L. Marie Adeline- S.E.C.R.E.T

“Yup. And pretty much nothing else, Cassie.”
A terrible doubt rose in me. I needed to know.
“So, why did you guys break up?” This explained Tracina’s moodiness, her absences
the past few weeks.
He closed his eyes like a man who knows he has to deliver news he’d rather forget
about. “Couple weeks ago I caught some texts that went back and forth between her and
that D.A. from the auction. But it’s been over between us for longer. She just handed me
an excuse.”
“Was she cheating on you?”
“She says no. But I don’t really care either way. It doesn’t matter. It’s over.”
“What’ll she say when she finds out about us?”
“She’ll say, ‘Told you so.’ She always knew I was a little bit in love with you.”
A little bit in love with me? He must have sensed my astonishment. “Yeah, you heard
me,” he said, tickling my sides. “Does that scare you? Me saying it?”
“Nah, you said a little bit in love, you didn’t say a lot in love. That would scare me.”
“Well—” he began.
I slapped a hand over his delicious mouth.
“Don’t!” I said, resting on an elbow and hovering over his very handsome and now
very pensive face.
He removed my hand and kissed it. “You’re dierent than I thought you’d be, you
know,” he said, regarding me intently.
“You mean … in bed?”
“No. I don’t mean the sex, not exactly. I mean you. You seem more … together. More
condent, I don’t know. I mean, I always saw you like that, but I didn’t think you did,
until lately. Lately you’ve just been more … more you.”
I smiled down at him, having just received the best compliment of my life.
“You know, I think you’re right. I think maybe I am more me lately,” I said, leaning in
for another kiss.
And moments later we fell asleep to the sound of the sax player who held court after
hours in the doorway of Café Rose, hat at his feet, putting his own loneliness to music as
mine dissipated into the night.