been before we had dinner, the time flying by.

But eventually, with us both having to work tomorrow, we had to call it a night.

Ace drove me home, and as he walked me to my door, he asked, “So, do you have any plans for this weekend yet?”

“I’ve got a wedding on Saturday morning.”

“A wedding?”

“For work,” I clarified. “I’m doing makeup for the bride and her entire bridal party.”

“Busy day for you, then.”

I shook my head. “Not really. The morning will be slightly chaotic, but I should be done right around lunchtime.”

We came to a stop at my front door. “If you’ve gotnothing else going on, would you like to get lunch together afterward?”

“I don’t have any other plans, so I’d love to.”

He smiled as he lifted a hand to my shoulder and squeezed. “I hope you had a good time tonight, Tessa.”

“I did. Thank you for taking me.” Although I knew it wasn’t the case, so much about this felt like the end of a date. Ace was simply being a great friend. A faithful friend, just like my fortune had said. But even with that knowledge in the back of my mind, I wondered why I felt unsure of what to do next. “Did you… Would you like to come in for a bit?”

His lips parted, seemingly surprised by my offer. “I’d love nothing more, but it’s getting late. I should probably head home.”

“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.” Without thinking twice, I offered him a hug. As his arms came around me, I said, “Thank you, again, for giving me this tonight.”

“You’re welcome.”

Ace loosened his hold on me and stepped back. Our eyes met, and we exchanged awkward smiles.

“I’ll see you on Saturday afternoon, then?”

He jerked his chin down. “Absolutely. We’ll talk before that, though.”

“Perfect. Goodnight, Ace. Drive safely getting home.”

“I will. Goodnight, Tessa.”

At that, I opened my door and walked inside, waiting to close the door until Ace made it to his truck.

Then I waved as he pulled away, thinking that despite a little hiccup earlier in the day in the form of Ryan, my evening with Ace was beautiful.

FOURTEEN

ACE

“I just finished here.Do you still want to meet for lunch?”

Tessa had barely finished asking when I said, “Yes. I’ll leave now. See you in fifteen.”