Miss Matched [COMPLETED]

11. Tayla

We're seated on the patio overlooking the water. It's not an ocean view or even a Great Lakes view, but there's something soothing about being around a large body of water. A long dead instinct perhaps? Access to water is the difference between life and death for many species. I take in a deep, steadying breath and glance at Simon.

"Good choice?" He smirks.

"I cannot complain." A mid-summer breeze blows across the water, lifting the tips of my hair. As far as settings go, Simon nailed this one. We talked about coming to Reeds Lake while we were dating but never seemed to get around to it.

I did come here for walks a few times in the intervening time, but I've never eaten overlooking the lake. It's picturesque and gorgeous and exactly right. A sigh of contentment escapes me. I might not understand why Simon is so insistent on making amends, but this date is a nice perk. "I hope the food is good. Have you been here before?"

"Nope. I've run the trails around here quite a bit, and I always looked at this place, but I could never seem to find the time to actually eat here." He hasn't opened his menu, instead he's staring out across the lake.

It gives me a chance to examine his face. Was his jaw always that chiseled? The baby fat from his mid-twenties is gone, replaced with a sharper outline. He's going to be one of those men who look better and better as they age. No sign of hair loss. No beer paunch. There's probably still the faintest outline of a six pack under his T-shirt. A memory surfaces of my fingertips tracing those lines as his muscles contracted. So many lazy Sundays where fingers turned to lips and tongues and...  I shake my head. Get your mind out of the gutter, Tayla. "How are you parents?"

"My parents?" The question seems to surprise him. "They're...good. My dad lives in Florida now. My mom still lives not far from my apartment."

"Your parents always had such a great marriage. I'm surprised your dad loves Florida that much to stay down there without your mom." I open the menu and read through the selections.

Simon clears his throat. "Actually, he's in Florida for precisely that reason—to be away from my mom. Not that she minds all that much."

I glance up from reading the steak choices. "What? I don't understand."

"They're divorced."

"Divorced?" My voice rises in surprise. "You're kidding me?"

"My dad left her and went to a monastery in France. And before you ask, no, he did not speak French at the time."

"A monastery in France." When Simon and I were dating, we often held up the marriages of our parents as something to aspire to. His parents were so close they finished each other's thoughts. "That's wild."

"I went to visit him. I wasn't in a good place and being there helped him, so I thought, why not?" Simon scratches the back of his neck and opens his menu.

Had that been when I stalked him from afar? "After you and Jada broke up?"

His head jerks up as though I've fired a shot. "What?"

A flush creeps up my neck. Shit. Why did I say that? "I just assumed..."

He barks out a laugh. "No. Not even. It was after you slammed the door in my face, crushing my lovely bouquet of flowers. Of course now, knowing the whole situation, I'm the one who feels like an asshole...again." He flips the page on his menu and waits a beat before pinning me with his gaze. "How'd you know about Jada?"

The blush has migrated from my neck into my face. The heat is scorching. Just how red am I? "Social media, I think? I mean, probably?" Certainly not obsessive stalking habits by me and Ruby. "I can't really remember."