I hadn’t known how badly I needed to see those words until they were in front of me.

At the café, Malcolm let me close early for a staff dinner.

Elena, Mateo, and Oliver came.

We shared rice, grilled vegetables, and a cake with crooked lettering that said THANK YOU, PAIGE.

For once I let other people take care of me.

PART 20

Vincent and I met again beside the Inner Harbor on an afternoon when the sky was the color of slate.

He wore a plain coat and carried a paper bag from a bakery.