Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 80892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 404(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 404(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
“This whole night has been perfect so far,” I said, meaning it. “Better than I could’ve imagined. And I’ve been, um, imagining it sort of a lot.”
“Well, I’ll take that as a good omen,” he said, beaming. “The night is just beginning, so that’s gotta be a good sign, right?”
I nodded, the last hint of nerves finally subsiding as he stood there smiling at me. “I think it’s a really good sign.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine - Joanne
I watched as Brady looked around the candle-lit restaurant, waiting for what I hoped would be a positive reaction. With the extent of his helpful input being “I like all kinds of food,” and “anything sounds good, honestly,” my boss had left the decision of where to go on our date completely up to me.
And even though I was definitely a fan of the restaurant—it was Italian, after all… what was not to love? —I truly had no idea what Brady’s taste in food might be, aside from the usual coffee and bagels we got from Castle Coffee.
“I never even knew this place was here,” Brady said, finally, nodding slowly to himself as he continued to look around. “Seems nice, though. And if you like it, it can’t be too bad.”
I grinned. “Thanks, I think? To be fair, I’ve only been here a couple of times, and I’ve only ever tried the lasagna. But I can say for sure that it’s really good, if that helps.”
“Better than your mom’s? Because hers was pretty amazing, if I recall correctly.”
“Well, I couldn’t really say without incriminating myself, but… let’s just say the lasagna here gives hers a run for its money. It’s certainly something I’ll miss when I move out on my own again, though.”
Brady turned his full attention back to me and had been listening attentively—one of the many things I really liked about him—but at the mention of moving out, he seemed to perk up even more.
“Do you have plans? For moving out, I mean? It’s not something you’ve mentioned at work before.”
I shrugged. It was a bit of a sensitive subject for me, since moving back in with my mom hadn’t been an easy decision for me. But I was the one who had brought it up, so it was only fair to answer his innocent question.
“I doubt anyone in their mid-twenties wants to be living at home with their parents, you know?”
“No doubt. It would’ve killed me to move back in with my old man.”
I felt a twinge of guilt as Brady spoke, belatedly remembering that not everyone enjoyed the close relationship I had with my mother, and that the options I had for starting my life over again weren’t even available to him anymore.
“Well, I mean… my mom and I get along pretty well, but it’s definitely not the same as living on my own. So yeah, in a general sense, I’m gonna be moving out sometime—hopefully sooner rather than later—but I still need to get my finances in order before I take that step. I want to make sure I’m doing things the right way this time.”
Brady nodded, looking thoughtful. “What went wrong the first time, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“What went wrong?” I snorted. “How much time do you have? It starts with an ex…”
“It usually does. That bad, huh?”
I shrugged. “I can’t blame him completely. We were both young and dumb. I made a lot of bad decisions along the way, for sure. But in the end, I learned a lot. A lot about people. A lot about love—or what love isn’t, anyway.”
“I’m sorry you had to learn that kind of lesson.” His voice was soft and low. Even though we were across the table from each other, I could see the compassion in Brady’s eyes. “I learned that lesson young, too. Just not in the same way.”
It was clear from his dark expression that he was talking about his father. I wanted to ask more—what had gone so wrong between them, why Brady still resented the man so much, even though he’d been dead for nearly three months.
But it wasn’t the time. It wasn’t the place. The conversation had already taken a decisively dark turn, and I didn’t want to make it worse. That would be a date-killer, for sure.
“So, how are you liking things now? At the shop, I mean. You can’t tell me it’s not growing on you, at least a little.”
I grinned, not even trying to be subtle about the abrupt change of subject. To be fair, though, it was another question I had had on my mind for some time.
Brady took the bait. “I do have to admit that I like it a lot more than I thought I would. I think it’s the people, mostly.”
“Yeah, that’s exactly what it is for me, too.” I nodded emphatically. “I mean, I like the actual work, but—”