Rewind It Back (Windy City, #5)(19)

Yes, nine. Because everyone is paired up except for me.

Miller takes a seat at the table next to her husband. “I swear Max gets so excited about seeing his friends every week that by the time it’s bedtime, he’s so exhausted that he sleeps better here than at home.”

Indy smiles from across the table. “I love how much the kids all love each other.”

Kids now refers to all five of them. What was once just Max here sleeping upstairs during family dinner has turned into a whole slew of little ones.

Zee and Stevie have one. Ryan and Indy have two, as do Kai and Miller. Isaiah and Kennedy are too focused on their careers to think about having kids, and I . . . well, I’m single as fuck, so there’s that.

We all dig into the pizzas in the center of the table, and I make sure to take a few slices from the one with dairy-free cheese. They’re homemade and fresh out of the Shays’ new brick oven outside.

I’m adding a helping of salad to my plate when Ryan asks, “Miller, how’s the new location going?” referring to Miller’s second patisserie she opened downtown earlier this year.

“Great. The team is on top of it, so I’ve been able to be somewhat hands-off now that it’s up and running. I hired a new general manager for that location. Her name is Beth, she recently moved here from Oregon, and she’s great. Smart. Organized. Single.” Miller drags out the last word.

I take a mouthful of salad as all eight of my friends shift their attention my way.

“What?” I ask slowly, eyes bouncing to everyone around me.

Isaiah cocks his head in confusion. “Are you feeling okay?”

“I’m fine. Why?”

“Something is clearly wrong,” Zee says.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

Stevie’s blue-green eyes narrow. “Miller’s new general manager. New to town. Single.”

“I know. I heard. I’m glad she has someone solid running the patisserie.”

“That’s it. He’s sick,” Kennedy interjects. “I’m a doctor. I would know.”

“That’s your cue.” Indy nudges her shoulder into mine. “It’s always your cue.”

Oh.

“I think you’d like her,” Kai says to me. “I met her. Nice girl.”

“Okay,” Miller huffs. “She’s not that nice.”

Kai’s knowing smile spreads. “Jealous.”

She playfully rolls her eyes. “Always.”

He wraps an arm over her shoulders, pulling her into him where he places a kiss on the top of her dark hair. Miller knows as well as the rest of us that she’s not actually jealous, nor does she need to be. Kai has never looked at another woman the way he does her.

“What I was trying to say,” Kai continues, “is that she might be a nice girl for Rio.”

Indy sits up with excitement. “I couldn’t agree more.”

My brows cinch in confusion. “You haven’t even met her.”

“And when has that ever stopped you from being interested?”

“I just . . .” I hesitate. “I think I’m going to hit pause on the whole dating thing for a while.”

From the other side of Indy, Ryan chokes on his food.

“Shit.” Kennedy’s eyes go wide, her mouth slightly agape. “He’s sicker than I thought.”

“It’s not that big of a deal.” I return my attention to my plate. “I’m tired of doing the same small talk on every first date. I just need a little break from trying.”

Stevie’s smile turns knowing. “And this has nothing to do with a certain someone who was waiting for you outside of practice last week?”

I immediately turn to Zanders. “You’re a fucking gossip.”

His laugh is loud. “You really thought I wasn’t going to tell her? I tell her everything. Especially when our friend is looking at someone in a way I’ve never seen before.”

“Her name is Hallie,” Stevie supplies.

“And how exactly was he looking at Hallie?” Isaiah asks Zee.

“A lot like you when you got to marry Kennedy. He looked like a love-sick idiot. And I’m not talking about infatuation. There was history there.”

Every pair of eyes swings my way once again.

I shake my head. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Miller’s mouth lifts into a smile. “We’re not denying the history part, I see.”

“Can we talk about something else?” I ask, taking a bite of my pizza to avoid any conversation surrounding Hallie.

“Sure,” Ryan says. “When is the house renovation starting?”

Jesus. I can’t get away from the subject.

It’s all too much to explain. Who Hallie is, regarding both our history and present predicament with the house. Why the renovation hasn’t begun. Why I may have been caught looking at her like a love-sick idiot when I’ve never looked at someone else that way before.

Because none of them know that there was a time that I was love-sick for her.

No one here knows I’ve been in love before. No one knows that though I had a front-row seat to watch them all find their person over the years, I had found mine long before any of them.