taken an eye out.”
“I do have good aim.” She laughs, then it morphs into a mournful sigh as she swats at the remnants of a final tear. “And I was going to ask him to move in with me.”
I drop the attempt at humor, squeezing her shoulder. Even if the guy’s a first-class jackass, she truly liked him, and that’s nothing to joke about. “I’m sorry, Arden. You must be hurting a ton right now.”
An errant sniffle sounds from her, and she nods. “I am. I wanted it all to go so perfectly.”
My heart aches for her, for the effort she made, for the hope she must have had when she planned today. “It does look perfect.” I take a cursory glance at the meal.
“He didn’t think it was perfect enough.”
I peer behind me, impressed with the spread she packed, from the wicker basket, to the wine and the glasses, all the way to the cloth napkins. Damn, this woman is a thorough planner and some kind of sweetheart in the girlfriend department. Inside the basket, I spot a container of hummus and three kinds of olives, along with the almonds and more cheese and crackers.
My stomach rumbles. “Any man who doesn’t realize the value of you, almonds, and olives doesn’t deserve to have lunch, breakfast, or dinner with you. Ever.”
“Thank you.” Her whispered voice is soft and pretty.
Hell, even with her splotchy, tear-stained cheeks, she’s still so damn pretty.
Fact is, I thought she was lovely to look at the night I met her a year ago, shortly after I moved to town. Pretty and witty and sharp, but very taken, so I didn’t think twice about her.
Today, she’s still pretty, and now she’s single.
Wait.
Chill the hell out, Brain. It’s not cool to think a woman is pretty when she’s crying her eyes out over another man.
I wipe those dickhead thoughts from my head. I don’t want to give David competition for the dickhead prize.
“You really think he doesn’t deserve me?” Her tone is wobbly.
“I know he doesn’t.” I point at the food. “Every decent man knows when a woman makes you a picnic, you damn well better eat it, and you will most certainly enjoy it.”
A small smile seems to sneak across her face. “It was a nice picnic.” She unleashes a sob again, tripping over that adjective. “Nice. He said I was too nice. Who’s too nice? How is it possible to be too nice?”
I set a hand on her lower back, gently rubbing. “Nice is what we should all aspire to be.”
She breathes heavily, clenches her jaw, and nods fiercely as if she’s deciding she’s done with tears. “Exactly, and my picnic is awesome, and he doesn’t deserve it.”
“No way. He doesn’t even deserve a cracker that fell on the ground or the cheese from my chest.”
Her lips quirk up, and she laughs in spite of herself, it seems. “Don’t tempt me, Gabe. Now I want to serve him sweaty cheese and dirty crackers if he ever shows up for a wine and cheese night at the store,” she says, and I picture the bookshop she owns in the center of town.
“It’ll be our little secret that you have such a naughty side.” Her eyes seem to sparkle appreciatively when I say that word—naughty.
I gesture to the meal. “This delicious spread should not go to waste,” I say, hinting not at all subtly, since I’d like a bite of some of these goodies. “Don’t know if you’re aware, but I have had a bottomless appetite since I was born. I can pretty much always eat.”
“And I like to reward hearty appetites.” She grabs a slice of cheese and a cracker then hands them to me. “This picnic is definitely not for any recipients of the Dickhead of the Year Award.” She gives a tough little lift of her chin.
“That’s the spirit.”
I smile widely at her, then pop the treat into my mouth. After I chew, I declare it the best cracker in the land.
It’s a cracker, for fuck’s sake.
But Arden is smiling again.
And that’s the least I can do.
I don’t know David from Adam. I don’t know their relationship whatsoever. But I know this: the woman made him a meal, put on a pretty dress, and placed her heart on this red-and-white checkered blanket.
However he ended things, leaving her like this was a jackass move of the highest order. If he didn’t have the sensitivity to know that, the least I can do is show her that