I glance up at Julie and find her watching me thoughtfully.“Uh, I think I left it—”
I don’t get to finish because right at that moment our waiter returns and loudly asks, “Did you two enjoy your dinner?Any dessert tonight?”
And like a train wreck, Julie answers him, equally as loud.“No, we’re good.Thank you so much.Everything was delicious.”
“Are you on a…date?”Jolie asks over the phone, and I close my eyes and wince.
“Not exactly.It’s a long story.I’ll explain later.Listen, I can come over and find it.I think I might’ve left it in the garage, but I can’t be sure.”
“O-okay.Uh, no rush.Finish your…”
“It’s just a dinner,” I rush to finish for her.“I’ll see you in an hour.”
I hang up and glance back at Julie.
“That was her, wasn’t it?”
“Who?”
“The woman you’re in love with.”Her eyes sparkle with interest, not in me, but the situation.
“It was just a friend.”
She laughs and takes a sip of her wine.“Oh, I’m sure.I had a ‘friend’ like that once.”
“What happened with him?”
She shrugs her shoulders and swirls her wine, watching it swish around the glass instead of making eye contact with me.“He married someone else.”
She brings her wine back to her lips and drinks the rest, then places her glass down and removes the napkin from her lap, also placing it on the table.
“A word of advice.Tell her.You’ll regret it for the rest of your life if you don’t.Trust me.”Our gazes lock, and an understanding flows between us.In another life, she and I might’ve made a good couple.
She grabs her clutch from the table and stands.“Thank you for dinner, Tristan.The food was delicious and the company wonderful.I hope you get your happy ending.”
With that she walks away, leaving me wondering if I’m going to spend the rest of my life having unfulfilling dinners with women who will never mean anything to me or if I should take her advice and finally tell Jo how I feel.