Chapter 63

• Damien pushed open the door to the restaurant, the faint chime of a bell some distance away barely registering in his mind. The ambient sounds of laughter and clinking glasses enveloped him like an unwanted embrace, a stark contrast to the fleeting echoes of the evening he’d just shared with Leo. He scanned the room, spotting Esther seated in a booth towards the back, her face buried in her phone, her fingers tapping furiously as if she could rearrange the universe into something more agreeable.
• Damien felt a twinge of guilt but quickly brushed it aside. It wasn’t that he didn’t care about Esther; it was just that tonight, he’d rather be anywhere than here. With a deep breath, he approached her, his mind still replaying snippets of laughter and carefree banter they had shared over beers just minutes before. He could still smell the faint hints of Leo’s cologne lingering on his shirt.
• “Sorry I’m late,” he said as he slid into the booth opposite her, attempting to sound casual, despite the tension thickening the air between them like smoke.