Breathe Me Smith and Belle (Royals Saga #11) - Geneva Lee Page 0,68

them unconditionally. That you would never think less of them. But how true could that actually be? How often was that kind of promise tested? The truth was that most of the time people didn’t test those boundaries. They pleased their parents. They apologized. They made up with their spouse instead of holding on to anger. As much as I wanted to believe that humans were capable of that kind of unconditional acceptance, I knew we were also capable of holding grudges.

“Like you don’t judge Alexander?”

Edward’s eyes flashed, but before he could spit out whatever had boiled over inside him, Tomas opened the door to the restaurant.

“Are you going to stand out there with that baby or come inside?” he asked, waving us in the restaurant.

The momentary distraction gave both of us a moment to cool off as we got Penny out and carried her inside, parking the pram at the door.

“Hello,” Tomas said, sticking out his hand to Edward. “I’m Tomas. Belle’s favorite person in Briarshead.”

“You’re the only person I know in Briarshead,” I reminded him.

“As I said, at the top, no?”

“Edward.” He took Tomas’s outstretched hand and shook it, but I spotted the bit of hesitation on his face. Edward waited for the moment of recognition, but Tomas continued on obliviously.

“In for a visit?” Thomas asked as he showed us to what he called the best seat in the house. Given that the house was empty, any seat would do. I couldn’t help worrying a little that despite Tomas’s obvious talent, the villagers of Briarshead didn’t appreciate the restaurant for what it could offer them.

“I just got back into town,” Edward said a bit dryly, he shot me a look over Tomas’s shoulder as if to say is this really happening?

“Staying for the holidays?”

“Yeah, although not sure there will be much excitement,” Edward said, directing his teasing at me. “My best friend suddenly spends all day with the baby and falls asleep by nine. It’s not going to be quite the same holiday season as last year.”

I waited for Edward to piece together what he had just said. Every time Christmas and the holidays had come up there was a momentary pause, and even though he didn’t always say anything, I knew he was thinking of last year. Life had been different then. We’d been in Scotland planning his surprise wedding to David. Now David was gone and he’d left a legacy of tragedy in his wake. But whether Edward was too distracted—puzzling out if Tomas was purposefully playing dumb or really didn’t know who he was— his good mood seemed to return.

“Well, if you get bored, come down here and have a pint with me,” Tomas offered. “The village does tend to settle down in the evenings, but there’s a pub that stays open late enough. It’s warm. Although the food’s not as good as mine, so you might have to convince me to open the kitchen back up if we drink too much.”

“Speaking of.” I took the chance to interrupt whatever was happening between the two of them. “Can we have some of those stuffed dates?”

“Coming right up, but I’m choosing the rest of your meal,” Tomas said mischievously.

“But I wanted the fish and chips,” I said in a dry voice.

His only answer was a groan as he stomped back to the kitchen, pretending to be upset.

Across from me, Edward raised an eyebrow.

“His culinary skills are lost on the people here,” I explained to my friend. “Also, the first time I met him, I thought he was flirting with me, but…”

“He just asked me out for a drink,” Edward said, grinning despite himself.

“I’ve been out of the game too long,” I said, shaking my head. “I didn’t realize he’s gay.”

“You’re just distracted,” he said reassuringly. “You mistook his obvious good taste and thus interest in you for being interested in you.”

“Is that it?” I found myself laughing. That was a mistake, because Penny stirred, letting out a kitten-like cry of frustration before burying her nose back and forth in Edward’s shoulder.

“I think that means she wants you,” he said, passing her to me.

It took a couple of tries to get her on the breast. She seemed more frustrated than usual, leaving me feeling frustrated as well. But having Edward with me made it easier. He distracted me by telling me ridiculous stories about his time in Italy. It turns out that while he took a cooking class, he couldn’t claim to be a good cook by