Cole leaned his elbows on the table, his shoulder nagging extra and making him adjust his posture, the reason for the renewed ache in it almost making him blush, more from lifting than punching. He stole a look at Trace at his side. “Your turn,” he said out loud.
“What?”
“You heard me. Three regrets and six things you’re proud of. Don’t make me do this alone.” He grinned over the rim of his mug, inhaling the steam as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat.
“I think I prefer two truths and a lie,” she muttered, holding fast to his hand while she drew a long pull on her coffee with the other. “This might require cookies.”
“Oh,” Ellen popped back up happily returning with the overflowing plate. “I already brought a batch out to those lovely security guards, but I almost forgot to get the bread baking for this afternoon.” She clicked the oven to preheat and sat back down.
“Well? Come on,” Jeremy said, grinning over his mug at Trace. “I know you’ve got lots you haven’t told us. We’ve been patient these last few weeks, but I think it’s time to open up. Cole shared, now it’s your turn.”
“Oh, I’m not doing this if you all aren’t taking your turns, too.”
“We will,” Ellen said, nodding confidently, and Cole knew she was full of shit. As soon as it was her turn, she’d have some amazing, urgent excuse.
Trace glared playfully at Cole as she considered. “I went on this date, not long before you got back, with a friend from grad school.” She fiddled her tongue over the backs of her teeth, and he could see her trying to not look at him more than she should. “Draven. Most boring date I have ever been on.”
“Part of the impetus for climbing out of your rut?” Cole asked, lifting a wicked grin to let her know he was absolutely thinking about blowjobs and black lace.
“Yes, actually. I’m not saying I regret going on the date, but I regret that I had such high expectations, then had to look back and realize that I was just as boring as he was. Maybe more.”
“You could never be boring,” Ellen said fiercely, nodding sharply at Trace. “What made you think that?”
“We had nothing to talk about, and even on that date, I played it safe, avoiding topics that might cause even the slightest discomfort.” She bit her lips together, then cleared her throat and blushed as she looked over at her parents. “He kissed me, on the bridge at Riverside Trail.”
“How romantic,” Ellen said, seeming to miss the entire point.
Cole leaned his elbows on the table, hiding his grin behind his coffee cup. He probably ought to be jealous, possessiveness or something kicking in, but it was in the past, and if she’d kissed this other guy like she kissed him, Draven wouldn’t have been able to drag himself away.
“It should have been,” Trace said, shaking her head, eyes wide and sad as she recounted it. “It was one of those sweet pecks.”
“What’s wrong with that?” Jeremy asked, brow scrunched and he scoffed again. “Better than coming in awkwardly all-tongue.”
Trace laughed and blushed and shook her head at her dad. “I don’t disagree, but that was it. All of it. It wasn’t a testing, is-there-a-spark kiss. Just the peck, as if that was as exciting as he got. He was so pleased with himself and then held my hand as we walked back to our cars, and then… oh boy, just wait… he did another peck when we got back to the car, and he blushed.”
“So what’s your regret?” Cole asked. “That you tried a date with a dud?”
“No. I’m glad I tried,” she said, shaking her head and exhaling a steady sigh. “I regret that he didn’t know me before he arrived, as I had been too afraid to be myself for so long. I mean, this is a tiny town, you sort of grow up with your friends, and it’s different here. Anyway, I regret that he didn’t know me any better by the time the date was over. And I regret that I left the pace entirely up to him.”
She stole a glance toward him, but kept her gaze evenly distributed and casual. “I mean, if he considered that a date-worthy kiss, I can’t imagine a more intimate kiss would have been any good. And the chemistry wasmeh. But I wish I had gone for it, to know that I could.”
Cole savored her words, knowing what that kiss at the hotel gym had meant to her, and realized it meant so much more than she’d led on. Not just a kiss, but a pointed move to be more empowered, and that she picked him, felt safe enough with him, was honest enough with him.
Unable to resist, he subtly lowered his hand down, and his heart beat out of his chest and flapped its wings until it hovered over his head as she lowered her hand down and linked with his.
“Does that count as three regrets?” she said, grinning and nibbling her lip, ornery and the smartass he adored.
He feigned a serious considering expression as Jeremy laughed and shook his head no.
Cole cleared his throat and answered for the table. “You regret that you went out on a date with this dud, you regret that you’d never shown him the real you, and you regret that you didn’t kiss him? I think we can accept those as your three regrets, but only if you counter with something you’re proud of, along those same lines. Like, I don’t know, maybe you went out with someone who thinks you’re fascinating? Maybe you made the first move? That you fearlessly took it further? A lot further? We’ll need details about how great it was. At least six things that were incredible about being with this other guy.”
Trace squeezed his hand and refused to look at him.
Ellen looked up at the ceiling, Jeremy at the floor, as they both pretended they didn’t know. Trace would flip out if she knew he’d called them, panicked and making sure he hadn’t destroyed his relationship with them, pleading for advice on how to not screw this up. She still didn’t even want to talk to him about it.
“No. Nope,” Trace said, repeating as she bore the phoniest pensive face he’d ever seen, but he knew she’d have fooled many gullible fools. “I need to vary my regrets and pride a little more. I’d hate to get stuck in a rut.”
The oven chimed that it had reached temperature, and he released Trace’s hand as Ellen stood to put the bread in the oven.
