Page 38 of Lonely Heart

Marco leaned forward, reached his hand under the table, and rested it just above my knee. It took superhuman effort not to react, not to press my thighs together. Especially when he was looking at me with such care and concern in his gaze. “I told you that I’d do whatever I could to help you through what happened, Ivy. I didn’t say that in hopes you’d never ask for help. I’m here, so if there’s anything you need, all you’ve got to do is ask. And I don’t care what it is. Whatever is going to best help you move on, if there’s any way that I can assist you or join you, I’m happy to do it.”

Did he know how much that meant to me?

Sure, Ava had offered as much, and I knew she truly wanted the best for me, but something about the way Marco did the same was what I needed. He didn’t tell me how I was acting strange or weird by doing what I was doing. He was being helpful, content to do it at my pace in whatever way felt best for me.

I smiled at him appreciatively. “I’ll look at the class schedule and let you know.”

He squeezed my leg, released it, and let go. “Good.”

None of what had happened tonight had been expected, but I was so grateful to know that my worries about how everything would work out were unnecessary.

Marco, whether he intended to or not, was becoming a big part of my healing process. I could only hope he’d stick around like this long after I felt like myself again.

11

IVY

“Enjoy your stay.”

“We will. Thank you.”

As the guest I’d been helping walked off and the others in the lobby were already being helped by the rest of the front desk staff, my eyes scanned the area on the opposite side of the desk. I often did that, wanting to make sure there was nothing out of place or needing to be attended to.

As my gaze swept through the space, they landed on Marco. He had just walked in from the opposite side, a sign he’d been working out in the villas all morning long. I perked up at the sight of him, and when his eyes met mine, I waved him over in my direction.

It was Monday afternoon now, and this was the first time I was seeing Marco since he’d come over to my place on Saturday for dinner. But just because I hadn’t seen him since then didn’t mean I hadn’t thought about him. Even when my parents and Jules both stopped over to visit with me yesterday, I had random thoughts of Marco popping into my head, and much to my surprise, I was quickly learning that I didn’t mind having him there.

“Looks like it’s been a busy morning here,” he said as he came to a stop in front of me.

I huffed. “Yeah, it really has been, which is surprising, because I don’t think we’ve ever really been this busy in the middle of winter. What’s worse is that I’ve been trying to help out up here with guests, and I’ve got some other things I need to deal with for a few upcoming events we’ve got happening over the next couple of weeks. How has your morning been?”

He chuckled. “Good. Productive. And the new tiles are expected to be here by the middle of this week, so I’m doing as much as I can with the guys that I’ve got working with me to prepare for that.”

“Taking a break now?” I pressed.

“I’m going to grab lunch.”

My brows drew together. “Is it already lunch time? Wow, this day really is flying by.”

Marco smiled at me. “Would you like to join me?”

My lungs stopped functioning as my belly pitched.

With the relationship I’d had with Marco for years, I never would have given something like this a second thought. Sure, he hadn’t ever asked me to join him for lunch before, but if he had, I don’t think I would have thought it was anything more than him being the casual, laidback guy he always had been.

But now?

Now, it meant something.

Because we’d had that night in the hotel room and two dinners together at my place. He’d also offered to take a woodcarving class with me. Now that he was asking me to lunch, I couldn’t stop myself from thinking about how many years had passed without me getting a single person to ask me on a date. I hadn’t even been trying to make that happen with Marco, but it seemed to keep happening.

Were these encounters having anywhere close to the same meaning for him as they did for me?

I wanted to accept his invite.

I desperately wanted to go with him.

Sadly, I couldn’t. “I wish I could. Unfortunately, we’re swamped here, and I’m a little behind on what I need to get done. I’m sorry.”