Stefan grinned. “Don’t let the name put you off. And it seemed fitting after our day at the zoo.”
He moved ahead of me, pushing the door open, then stepped back to let me pass first, close enough that I felt the brush of him as I went by.
“Trust me,” he added quietly. “You’ll like it.”
Inside, the shift was immediate.
Warm light filled the space. Low voices pervaded the air as the diners’ conversation blurred into a hum. For a moment, I took it all in before we were shown to a table without hesitation.
Stefan shook his head as he sat. “I usually have to book. Walking in and finding a table is… unusual.”
I glanced around, then back at him. “Then this must be your lucky night.”
Stefan held my gaze for a beat. “Ourlucky night.”
The way he said it didn’t sound as though he was talking about the restaurant.
Dinner was delicious, and I lost all track of time. In fact, I lost all track of everything except the man sitting across from me.
Stefan didn’t dominate the conversation. He didn’t need to. He listened in a way that made me aware of what I was saying even as I said it.
As though he saw more than I intended to show.
“Well, hello there.” A man stood next to our table, smiling.
Stefan’s face lit up, and he rose to greet the guy with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. When they parted, Stefan grinned. “You can’t keep away from this place, can you?”
The guy laughed. “Luis says I’m way too fond of their schnitzel.” He patted his belly. Then his gaze alighted on me, and his eyes sparkled. “Hi there.”
“This is Kieran.” Stefan gave the man a pointed stare. “Kieran, this is Cole.”
“Hello, Kieran.” Cole bit his lip. “And that’s my cue to go back to my table because my dinner’s getting cold.” He nodded to me, beamed at Stefan, then turned and walked around the corner, disappearing from view.
Stefan sat back down. “That was my ex.”
I blinked. “You’re still on speaking terms.”
“We’re ongoodterms,” Stefan corrected.
I stared after Cole.
“He found someone else,” Stefan added. “Someone better suited to him.”
I tilted my head. “And you were all right with that?”
Stefan met my gaze. “He wasn’t happy, and neither was I. So why stay together when we could both find happiness elsewhere?”
His words were so simple, so uncomplicated, and yet they speared through me.
I looked down at my glass. “That sounds familiar.”
Stefan didn’t utter a word, and I appreciated that.
I took a deep breath, raised my chin, and told him my story. Not everything, and certainly not in any great detail, but enough: the accusation, the suspension, Diana…
The silence that had settled into our marriage long before either of us had acknowledged it.
The words came more easily than I’d believed possible. When I finished, the noise of the restaurant seemed to return all at once.