Page 101 - It Ends with Us

Twent y minu tes later, I flip the sign to closed . Just a few more day s. I

lock the door and walk to my car, but stop sho rt when I see someo ne
lea ni ng agains t it. It takes me a moment to rec ogni ze hi m. He’s facing
the other direc tion, talking on hi s cel l pho ne.
I tho ught he was meeting me at the restau ran t, but okay.
The ho rn beep s on my car when I hi t the Unl ock button, and R yle
spins around . He grins when he sees me. “Yes , I agree, ” he says int o

the phone. He wraps an arm around my sho ulder and pulls me
agains t hi m, pres sing a kiss to the top of my hea d. “We’l l talk about it
tomorro w,” he says. “Somet hi ng rea lly important just came up.”
He ha ng s up the pho ne and slides it int o hi s pocket , then he kisses
me. It’s no t a hel lo kiss. It’s an I’ve- been- thi nk ing -about-you-no ns top
kiss. He wraps both arms around me and spins me unt il I’m backed
up agains t my car, where he cont inu es to kiss me unt il I start to feel

dizzy again. When he pulls back, he’s looking down at me
apprec iativel y.
“You kno w whi ch part of you drives me the crazies t?” He bring s hi s
fing ers to my mouth and traces my smile. “Thes e, ” he says. “Your lips.
I love ho w they ’re as red as your ha ir and you don’t ev en ha ve to wea r
lipstick.”

I grin and kiss hi s fing ers . “I bet ter watch you around my mom,
then, bec ause ev er yone says we ha ve the same mouth. ”
He pauses hi s fing ers agains t my lips and he stops smiling . “Lily.
Just . . . no.”
I laugh and open my door. “Are we taking sep arate cars?”
He pulls the door open for me the res t of the way and says, “I took
an Uber here from work. We’l l ride toget her.”

• • •

My mother is alrea dy sea ted at a table when we arri ve. Her back is to

the door as I lea d the way.
I’m ins tant ly impres sed by the res taurant . My ey es are drawn to the
warm, neu tral colors paint ed on the walls and the almost full-sized
tree in the middle of the res taurant . It looks like it’s growing straight
out of the floor, almost as if the ent ire res taurant was des igned

around the tree. R yle follows closel y behi nd me with hi s ha nd on my