The Inevitable Us

Ten

| ten |

Ezra went back to Debbie's on Friday night. As soon as I exited the employee restroom, I recognized his dark mop of curls and the slope of his broad shoulders over the back of a booth. Sitting across from him was Mason, the shameless flirt from the party. He was telling a story and making bizarre animated motions with his hands. His arm crutches rested against the seat next to him.

I froze like a deer in headlights before regaining my ability to move. He hadn't seen me yet, though he had to know I worked there. I hurried into the kitchen before he could turn his head and catch me staring.

Persephone found me moments later, pacing like a maniac. The cooks who walked by all shot me weird looks. "Don't mind me. Just casually freaking out."

"Casually, huh?" She brushed past me and peered into the dining room. I knew the moment she saw him because she let out a long sigh. She turned back to me. "Just take the rest of the night off. Cara won't mind."

I shook my head. "Can you just get someone to cover the table for me? My shift ends in ten minutes anyway."

"Of course," she replied. There was an evil glint in her eyes, so I shut her down before her ideas could take off.

"Not you. You'll just end up pouring bleach in his soda."

"Are you objecting?"

I pretended to consider it for a minute before answering with, "Yes. As much as I hate him, I love you more. You don't need to be going to jail for me."

"I'd gladly go to jail for you." She pinched my cheeks teasingly. When she pulled her hands away, something sharp scratched my cheek. "Oh! I'm sorry! I'm still getting used to this thing."

I glanced curiously at her left hand, stunned to find a large and shiny rock resting on her ring finger. I grabbed it and brought it up to my face, gaping. "What the actual—"

"Shhh." She cut me off by putting her hand over my mouth. She brought up the other to stifle her own elated giggle. "You'll get us in trouble."

I pried her hand off my mouth to stare at the ring again. I dropped my voice to a whisper. "Holy shit, Percy. Since when are you getting married?"

"Today, actually. Evan proposed at the fancy Italian restaurant where we met. Got the manager to dim the lights and play our song from the speakers," she said. "I was so shocked when he got down on one knee that I spit wine all over his nice clothes." Her voice was steady and slightly embarrassed, but there were happy tears in her eyes.

Evan was her boyfriend of five years. He looked like he belonged shirtless on the cover of a magazine, and had an equally attractive personality—if not slightly arrogant. At first I had found him intimidating, but it didn't take long for him to open up to me. Or for me to figure out that he loved my cousin more than he loved himself.

"You're getting married!" I announced dumbly. I practically tackled her in a hug. "Congratulations! Evan and I are going to have a long talk later."

I could tell she was rolling her eyes over my shoulder even as she returned my tight embrace. "I can only imagine."

I pulled back enough to hold her gaze, keeping my grip on her shoulders. "When were you planning on telling me if you hadn't scratched me with the damn thing?"

"I was coming to find you, but you seemed to be having a meltdown. I thought it might not be the right time."

"Have you told Aunt Bea you're engaged yet?" Though she was usually extremely laid-back, Bea Gardner would be horrified to hear that her only daughter was getting married. She was one of those overly sentimental types who didn't want her children to grow up. She also didn't believe in love anymore, since divorce practically ran in the family.

She made an indignant noise. "Absolutely not. I already know what she's going to say. 'You're too young to be starting a family, silly girl. Get your head out of the clouds.' It's what she tells me everytime I bring up Evan and I. Then she'll proceed to rip him apart the next time he comes over."

"Maybe you should have him break the news," I joked, grabbing my bag from a hook on the wall. "Might get the ball rolling a little quicker."

Percy smacked me on the shoulder softly. "You're horrible." The head chef flew by us into the kitchen, breaking her out of her little spell. "I need to get back to work, but you should meet Evan and I tomorrow at the coffee shop. His treat."

I nodded and planted a kiss on her cheek. "See you then."

"Love you!" she called after me, and I laughed on my way to the front door.

It was a relatively cool night, and I was thankful for the change in temperature. Carter's borrowed Jeep sat in the employee parking spot where I had parked it this afternoon. I only felt the slightest bit guilty to see it there.

On a normal day I would've rode my bike to work, but I figured I might as well take advantage of my brother's presence. He was staying at home with the family and had no use for it tonight, anyway. Though when he looked out the window and found it missing I would be in for the screaming match of my life.

I fished around in my purse for his stolen car keys, not paying attention to where I was walking. There were too many things in my unorganized bag, not making it an easy task.

Which was exactly how I crashed into Mason Woods and sent one of his crutches flying.

"Whoa," he said, startled. He tried to look casual, even though he was close to toppling over himself. Without his other crutch he didn't have enough balance to hold himself up. "What's the hurry, sugar?"

"I'm so sorry." I rushed over to his fallen appliance, careful to keep my hair in front of my face like a veil. I prayed he wouldn't recognize me. I kept my eyes on the ground as I handed it to him.

Of course, it didn't work out as well as I hoped it would.

I felt more than I saw the recognition slide into place. "You're that girl from my cousin's party, aren't you? The one with the hot friend? Ezra was just looking for—"

The man himself chose that moment to make his appearance, looking somewhat disappointed. He stopped cold when he noticed me, his expression transforming into one of mild surprise. If there was anything I was expecting him to say, it wasn't, "You're still here."

I decided then that there was no point in running—I'd just end up looking like more of a loon than I already did. "I work here." I took another second to absorb his facial expression before saying slowly, "But you already knew that."

There was a moment of tense silence before he nodded. His voice was a low rasp as he said, "We should talk."

"Now you want to talk?" I shook my head at the absurdity of it. Up until a few days ago, I would've given anything to hear those words from his mouth. But now? "I don't think there's anything left to say, Ezra."

Mason's chestnut eyes flickered between the two of us suspiciously. He was still standing in the middle of us; a physical barrier keeping us both from reaching for the other. I wondered about how much he knew, though it apparently wasn't much at all, because his next question was, "Wait, you already know each other? I thought . . ."

I decided then was as good a time as any to use Ezra's own words against him. I plucked my keys out of my bag now that I knew where they were and turned on my heel to walk away. "I doubt it," I offered over my shoulder, taking pride in his shuttered expression. To anyone else he would appear indifferent, though I knew he made his face carefully blank when he was hurt. "But maybe in his dreams."

Happy Tuesday! Another update, as usual.

Hope you liked it <3