One Step at a Time by Lily Seabrooke

Author:Lily Seabrooke [Seabrooke, Lily]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Romance, Adult
Amazon: B09QVXWTD5
Goodreads: 60175826
Published: 2022-02-06T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

Dana

Remi had a grave look when she came back from the front, and she made a beeline for me. “Don’t go into the front,” she murmured, casting a furtive glance to either side. “Not until she’s gone. I’ll explain later.”

I’ll explain later was one of those heavy-handed things I thought I’d be lucky enough to only have to hear in movies. “Okay,” I said. “I’m here for you.”

She looked down. “I… have to talk to you. After the shift. Your place?”

My heart felt like it was fracturing, but I kept it together. “Of course,” I said.

Dammit. Remi had been very clear all the while what would happen if I felt too much for her. I shouldn’t have been surprised—shouldn’t have been hurt by it like this.

The rest of the shift passed by in a dreary haze, Remi going back to the front before long and returning maybe ten minutes later looking like she’d gone a night without sleep, saying her mother was gone now. She didn’t speak much through the shift, just silently taking over on laminating croissant dough, and when we headed out for the day, I swiped a few extra lemon curd cream puffs to go.

“Here,” I said, handing her the little baggie of them as we stepped outside into the dreary, overcast day. She glanced inside the bag and gave me the first genuine smile I’d seen from her since her mother showed up.

“You’re too good for this world, you know?” she said, taking one and biting into it. “Thanks for always brightening my spirits.”

“Did you want to talk now about what she wanted?” I gestured to the walk ahead of us, a twenty-minute walk we’d done together a million times now. She looked down.

“She saw us together at Sapphire Dragon,” she breathed, and my heart missed a beat. “When the owner walked through, and people snapped pictures.”

“Oh… you’re not serious,” I said, heart sinking.

What even was her mother? There were a million and one good reasons why two people could be at a restaurant together aside from just being on a date. And even if they were on a date, how was it any of her mother’s business—let alone enough to warrant flying out to Port Andrea to confront her in person instead of just texting her like a normal human being?

I was starting to see why Remi had always been so afraid. I’d thought it was just a matter of it being difficult to let go of her parents. But just like she said, we went on one date—one bad idea on my part—and her mother was harassing her. Harassing her because of me.

“Very curious about who my good friend there was,” Remi said, keeping her gaze down, all but spitting out the words. “Told her it was my trainer at White Rose. That we’re all… supposed to go try other fine dining to keep up with the competition, some crap like that. She didn’t buy it, but she’s pretending she’s buying it.”

Which meant

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