Wallflower Ink

Chapter 31

· Merri ·

It is Friday, and for the first time since he'd begun asking me to accompany him to his shop I had declined. I'd been tired, not only mentally but physically as well. I'd not slept well last night, my dreams being haunted by faces of people who are all now gone.

I am alone today, and my house feels more empty than it had even before Jace had come to stay with me. Before, I'd found the emptiness soothing, but now it only makes me restless. In a way, I wish I'd gone with him today. I am still mournful over having lost Joey's list, but I'm slowly beginning to come to terms with it, if not feel better about it.

Though it's true I can still accomplish what I've set out to do with the new one we'd written, Joey isn't in that one. And that is what upsets me the most, that I've lost one of the few pieces of him that remains. It's like unintentionally letting him go, though that is something I still feel unprepared to do.

I sigh as I pluck a dress from my closet and ready myself for this evening. Life is moving on despite my loss, and I have no choice but to move along with it. Jace will be back soon, and not long after we will be heading to O'Claire's. There is no time for wallowing in self pity tonight; tonight is reserved for putting on a brave face and trying to act normal for a while.

As I'm finishing up braiding my hair, I hear the front door open then softly close, and a small smile tugs at my lips. I leave my room to greet Jace as he is coming down the hall, and though he smiles warmly at me there is something in his eyes that tells me he isn't feeling nearly as easy as he is making himself out to be.

"I'll be ready in just a few minutes," he says. I merely nod in reply.

He slips into his room and shuts the door, and I just stand there for a moment looking at it. After a while I move on into the kitchen, then take a stool and wait. Jace joins me shortly after, looking very nice in a blue shirt and white coat. I smile at his choice of attire, his outfit matching both my dress and the thought that has been on my mind today.

"Blue for Friday," I say softly.

His knowing smile stings my eyes and tightens my throat just a bit. Even without asking he knew what had been on my heart. And though I feel that should trouble me, it does not, and that is even more worrisome.

"Are you ready?" he asks.

"Yes."

I slip off the stool and when he places one hand on the small of my back to guide me to the door, I can't ignore the tiny flutter it sends through me. We drive to the restaurant in amiable silence and after parking his vehicle, Jace leads me inside. It is the same as the last time we were here--lots of people, sportscasts filling the television screens around the bar, the constant hum of conversation--but even so, this time feels inherently different.

Last time, I hadn't known Jace and was about to approach him with a very unusual offer of work. This time, he knows me as well as most people do--and on some levels, better than any of them.

I frown at that thought as we near the greeter's podium. I had never meant for our relationship to be anything but platonic, yet here we are, something more now than mere casual acquaintances. Jace's thumb rubs lightly against my back just above where his hand rests, as if he's read my thoughts and is delicately agreeing with the sentiment.

Moments like this make me completely forget why I'd chosen him for so sensitive a task, and as we stop before the maître d', I have to remind myself to breathe.