Page 18 of Just A Kiss
“What’s wrong with your mother?” I ask, and an awkward silence falls over the table as everyone stares at her, waiting for her answer.
Andrea’s eyes meet mine, and a hint of sadness appears. “She has advanced Alzheimer’s.”
I release Candy’s hand and adjust my already straight tie, regretting that I asked. “I’m sorry about that.”
“Thank you,” she responds softly and then takes a big gulp of her wine, showing how uncomfortable this conversation is making her.
Her date sniffs, and I swear I see tears in his eyes. “That’s awful.”
Andrea looks over at him, and her eyes narrow. He doesn’t understand her reasoning behind it, but I do. They’re supposed to be engaged. He should have already known that. I decide to change the subject. “So Nate?” His brows rise when his eyes meet mine. “How long have you been together?” I questioned their engagement the other night at The Horseshoe, but now I wanna know just how much of a story they have come up with.
“Oh … uh …” He stumbles over his words. “It’s been …” He looks over at her, desperately asking her to save him. Just as he did when I asked about their engagement.
“Six months now,” she answers and grabs his hand.
“Why weren’t you in Tahiti?” I ask.
He looks at her again like a lost little puppy, and she sighs. “It’s okay, babe. You couldn’t miss work. I understood.”
He nods his head quickly. “What is it that you do?” I dig further.
“Computer analyzer.”
He’s a dork. Just as I suspected. “Didn’t you date Hadley at one time?”
He spits out his drink and begins to cough. Aiden chuckles beside me. “It wasn’t like that,” he begins, shaking his head quickly.
Hadley speaks up. “It was just one date.”
“That almost landed you in jail,” I remind them.
Nate turns to face Andrea and grabs her hand. “It was a long time ago. Like two years—”
“I know,” she interrupts him, patting his hand on the table.
I sit back in my seat. “Well, not everyone at this table can say that.”
He frowns. “What does that mean?”
I go open my mouth when Andrea interrupts me, knowing I’m about to mention our night in Tahiti two weeks ago. “Honey? I think we should double date with Hadley and Aiden tomorrow night. They have invited us to an art gallery opening.”
“We have?” Aiden whispers to Hadley. She just gives him a big smile.
“Sure.” Nate nods once. “I usually have dinner with my mother on Fridays, but I bet she won’t mind.”
“What about you, babe?” I look over at Candy. “Would you like to go to the art gallery opening?”
“I’d love to,” she says excitedly. I look at Andrea, and she looks away from me, picking up her drink.