We step outside, the cool night air brushing against my flushed skin. The parking lot is quieter, starkly contrasting the noise and celebration inside. Gabe leans against a stone pillar, his hands in his pockets, and I can't help but study him. His posture, his expression, and the lack of the scruff still left him with a rugged look.
It's like he's the Gabriel I married. But I didn't, I remind myself. Not yet, I added it as a side note to remind myself of my new reality.
"So," I start, folding my arms against the chill and wondering why we came to the lot instead of the seating area. Or anywhere else inside the building. Maybe it was just me because that kiss was so heated and now this exposed air is frigid. "You told us you weren't coming."
His brows furrow. "I never said that."
"You did," I argue lightly.
He cuts me off with a shake of his head. "I didn't know. My parents didn't tell me. They probably thought it'd be... awkward."
