Page 15

“Jack should be here any second,” she says. “He dropped me off while he searches for a parking spot.”

I glance up from the laminated menu and get the shock of my life. Jack Vale is… well, Jay. Same broad shoulders, same dark hair, same high cheekbones and impossible brown eyes. But where Jay is relaxed and rumpled in a soft black Henley, Jack is in a blue dress shirt and slacks, clean-shaven and sharp as a razor. His presence screams confident, intimidating cop energy, but his smile makes his whole face soften.

He walks straight to our table, slides in next to Poppy, and gives her a quick kiss. Then he turns his attention to me. For a second, I hold my breath, waiting. Then he grins and says, “You must be Nadia. You’re way too pretty to waste your time on my ugly ass brother.”

“I look just like you, asshole,” Jay grumbles and wraps his arm around my shoulders.

Poppy snickers and winks at me. “Ignore these guys and tell me all about you.” I almost choke on my water. The spotlight is on me.

Jay squeezes my thigh under the table. Subtle, but not really. It’s like he’s reminding me, “You got this, babe.” Except he’s also smirking because he knows exactly how flustered I get when people stare.

I try to play it cool. “There’s not much to tell, honestly. I teach third grade, I have a tragic addiction to caffeine and true crime podcasts, and I’m still recovering from an incident with a rogue glitter bomb a few weeks ago.” I pause for dramatic effect. “And I’m currently being held hostage by this man and his Frenchie. Send help.”

Poppy barks out a laugh that makes everyone around us look. “Oh, you’re my people. We need a girls’ night ASAP. I have stories about these two that will make you—” Her husband wraps his arms around her and pulls her close for a kiss.

When he releases her, he whispers against her lips, “Don’t tell all our secrets.”

Poppy bats her eyelashes at him. “I’m not going to tell all.” Then she glances over at me and mouths, “But most of it.”

Oh my God. I love her. The waitress comes by and gets our orders. Then Jay and Jack immediately start sparring, trading jabs about each other’s dogs, work, and fashion choices. It’s clear they know each other’s every secret, and the banter is brutal but loving. Jack glances over at me and winks. “Did you tell her how you cried when Bambi’s mother died?”

Jay just glares at his brother and asks, “Did you tell Poppy how you slept with a nightlight until senior year?”

Poppy and I bond instantly over a shared sense of knowing these men are idiots, but they’re our idiots.”

It’s comfortable. More than comfortable, actually. I feel like I’ve known her forever. Jay keeps a hand on my thigh under the table, always steady, always there. Every time I get nervous and start to babble, he’ll squeeze gently, reminding me I’m not alone.

Poppy catches my eye and grins, all conspiratorial energy. “How did you and Jay meet?”

How do I explain this without sounding like a klutz? “After a workday that can only be described as apocalyptic, I was dragging three tote bags home. Jay and Salty were out front of the building, and the next thing I know, I’m tripping, the Frenchie’s attacking my ankles, and Jay literally catches me before I faceplant on the sidewalk.”

Poppy chuckles and reaches over the table to pat my hand. “Don’t worry. I can top that.” Jack laughs, full belly as Poppy nods and continues. “I was cleaning apartments in the building to put myself through college. Jack’s was my last apartment of the day. I leaned my mop against the wall outside the bathroom while I scrubbed the counter, and Pepper decided to screw with me. She knocked the mop over, and it slid under the doorknob, trapping me inside the bathroom until Jack came home and rescued me.”

We all laugh. I realize my anxiety has vanished.

The rest of the night flies by. We eat our burgers, onion rings, and way too much pie. The twins bicker about who is better looking while Poppy tells me about her plans to start her own cleaning company once she graduates from college.

It’s so funny to see the twins in action. They finish each other’s sentences, then immediately argue about who started the sentence.

By the time we leave, I feel like I’ve always been part of their world.

Outside, the air is cool, and the streetlights shimmer against the glass façade of #1 Love Place. Jay wraps an arm around me as we walk from the parking garage over to the building, his thumb tracing circles on my shoulder. I hear him chuckle softly, and I realize he’s watching me.

“What?”

“You look happy,” he says.

I smile up at him, more open than I’ve ever felt. “I am. I’ve never been happier.”

He stops under a streetlamp, turns me to face him, and tucks my hair behind my ear. “You belong with me, Nadia. I fell in love with you the first moment I laid eyes on you.”

“I love you, too.” I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him down for my kiss. The world melts away until there’s just us and the knowledge that we fit together, imperfectly but perfectly, like we were always meant to.

When we get to his door, Salty greets us with a snort and a look that says, “About time.” Jay grabs his harness and kneels down to snap it on him. “I’m going to run him out really quick. When I come back, I want to find you naked and waiting for me in our bed.”

Jay kisses me, slow and deep, before dragging the little Frenchie out the door.

Holy hell. He doesn’t have to ask me twice.