Page 93 of Neap & Spring

“You’ve been sitting out here for a while.”

“I was just —” I gesture vaguely at the dip. “Making sure it didn’t spill.”

He looks at the perfectly stable glass dish sitting in my lap, then back at me with one eyebrow raised.

“It does look very spillable. In this parked car.”

“It could happen.”

“Vivienne.”

The way he says my name with just a hint of amusement makes my anxiety loosen just slightly.

“I almost left,” I admit.

“I know.”

“How did you —”

“Because I know you.” He leans against my car, his arms crossed above the window while he leans in. “And because you’ve been sitting out here for almost ten minutes. I’ve been watching.”

“That’s not creepy at all.”

“I was giving you space to decide.” His eyes are steady on mine. “But I’m glad you stayed.”

A small smile tugs at my lips despite myself.

“I made dip.”

“I can see that.”

He’s looking at the dish through the window. Then his eyes cut back to me with a knowing gleam.

“Cheese, garlic, and herbs?” he asks quietly.

“And crab,” I murmur.

“The one I used to make us.”

“Yeah.”

We stare at each other through the open window. His expression is unreadable, but I can feel it down to my toes anyway.

I watched him make this dip a hundred times. I memorized the way he’d eyeball the measurements, taste and adjust, taste again.

I can see him trying to work it out. Why this recipe. Why now. What it means.

But he doesn’t push.

“Come on.” His voice is rougher than before. He straightens and opens my car door. “Everyone’s waiting to meet you. And if you hate it, I’ll personally drive you home whenever you want to leave.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

I take a deep breath, in and out, and then another before I grab the dip and let him help me out of the car.

The gravel crunches under my shoes. I’m wearing leggings and an oversized cream sweater with ankle boots. I changed three times before settling on this outfit because it felt like the right balance of casual and put-together. Now, standing next to Callum in his perfectly worn-in jeans and henley, I feel overdressed and underdressed at the same time.