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Conrad was looking over at me as I spooned my last bite of lobster bisque into my mouth. "What?" I asked, feeling a bit self-conscious now. 

"Nothing, you just have a little bit of Mr. Lobster trying to escape," he said, reaching over with his napkin now to wipe the side of my mouth. "There, that's better." 

He'd only lightly grazed my cheek with his thumb, but it put the butterflies in motion. I smiled back at him. "Thank you." 

 "You ready to go?" Conrad asked as he reached over and took my hand into his

"Don't we have to wait for the bill?" I asked. 

"I'll go take care of it, and you can meet me at the front door," he said. 

"You're not planning a dine and dash, are you?" I asked, unable to hide my surprise. 

"What the hell? I think you might have hung around Jeremiah's crew a little too long. I'm studying to be a doctor, not an inmate." 

I laughed. He was right, though. That thought had popped into my head because of Jeremiah's frat bros. I had refused to go out with any of them after they'd pulled a stunt, just like I was accusing Conrad of being willing to try right now. 

I watched Conrad as he walked up to the counter and pulled out his wallet, and tried to imagine what he would have been like if he'd joined a frat in college because, honestly, Jeremiah's transformation had surprised me. But I couldn't even come close to imagining it. It had always been Jere who had taken the path of the party life. Conrad had used alcohol and smoking to rebel, not really for pure enjoyment.  Although I had begun drinking in college because of Jere, I was actually a lot more like Conrad in that I enjoyed a quiet night rather than a raucous party filled with ways to get into trouble. 

In the midst of that thought, I saw the counter guy hand Conrad a large bag from underneath the counter. My curiosity was peaked now as Conrad walked over to me, holding it by its handle. 

"What's in the bag?" I asked. 

"Nothing," he replied, putting his arm around my shoulders now and heading me out the door. 

"That's not an empty bag. So, let me see what's inside," I tried again. 

Conrad removed his hand from my shoulder and took my hand now to hold it. 

"Fine, it's not empty, but it is a surprise... so stop asking me what it is," he said, gripping tightly to the bag now so it was completely closed on top. 

I was quiet for a second as I tried to heed his wishes, but I loved surprises and wanted to always be in the know. It was a flaw of mine, for sure. 

"It's a pretty big bag," I said, wrinkling my nose at him. 

Conrad looked at me now and grinned that slow grin he has that melts me like nothing else. 

"And you're a pretty big pain in my ass right now. Can't you just let it go? It will be revealed soon enough." 

"How soon?" I asked. 

"Oh my God, you're that kid, aren't you? The one who asks their parents every five minutes how much longer till they get there," Conrad said, partly frustrated and partly amused. 

"And you weren't? Long car rides sucked, and you know it," I told him, stepping in front of him now. 

"I think you forget who raised me and Jere. Being annoying would have been stupid unless we wanted to get the full father smackdown," he reminded me. 

I reached up now and pulled his lips down to meet mine. I was so happy to be here with him, and I just wanted him to live in this moment with me, not in the past.