Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Domi
The entire house smelled like her childhood, even though dinner had been over hours ago, and Ana was long in bed.
It smelled delicious but unusual enough to be a reminder of why it smelled that way.
She wished she could pretend it was just one of those days when she got a hankering or had planned out a menu to share with Ana and Rae.
She’d cooked what her heart had needed because it had been hurt. Bruised. Broken.
Ana had been excited about the elaborate dinner and thought it was a special birthday surprise for her. Which was what it should have been if Domi had thought of it.
“Hey, stop it.” Rae poked her in the side, hard.
“Ow! I wasn’t doing anything!”
“Yes, you were. You had your ‘guilt’ face on, which means you’re thinking about something you think you did wrong. Probably something that wasn’t your fault, or the only person who thinks it would be a big deal is you.”
Domi rubbed her side, scowling. “I was just thinking tonight should have been a special dinner for Ana and wishing it hadn’t been a wallowing dinner.”
“And feeling guilty you hadn’t thought about making her a special birthday dinner, even though we took her out last night, right?” Rae asked dryly. Dammit. They really did know each other too well sometimes.
“Shut up. What are you doing?” she asked, leaning over.
Rae had been scrolling through something on her laptop for the past few minutes, but now that Domi actually looked at it, she could tell it wasn’t social media.
When Rae immediately tried to shift the screen away so Domi couldn’t see, it made her even more curious. “What is that?”
“Nothing.” Rae’s shoulders hunched defensively. “I mean… it’s a website. A blog.”
“Yeah, what’s the blog about?” Domi reached for the laptop again. “Does that say self-publishing?”
“Maybe. Yes.”
“You’re finally going to do it?” Domi squealed, clapping her hands together.
“I’m thinking about it. Maybe. I’m looking at what’s involved if I decide to do it.”
That was more than she’d been willing to do in the past. Domi knew Rae would eventually end up giving in.
She was going to make sure of it. Rae was a great accountant, but it wasn’t her passion.
At the very least, she could do both things.
She was always afraid of putting her work out there, afraid of failing, but Domi believed in her.
“Do it, do it, do it,” she whisper-chanted, making Rae giggle.
They both froze when Domi’s phone went off with the unique text message sound she’d assigned to Mitch.
Slowly turning her head, Domi looked where her phone lay on the coffee table as if it was a snake about to strike.
It laid there, quiet and still, totally innocent looking.
“Are you going to pick it up?” Rae asked. “I can read it first if you want.”
No. That was the coward’s way out. Which was probably why part of her wanted to ask Rae to do it, but she should look.
“We can do it together.” Picking up the phone, she leaned back against the couch, Rae setting the laptop aside so she could move right next to Domi and see the phone’s screen.
Domi’s stomach twisted with a nauseating combination of hope and anxiety, but with Rae’s comforting presence snuggled up against her, she made herself turn on the phone and check the text.
Hey, Domi, I’m sorry about last night. It was a bad night and a bad time, and I took it out on you when I shouldn’t have. Can we get together and talk?
“Oooh… that’s a pretty good apology,” Rae murmured. “Do you think he wants to get together, so he can try to get back together?”
“I don’t know.” Domi chewed her lower lip, conflicted.
Part of her was jumping for joy, he’d finally reached out, but another part of her worried he wanted to get together to apologize, then explain more about why he’d dumped her…
and she’d remained dumped. “I hate it when someone says they want to ‘talk.’”
“Kind of hard to have an in-depth conversation over text message,” Rae pointed out, turning over to reach for her own phone.
“What are you doing?”
“Calling Avery. She should get the latest update.” Rae pressed the screen and put it on speaker, so Domi could hear the phone ringing.
Shaking her head, Domi stared back at her own phone, trying to interpret the few words on the screen. Why hadn’t he called? Did he not want to hear her voice? Was he trying to respect, she might not want to hear his? Was he trying to manipulate her into actually seeing him if she wanted to talk?
“Hello?” Avery whispered into the phone. “What’s up? It’s almost the end of my shift, but it’s still busy, so I only have a few minutes. Is Domi okay?”
“I’m here, I’m okay,” Domi said. “Mitch sent me a text message.” She repeated it for Avery.
“That’s a pretty good apology.” Like Rae, Avery sounded fairly impressed. “Are you going to meet him?”
“That’s what we’re trying to figure out,” Rae told her. Turning to Domi, she lifted her eyebrows, holding the phone between them, so Avery would be able to hear them both. “Do you want to meet him?”
Shit. Yeah. She did.
“Yeah,” she sighed. “If only to find out what was going on that he acted like that.”
“Curiosity killed the cat,” Avery said, but the warning in her tone was playful.
“And satisfaction brought it back.” Rae grinned, finishing the saying. It was one she often corrected people on, probably because she’d heard it so often. Rae was always curious. “Do you want to get back together with him?”
Yes! That was the part of her brain that got her into this in the first place, but this time, Domi wasn’t jumping ahead to listen to that part of her brain so quickly.
“I guess it depends on what he has to say.” She pressed her lips together. “I can’t meet him till this weekend at the earliest. Ana doesn’t go over to Marcus’ till Saturday morning.”
“Oooh, come to Marquis for brunch,” Avery said immediately. “I can make sure you’re seated near the back hall, and Rae and I can listen in. You know, in case you need moral support. He won’t even know we’re there.”
“Yes.” Rae nodded decisively, making Domi snort. Of course, she’d like that idea. “Do that.”
It wasn’t the worst idea. That way, if Mitch crushed her again, her friends would be right there.
“Okay, fine. I’ll tell him Saturday at eleven at Marquis…” Her fingers were already moving to reply when they heard a man’s voice bark out Avery’s name.
“Avery! What are you doing?”
“Taking a smoke break,” Avery yelled back at him. Her voice was slightly muffled when she whispered into the phone. “Oops, gotta go.”
“You don’t smoke.”
“Then I’m taking an air break. Chill out, Nick.” The line cut out, leaving both Domi and Rae hanging.
They looked at each other.
“Did not expect her to be a brat,” Domi said before returning her attention back to her phone.
“Maybe he brings it out in her,” Rae suggested, dragging her laptop back atop her thighs and giving Domi an idea.
“You know, I’m thinking maybe I gave in a little too quickly,” Domi said, putting down her phone without sending the message. “How about… I’ll meet with Mitch on Saturday at Marquis if you self-publish a book.”
“What if I don’t care if you meet up with Mitch?” Rae asked, crossing her arms over her chest, her expression even more stubborn than usual.
“Oh, no, I’ll still meet up with him, but not at Marquis, where you’ll have Avery to help you overhear everything. I’ll go somewhere you have to watch from a distance and guess what’s going on.”
“Oh, you’re good,” Rae muttered, frowning down at her laptop. She stared at it for a long moment before shaking her head. “Okay, fine.” She moved the mouse and clicked. “Done.”
Domi blinked. “Wait, seriously?”
“I’ve had it set up for about two weeks now, I just hadn’t pressed publish,” Rae admitted sheepishly.
“What?! Rae, that’s amazing!” Domi was about to throw her hands up in the air and hug her friend when Rae pointed at her.
“Set up your date with Mitch, then celebrate with me.”
Sighing, Domi settled back down into her spot and pressed the send button.
“It’s not a date.” She tossed her phone back onto the coffee table and tackle hugged her bestie. “I’m so proud of you!”
Hell, if Rae could do something as scary as finally self-publishing her work, Domi could have brunch with the guy who had broken her heart.
Mitch
Nervous as hell, Mitch waited in the booth the hostess had escorted him to. He was fifteen minutes early and extremely uncomfortable. Suits weren’t his thing. He’d actually had Zach and Kincaid go shopping with him last night, which was crazy but… he was feeling a little crazy.
After talking to his dad, Mitch realized he was right. He had to do something his dad would never do. At least, his dad never would have done in the past, though he might now.
Reach out.
Talk.
Grand gesture.
Still working on that last one, but Mitch had watched enough romance movies with his mom to know he was going to have to do something big to make it up to Domi—something that wasn’t flowers.
The new suit was part of that gesture, though it wasn’t exactly grand, more like uncomfortable.
At least Zach had let him get away with not wearing a tie or a vest. Zach’s personal style was a little too GQ for Mitch.
He did look damn good today, though, in a grey suit that fit his shoulders and a button-down blue shirt exactly matching the color of his eyes. He’d wanted to dress up a little, so it wasn’t only his words showing Domi he was serious, but he looked like he was taking this seriously.
Never taking his eyes off the door, he saw her the moment she walked in and jumped to his feet. To his surprise, Rae wasn’t with her. He’d figured he’d be facing both of them together.
Wearing black pants, a red shirt, with her makeup and hair done—though not as dark as she would for Stronghold—Mitch knew she hadn’t dressed up for him.
She’d dressed up for herself. This was Domi with all her armor on, and it made his chest ache.
She looked beautiful but distant, without her usual warmth.
Part of him wanted to pull back, to hide his own emotions… but that’s what he’d done wrong before. He’d held back without realizing it, thinking everything would fall into place, then he could be all in. But that wasn’t how it worked.
After Wednesday night, Domi had good reason to fear being hurt, to hold back. If Mitch was going to show her, she didn’t need to be, he was going to have to give her a little more of himself.
The hostess waved her over, and Domi’s eyes widened when she saw him, her gaze flicking over his body. Appreciation glimmered in her expression before she hid it. Mitch preened.
Yeah, she liked the suit.
“Domi,” he said by way of greeting when she reached him, holding out his hand to help her into the booth.
“Mitch.” Her tone was a little terse, but she took his hand and let him help her sit down.
“I haven’t been here for brunch.” Sitting across from her, studying her expression, he tried to get a feel for where she was mentally and got the impression, she was extremely guarded.
He couldn’t really blame her. He was a little envious, in fact.
Right now, he felt very exposed and not in a fun, sexy way.
“Me, either, but I heard it’s good.” She didn’t look at her menu, warily keeping her eyes on him.
Their server came by to get their drink order, and Mitch ordered coffee, while Domi opted for an espresso. She still didn’t look at her menu, which was making him nervous. Wasn’t she planning on staying to eat?
“Yeah, the menu looks good,” he hinted, nodding to where she had her arms crossed over hers. Her plump lips twisted.
“Why don’t you tell me why you wanted to meet, and I’ll decide whether or not I should bother looking at the menu.” Her tone was tart, but there was something in her eyes—Mitch couldn’t define exactly what—gave him the tiniest bit of hope.