Page 106 - It Ends with Us

ques tion after ques tion at hi m. He takes it like a cha mp. He’s ver y

cha rming with my mother in all the right ways.
Unex pec ted ly runni ng int o Atlas toni ght put such a wrink le in my
em otions , but by the end of dinner, R yle ha s smoothed them back out
again.
My mother takes her na pkin and wipes her mouth, then point s at
me. “New favorite res taurant ,” she says. “Inc red ible. ”

R yle no ds. “I agree. I need to bring Allysa here. She loves trying
new res taurant s.”
The food rea lly is good, but the last thi ng I need is for either of
thes e two to want to come back here. “It was okay,” I say.
He pays for our mea ls, of course, and then ins ists we walk my
mother to her car. I can alrea dy tel l she’l l be calling me about hi m
toni ght , simply by the pridef ul look on her face.

Onc e she’s gone, R yle walks me to my car.
“I reques ted an Uber so you wouldn’t ha ve to go out of your way to
take me ho me. We ha ve approximatel y . . .” He looks down at hi s
pho ne. “One and a ha lf minu tes to make out.”
I laugh. He wraps hi s arms around me and kisses my nec k firs t, and
then my cheek . “I would inv ite mysel f over, but I ha ve an ea rly surger y

tomorro w and I’m sure my patient would apprec iate it if I didn’t
spend the majority of the ni ght ins ide you.”
I kiss hi m back, both disappoint ed and rel iev ed he’s no t coming
over. “I ha ve a grand openi ng in a few days. I sho uld probably sleep ,
too.”
“When’ s your nex t day off?” he says.
“Nev er. When’ s yours?”

“Nev er.”
I sha ke my hea d. “We’re doomed . There’ s just too much drive and
succes s bet ween the two of us.”
“Tha t mea ns the ho ney moon pha se will last unt il we’re ei ght y,” he
says. “I’ll come to your grand openi ng Friday and then the four of us
will go out and cel eb rate. ” A car pulls up bes ide us and he wraps hi s

ha nd in my ha ir and kisses me goodbye. “Your mother is wond er ful,
by the way. Tha nk you for let ting me come to dinner.”
He backs away and climbs ins ide the car. I watch as it pulls out of
the parking lot.