Coming Home

It was already four thirty; she’d been forced to spend the entire day without him, and it induced a level of anxiety in her she didn’t know existed. The showing at the ASH program that afternoon had been one of the largest of the school year, what with finals on the horizon, so canceling would have been in poor form. Plus, Leah had already taken off the following day to be at court with Da

But sitting in a room full of students for two and a half extra hours on the last day before Da

When the program ended, she’d raced out of the building, calling him as she made her way to her car. He was spending the day finalizing some things at the shop and told her to let him know when she was leaving so he could meet her at her apartment.

Leah chewed her lip as she listened to Da

She sent up a silent prayer that it would be soon.

But by the time she pulled into the parking space in front of her apartment, a gnawing impatience was begi

He still hadn’t returned her call.

Leah put the car in park and gathered her things quickly, as if her rushing could somehow make him do the same.

She hoisted her bags onto her shoulder as she approached the front door, promising herself that if she didn’t hear back from him in the next ten minutes, she would call the shop and have him paged. The idea of wasting any more time without him tonight was making her want to crawl out of her skin.

Leah fumbled with her keys for a moment before she opened the door to her apartment, immediately stopping in her tracks.

It was dark inside, save for the faint flickering of candlelight.

After a stu

“Da

A second later he came out from the kitchen with a bottle of wine in his hand.

“Welcome home,” he said.

Leah blinked at him before she put her bags down by the door. “What are you doing?” she asked, walking toward the table. “What is this?”

“An early birthday celebration.”

She stopped short. “You remembered?”

“Of course I did,” he said matter-of-factly, placing the bottle on the table as he began to uncork it.

Leah stared at him, completely floored. With everything he had going on the next day, celebrating her birthday should have been the last thing on his mind.

“I even bought you a birthday cake that I’m going to pretend I made. And you’re going to pretend to believe it, just like you promised.”

She looked up at him with a tiny laugh as she watched him pour her a glass of wine, and then he smiled as he held it out for her. “I hope you’re hungry,” he said. “I got us something from Il Bardona.”

Leah’s mouth dropped. Il Bardona was one of her favorite restaurants, but it certainly wasn’t an establishment that dealt in takeout.

She reached for the glass he handed her. “That’s not the type of place that makes food to go.”

“I know,” he said. “I called in a favor.”

She stared at him for a moment before shaking her head. “Da

“Leah,” he said, mimicking her tone as he poured himself a glass of wine.

She tried to stifle a smile as he placed his glass on the table, and then he pulled her chair out and gestured for her to sit down. “Your meal will be out shortly, miss,” he said with a bow.

As he disappeared into the kitchen, Leah turned to look at the table.

He’d remembered her birthday. He’d gone out of his way for her tonight. Sneaking up to her place while she was stuck at work, making arrangements with her favorite restaurant, setting the table with stemware and flowers, getting her a birthday cake so she could make her wish.

What was she ever going to do when they took this all away from her?

Her vision clouded as her eyes welled with tears just as Da

“Leah,” he said gently. “I realize what tonight is, but I don’t want this to be about saying good-bye, okay?”

The sting behind her eyes doubled at his words, and she blinked quickly, trying to keep her tears at bay. When he saw her struggling, he reached across the table, taking her hand in his and playing with her fingers.

“It’s not good-bye, sweet girl. It’s only temporary. You’re the one who told me that, remember?”

Leah forced a smile as she nodded.

“I want tonight to be about us,” he said. “Just you and me. Nothing else. Can we do that?”

She nodded again. “That sounds perfect,” she said softly.

“Good,” he said, bringing her hand to his lips and kissing it before letting it go. He picked up his glass and raised it to her. “Happy birthday, Leah.”

She tapped her glass to his before taking a sip, and she hummed, swirling the glass gently. “What is this?”

Da

“It’s really good.”

“It was the top-rated wine last year.”

Leah lifted her brow. “Is that so? Since when are you a wine co

“Since I asked the guy at the liquor store to give me his best bottle, and he gave me this and said it was the top-rated wine last year.”

She smiled at him before shaking her head, and he winked, picking up his knife and fork.

They talked and laughed throughout the meal, but every so often, Leah’s mind would wander where it wasn’t supposed to go—she’d find herself wondering where he’d be this time tomorrow, what he’d be doing, how she was going to get through knowing he was out of her reach and suffering. But when the lump rose in her throat, or when she felt her eyes burn with the threat of tears, she would distract herself by concentrating on him, memorizing his every detail: his light-blue eyes refracting delicate candlelight, the curve of his lips, the inky black hair that felt so soft between her fingers, the lines of his jaw, the dimples in his cheeks when he smiled her favorite smile, the sound of his laugh, the way he held his fork.

Despite the reality that was looming over them, it was surprisingly easy to get lost in those things.

When they’d finished eating, Leah and Da

She couldn’t believe she had ever existed without this. Being with him, touching him, laughing with him—there was nothing more satisfying, nothing capable of making her feel more content and gratified and beautiful and whole.

And as much as she was dreading the struggle that would be coming her way, the thought of never having met him rivaled the pain of losing him.

She often thought about how many facets of the universe had been at work the day their paths crossed. If that guy hadn’t been tailgating her on the street, she would never have parked in front of Catherine’s house and gotten out of the car. If Catherine didn’t happen to be looking out the window when Leah stopped there, she wouldn’t have invited her in. If her bracelet hadn’t fallen off in the guest room, she wouldn’t have left her number.