Suzie stares at me for a long time. I think she’s just about to ask me what the hell is Valentiney. But she surprises me again and says, “Give me a pen and paper.” I hand her a notepad and Sharpie from one of the drawers.

She scribbles something, and I notice beetroot risotto, followed by some other items on her list.

When she hands it to me, there’s a smile on her face.

I look down at the paper and add heart-blast before the risotto and similar catchy phrases on other items.

Suzie peeks over my shoulder and chuckles. “You’re good at this, kid.”

Using our specials template, I print twenty pink pages with the new menu and rush toward the dining hall. I stick them into the sleeve of the leather books, replacing the earlier specials cards.

When I look up, I find Lukas with a towel over his arm, holding a wine bottle and chatting with a couple at table three.

Chiara approaches me and follows my gaze. “Is there anything bad about this guy?”

She doesn’t know that Lukas is perfect in every way.

After that, the lunch hour goes by with very few hiccups. Most of our guests don’t blink an eye and appear equally excited for the new specials. Maybe the free dessert I threw in last minute helped.

When we’re finally wrapping up, with only a few couples left sipping their coffee or wine, Mom walks over to me. “You’re amazing here, tums. I cannot believe you pulled this off so well.”

Watching the wide smile on my mother’s face with a touch of surprise is bittersweet.

“Thanks, Mom.”

“Would you and Lukas come over for dinner tonight?” Mom asks out of the blue.

“Um, I’ll have to ask Lukas.” I bite my lip, avoiding her eye.

“You tell him we’ll be grilling. I need him there with Jasper.” She smiles, as if sharing an inside joke and I love it, especially knowing how much Lukas misses his own mother.

31. Lukas

31

LUKAS

Autumn and I take the short cobbled walkway to her parents’ house. There’s a well-maintained garden with solar garden lights giving it a warm ambience. I can already smell the grill, and when we reach the patio, there’s a fire burning in a cauldron-style outdoor fire pit.

“We rarely grill. I don’t know what made Mom decide this.” Autumn’s words are still in the air when Jasper walks out wearing a red apron with his picture on it.

“Hey, tums. How’s my Valentine’s Day gift?” He cocks his eyebrow and points his spatula toward his photo on the apron.

Autumn laughs. “Dad, you look so dashing.”

She hugs her father, and a forgotten emotion hits me.

“Hey, Lukas. How are you?” We shake hands, and then he gives me a side hug. “I heard you inspired Laura to take out our forgotten grill.”