Page 72 of She’ll Steal Your Heart
“You don’t have to knock, you know,” Mia told her, and she seemed like her usual self, but Lauren still felt uneasy.
“Feels like I should,” Lauren said. “How are you?”
Mia gave her a cautious look. “Kristin came in today.”
“I saw,” Lauren said, relieved that Mia had brought it up so she didn’t have to. “What was that about?”
“She just wanted to say hello.” Mia shrugged as she began to dish up two plates of food. “Chicken cacciatore.”
“I’ve never had it before, but it smells delicious.” Lauren walked to the cabinet and pulled out two glasses, which she filled with water. “So how did it go with Kristin?”
“It was fine but also…strange.” Mia made a face as she carried their plates to the table.
Lauren followed with the glasses of water. She sat, deciding to let Mia lead this conversation.
“Caught me off guard more than anything,” Mia said before taking a sip of her water.
“I wondered where you disappeared to after she left,” Lauren admitted.
“I needed to clear my head.” She poked at her chicken with a fork. “So I went for a walk and then decided to shop and cook for you. Didn’t really feel like going back to work, and Jordy and Mateo had the counter covered today.”
Lauren leaned back in her seat, too anxious to eat until this conversation was over. “Did it bring up a lot of emotions for you when you saw her?”Do you miss her? Do you want to go back to her?
“Yes, but…” Mia looked up, and her eyes widened as she saw Lauren’s face. “Not like whatever you’re thinking, Lauren. I’m not in love with her anymore, but…I don’t know. It was good to see her and catch up, I guess, or at least it started out that way. It didn’t take long for us to start sniping at each other the way we used to.”
“You looked at her like you miss her, like maybe you regret leaving her.” There. She’d said it.
Mia shook her head. “No. Absolutely not.”
“Maybe you don’t realize it, but I know what I saw.” Lauren dropped her gaze to the plate in front of her, chunks of chicken in a red sauce with tomatoes and peppers, steaming as hot as the hurt flaming in Lauren’s cheeks.
Mia reached across the table to grip Lauren’s hand. “I don’t know what you saw on my face, but I promise you none of those things were in my head, not for a single moment.”
“Then what?” What else could it be?
Mia’s expression hardened. She looked defensive, and that hard knot was back in Lauren’s stomach. “Obviously, you misread me.”
“I don’t think I did,” Lauren said quietly.
“I haven’teverregretted leaving Kristin, and that’s the damn truth.”
“Your face said differently,” Lauren insisted, and for the first time, she had an idea of what it must have been like to go up against Mia in court, because her expression was truly intimidating right now.
Mia’s lips pressed into a harsh line, and for a moment, Lauren feared they were about to really fight, but then Mia sighed. “If you saw something wistful on my face when I was with Kristin, it was probably while she was telling me about her recent cases.”
“I don’t understand.”
“If I miss anything, it’s practicing law. Not Kristin.” Mia met her gaze, looking vaguely uncomfortable, but not insincere.
“Oh.” Lauren stared at her for a moment, absorbing her words. “You regret leaving your law firm?”
“No,” Mia said. “I don’t.”
“Then what?”
“Then nothing,” Mia said with a stiff shrug. “I miss being a lawyer, but I alsodon’tmiss it. Do you know, Kristin hasn’t found the time to go on a single date? I don’t want that. I love that I’m here with you.”
The vehemence in her voice sent something warm through Lauren’s system. “Surely there are lawyers who don’t work themselves to the bone.”
