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“Lauren, hey,” she says, leaning in to kiss her cheek. “It’s been ages.”
“Hi Carey,” Lu replies. “I know, sorry, I’ve just been so busy and all.”
Carey is nodding, even as she glances at me, her brow furrowing as though she’s trying to work out where she’s seen me before. “Is that…?” she trails off, not finishing her question.
Lu nods once. “Yep, it is,” she says. “Back to fix some stuff for us and, you know,” she adds, waving a hand in the air as though this will explain things.
“Is that so?” Carey asks, smiling a little as she blatantly runs her eyes all over me.
I shoot Lu a glance, but she ignores me, instead rolling her eyes at Carey as she adds, “No, not that.”
Carey’s grin widens as she turns back to Lu and says, “Uh huh, you keep telling yourself that.”
She reaches for some menus now, her hand out motioning to the large French doors that lead to an outdoor patio that overlooks the river running through the middle of downtown.
We follow her outside, taking a seat at a corner table under a huge sun umbrella. Lu orders us a bottle of wine and Carey runs through some specials that I pay zero attention to, before finally walking off and leaving us to decide what we want.
“Ok,” I say, as soon as she leaves, my arms resting on the table as I lean closer to her. “What wasthatall about?”
“What?” she asks, her eyes on the menu.
“Ah, that,” I say, reaching over and lowering her menu so she’s forced to look at me. When she finally does, I flick my eyes inside as if to emphasize what I’m talking about.
Lu shakes her head, eyes back on her menu as she says, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I shake my head at her explanation, a smile tugging at my mouth as I see Carey heading toward us again, bottle of wine and two glasses in her hands. “I see,” I say, turning to grin at Carey now. “Sorry, Lu didn’t introduce us before.” I extend a hand out to her. “I’m Jack.”
Carey places the glasses on the table before shaking my hand, giggling a little as she says, “I know.”
I cock my head to the side. “You do?” I ask, shooting a quick look back at Lu, who’s now studying her menu like her life depends on it. “Have we met before or something?”
Carey sighs a little as she murmurs something that sounds likethat accentbefore she opens the wine and pours a taste into my glass. I gesture to both glasses, trusting Lu’s choice as Carey continues. “You were here like fifteen years ago, right?”
“Yeah.”
She nods. “You came to our school dance, the winter one.”
I look at Lu now, who’s shaking her head, a look on her face that suggests she wants the balcony to open up and dump her into the river below.
“Ohhhh,” I say. “You guys went to school together?”
Carey nods. “Yep.”
“And you remember me from that night?” I ask, grinning. This is fucking fantastic.
Carey smiles back at me. “Oh, we all do,” she says, her smile widening.
“Okay, I’m having a burger with everything, he’ll have the same only extra pickles,” Lu suddenly says, interrupting our walk down memory lane as she grabs my menu and shoves both of them at Carey. “Thanks, Care.”
Carey looks at Lu, who avoids her gaze now as she reaches for her wine glass. I pick up mine, holding it out in a toast toward her as Carey finally walks off.
“Everyone remembers me, huh?” I say, grinning as I hold my glass out to hers.
Lu rolls her eyes, clinking her glass against mine as she takes a long sip. I do the same, swirling the buttery chardonnay in my mouth before swallowing. It’s good wine.
“How do they all remember me, Lu?” I ask, nudging her with my foot under the table.
Lu puts her glass down, sitting up a little straighter as she meets my stare. “Don’t get too excited,” she says, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “It was just the winter dance I was forced to take you to, that’s all.”
