“You hate surprises.”
Alice stopped the bite inches from her mouth. “You remembered.”
Robbie stared at her. “I remember everything about you,” he said in a rough voice. How could she think he’d forget any detail? The time spent with Alice was the best memories of his life.
She studied him as if searching his soul, but then she looked out at the view, put the bite in her mouth, chewed and swallowed, and forked a bite of pasta and chicken.
“The architecture of Venice is incredible, eh?” he said.
She turned to him with a radiant smile. An Alice smile. His stomach hopped and his heart slammed against his chest. The memory of that smile had gotten him through many a rough night, horrifying assignment, or terrifying mission. He’d never forgotten the effects of that smile, but he’d had no clue how desperately he missed it until this moment.
“So incredible,” she gushed. “Can you even believe the roots to history? A crossroads of culture from the Byzantine and Islamic heritage and the heavy Gothic influence because Venice was a hub of trading with its strategic waterways.” She spoke like a hyped-up professor, then sighed and looked out over the city skyline interspersed with a latticework of waterways. “The colorful marbles and intricate stonework, vaults, and arches astound me. The fact that it’s a manmade marvel built on millions of wooden piles driven into the soft mud and clay of the lagoon is mind-blowing. I can hardly wait to get out there and see it all, though this view is an ideal way to get an overview.”
Alice was naturally smart, and she had feasted on knowledge of architecture and design like he had on military strategy, weaponry, and infiltration techniques. They were very different in their pursuits but both passionate. He appreciated her enthusiasm and diligent study. It made her even more appealing, and she didn’t need any help to be appealing to him.
“I’m excited to see it with you,” he admitted before he could stop himself.
Alice’s eyes widened, and she looked half-scared that he’d haul her in and kiss her and half-hopeful that he would.
“Because you have such impressive insight on the architecture and history of the city,” he added, covering his slip.
She nodded, but her smile and the warmth in her dark eyes disappeared.
“Tomorrow we start exploring Venice’s streets. I can share the itinerary with you.” He was happy to do anything to get her to not look at him like he’d just stepped on her dog’s tail. He gulped thinking of that. Odie. The cute little Bernedoodle had been a puppy when they’d dated. To think the dog had been stabbed to death by the psychopath who had killed her friends and boyfriend. Her heart was probably broken, losing so many she’d loved. Maybe she was traumatized and it wasn’t completely his fault she was so out of sorts. Maybe.
He pulled out his phone. “Is your phone number still the same?”
She stared at him, the bite on her fork suspended in the air. “Yes, but I blocked you, and Rockwell had me inform clients I’d be out oftown and leave my phone with him in case someone was tracking me on it.”
That stung that she’d blocked him, but from a security standpoint he was grateful she didn’t have her phone turned on. “Oh.” He could ask her to unblock him, but as she stared at him, he could see fire burning in her dark gaze. What had he done now? He slowly slid his phone back into his pocket.
“You didn’t even know I’d blocked you?” Her fork clattered to the plate.
Robbie’s gaze fastened on her face. Her dark eyes were wounded and her mouth pinched. He’d done something else wrong, and he wasn’t even certain what. “How would I know you’d blocked me?”
“If you tried to call or text, you would’ve figured it out.” She glared at him.
“After our last … conversation.” He moistened his lips and tried to think how to phrase his next words. “You wanted me to call or text you?”
“No,” she snapped. “That’s why I blocked your number, because I didn’t want to hear from you ever again.”
Robbie had no words. She’d blocked him and didn’t want to hear from him, but she was angry that he hadn’t tried to call or text? It made no sense to him, but he nodded his understanding anyway and forked some more pasta. The rich bacon flavor was the perfect hint to the creamy pasta. He would’ve preferred a side of chicken or steak to get his protein in, but he couldn’t complain about authentic Italian food. Except it wasn’t settling well in his upset by Alice’s anger stomach. He had no idea how to respond to Angry Alice. The only time he’d seen her mad was that last awful fight they had. Fifteen years of anger at him? Was she as bitter as her mom at this point?
Alice’s chair scratched back, and she stood.
Robbie stood as well. Was she done eating? Her plate was more than half full, and there was a lot of extra food inside.
“You’re just going to sit and eat at a time like this?” she asked.
“Um …” He splayed his hands. “What would you like me to do, Alice?”
“Nothing,” she hurled at him. “Exactly what you’ve done the pastfifteen years regarding me. Nothing. You stormed off and never even tried to call or reach out, never attempted to fix things between us.”
Robbie rubbed at his neck. What was he supposed to do or say? He had stormed off and never tried to reach out. He’d thought she was furious with him. He’d asked her to come with him and all she could say was he’d never been supportive of her mom’s supposed illness, she had a scholarship, and Georgia Tech was a better school than the universities in Fort Moore.
In his eighteen-year-old mind, her mom’s manipulation of Alice had been strangling their relationship, and they’d been at an impasse. She had wanted to stay in Atlanta and pursue her architect dreams, as well as be there for her mom. He had wanted to become an Army Ranger and save the world.
Had Alice’s mom ever released her iron grip? Probably not. And even though he was retired, he was committed to doing undercover jobs for Aiden that weren’t a good fit for a married man. The impasse was still as large as it had been fifteen years ago. He had no clue how to leap over it, or if Alice would even want him to.
