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I feel a twinge of warmth in my chest, seeing her fire and intensity, knowing one of my favorite things about her hasn’t changed.

My dad stirs his coffee, clanking the metal spoon on the nearly empty cup loud enough that we all look at him. He raises his brows at me and smirks. “Come on, son. Sit down.”

I look at him, and at the empty seat in the booth next to Josie. Then I look back at him and shake my head.

“Nope. I’m good. Just waiting on my coffees then I’m heading to the garage. You know, the one we own and work at?” I raise my brows at him, but he just flashes his shit-eating grin right back. He tips his coffee cup to the open seat again, as if that would will me to sit next to her, when I want to be as far away from here as possible.

I want them to leave me out of this reunion that I’ve been dreading, and simultaneously wanting, for years. I’ve never been up front with my family about why I ended things with Josie, the girl everyone—me included—assumed I would marry one day. We were inseparable from the day we met, or at least that’s what we were always told, since we were too young to remember it. As far as my siblings are concerned, I’m just the asshole who broke up with her. I’ve been content with letting them think that for over a decade. That issue has come up less and less over the years, but with her being back here, and now sitting in a booth at the diner with Dad and Sisi, I have a feeling the topic will come up again.

“Oh, come on. Stay,” my sister pleads. “Josie has so many van stories I’m dying to hear. I’m sure you’ll love them, too.”

“I’ll pass. My drinks should be ready any minute.”

I look back at Josie who gives me a weary smile that tells me she’s as ready as I am for this to be over.

“Shit.” Riley’s yelp from behind the counter draws our eyes over to her. I turn just in time to see two cups of steaming brown liquid hit the ground and spill across the checkered tile floor. The kid who works for her rushes over to help clean up, but not before she gives me an apologetic look. “Sorry. It might be more than a couple of minutes before your drinks are ready.”

I throw my head back and groan, because I know what’s coming next.

“So, will you join us now while she remakes your fancy coffees?” Dad asks, smirking.

Yep. Fuck my life. Hoping for mercy was wishful thinking.

This time, I look at Josie and shrug because I guess this is happening after all. She squeezes herself all the way to the other side of the bench, and I take a seat next to her.

I might not have been as broadly built as I am now, but even in high school, it was a tight squeeze for the two of us in this booth. Now it’s almost comical trying to fit my six-foot-four frame next to her. Back then, it wasn’t an issue. We were inseparable, and one of us was always draped over the other, a constant jumbled mess of tongues, hands, and raging teenage hormones.

Today, I will take any extra inch of real estate between us. The sliver of booth cushion isn’t nearly enough to shield me from her cold shoulder. Even then, my eyes drift just enough to take her in. She’s in skintight leggings and a baggy hoodie. I didn’t get a great look at her in the dark last night, but she’s so gorgeous.

Her once long, wavy red hair is now in a short pixie cut that shows off the spot on her neck that makes my pulse thrum. I know if I kissed that spot, I’m sure she’d whimper my name—just like she used to.

Shit. I am a fucking mess, just like I knew I would be if I ever saw her again. I need to think about anything other than her right now.

“So, what prompted this meeting of the minds this morning?” I ask, noting everyone’s already empty plates. They must have been here for a while if they’ve already ordered and eaten.

“Oh, I wanted to hear all about Josie’s adventures,” my dad says, leaning back and throwing his arm over the back of the booth.

I turn to my sister and roll my eyes. “You have a big mouth.”

She steeples her hands, strumming her fingers together manically. “I didn’t tell him anything.”

I look back and forth between my dad and sister, both sporting matching grins, like all the times before they’d team up to torment me and my older brothers with their bullshit shenanigans. That’s when it clicks, and I look at Josie. The unamused look she gives me, followed by a long sigh and slow nod, tells me my dad did exactly what I think he did. He might be an arthritic old man, but he still likes to play games with us for his own amusement.

Just as I’m about to say something, he slaps his thighs and stands up. “Welp. I should probably get to the garage. Who knows? An unexpected customer might walk in.”

I give him a sarcastic thumbs up, and maybe I’m seeing things, but I’m pretty sure he winks. He’s already halfway to the door, so I make a mental note to call him out on this later.

Sisi looks at her phone and then at Josie. “I need to get back to the motel. Don’t be a stranger, okay? I’m not done hearing about all your adventures.”

Josie smiles at my sister, and I can’t help but notice how genuine it looks. As much as I dwell on my own self-imposed misery, I know my sister has missed Josie.

“Of course. I’ll stop by the front desk later.”

My sister gives Josie a shy smile and stands, making her way to the door. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Josie check her phone, and I look back at Sisi. Before she walks out of the diner, she tilts her chin at Josie and then mouths talk to her at me before giving me a menacing stare. I scowl back at her and give her a one-fingered gesture, letting her know that I’m not into the games she and Dad want to play. She laughs before blowing me a kiss, and a second later, she’s out the door and crossing the street to the motel.

Finally, the morning turns my way, and Riley comes with my coffees and Josie’s check. Thank fuck, because I want to get out of here and bury myself under a car. I need to get lost in the details of working on a car because right now, that’s the only thing that’s going to distract me from the shit show of the last twelve hours.

I reach for the check, and I don’t know why, because I’ve already paid for my coffee. Maybe it’s an old habit from all the times we sat in this booth before. I catch her small hand in mine. Instead of icy cold nothingness, I feel a surge of warmth and crackling electricity that I haven’t felt—well—since the last time her hands touched me.