12. Sylvia #3
“Because I went there, to the art school, for their student exhibit twice. If I’d known you didn’t go, I could have saved myself from reading all those tags.”
“You went there?” He nods and I’m pleased beyond reason. He went there. Twice. Looking for my art.
He really didn’t get those letters, much less read them.
Our gazes cling and I don’t even want to breathe, lest I break the spell.
“Can I ask you that question?” Mike asks finally.
“Of course.”
“Why, Sylvia? Why are you here?” He looks puzzled. “Why did you come back now and not before? What changed?”
“That’s more than one question.”
“Got carried away once I started.”
“Not you, the heart and soul of restraint.”
He smiles that I’m teasing him but his gaze is still serious.
He’s waiting.
I turn on the ladder so that I’m facing him.
“Maybe a month ago, a guy came into Merrie’s restaurant in Toronto.
The place was going under and we didn’t have a lot of options.
And this guy, well, it was Luke.” I leave out the bit about the pitcher of ice water.
“I barely talked to him that day, but he knew it was me. After he left, he came up with some plan for Merrie to set up in Leon and Dotty’s diner. ”
“Because he wanted you and Sierra to come back here, so you’d all be together.”
“No.” I meet his gaze steadily. “Luke thought he owed me something, and he wanted to try to make things right.”
I see that Mike is biting his tongue, so I hurry on.
“Turns out he visited Una and asked her why I was waiting tables in Toronto, and instead of answering his question, she told him that she had cancer.”
Mike is visibly taken aback. “Sylvia! I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”
“No one knows. The only person she’d told was Muriel Jackson.
She told Luke, but she didn’t tell me. So, he came up with this plan for Merrie to open the café, knowing that I would come with her, ensuring I would be both back in Empire with Una and have a job here so I could afford to be back in Empire. ”
Mike closed his eyes for a minute. “He doesn’t hold back when he messes with people’s lives, does he?”
“He thought he was making something right, and in a way, he was. I’m glad to be here for Una, and I’m glad to be back in town. I’ve missed it, and I like that Sierra will have a similar experience growing up to mine. I feel like I needed a nudge, and Luke provided one.”
Mike’s expression is hard to read. “And Luke’s here, too.” There’s a finality in his tone, as if he believes I have everything I ever wanted.
I drop my gaze. I think of Luke’s own advice and take that chance .
“That doesn’t matter,” I say softly and I feel Mike studying me.
“Doesn’t it?”
I look up and shake my head, holding his gaze. “Luke never mattered to me.” I take a breath and the confession falls from my lips as if it was meant to be uttered in this very moment. “There was only ever you.”
Something lights in his eyes, something that makes my heart leap and my mouth go dry. Mike whispers my name, his gaze dropping to my mouth, then he looks into my eyes again. Checking. I smile because that’s Mike all over, the Mike I knew, the Mike who stole my heart.
And then because he is who he is, I take the initiative just the way I did a long time ago.
I actually release my grip on the ladder – well, one hand anyway – and reach up to cup his face.
His beard is short and neat, soft and prickly against my fingertips.
There’s a little tic in his jaw when I touch him, the same moment that his eyes darken to indigo.
At this proof that my touch affects him, I can’t resist temptation.
I lean forward and touch my lips to his, taking a taste of him.
It’s heavenly and long overdue. His mouth is firm, both familiar and all new. I hear him catch his breath as I lean into him, wanting this kiss with everything I’ve got.
I feel Mike’s body go taut. He lifts his head and his gaze bores into mine until I nod, just a little.
He doesn’t hesitate then. He bends closer and his mouth angles over mine with purpose.
His hand lifts to tangle in my hair and hold me closer, like I’m cherished and precious, then he’s kissing me as if nothing else matters.
It’s every bit as wonderful as I remembered, which is saying something.
I slide my hands around his neck, forgetting the ladder, confident he won’t let me fall.
His arm closes tightly around me and I’m crushed against his chest, just the way I wanted.
He’s just as ripped as he looks, all hard toned muscle, and I love the feel of him.
I want to wrap my legs around him right there…
But he lifts his head and stares down at me. “Tell me, Sylvia,” he says, his voice hoarse. “Tell me what you want.”
I want everything in this moment, but mostly I want Mike. I want to feel desired and important in my own right. I want to be loved for myself. I want to be seen as a person – not a mom or a grand-daughter or a hostess in a bistro.
I want to need my date bra.
“You,” I say simply, because it’s true, and his eyes blaze like blue lightning.
“Mom!” Sierra shouts from the other end of the greenhouse and Mike steps away, offering his hand to me even as colour rises on the back of his neck. “Where are you? You have to see this!”
“Coming!” I call and give Mike’s hand a squeeze as I step in front of him. I catch the simmering look in his eyes and his little smile, and that puts a bounce in my step and a swing in my hips.
I know he’s watching and that’s just fine.