All Chapters of Her last name, His claim: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

The second date happened three days later, and I spent every single one of those days trying not to think about Enzo.I failed spectacularly.At work, I caught myself staring at my phone, waiting for his texts. In the shower, I replayed the moment outside the diner when he'd asked to kiss me. At night, I lay awake wondering what would have happened if I'd said yes.The girls noticed, of course."You're glowing," Judy said on Wednesday, eyeing me suspiciously over her coffee."I'm not glowing.""You are," Maya confirmed. "You look like someone who's been thoroughly…""Don't finish that sentence," I cut her off, feeling heat flood my face.Olive smirked. "So the first date went well.""It was fine.""Fine?" Judy looked offended. "Girl, you've been smiling at your phone all week. That's not fine. That's something."I couldn't argue with that.Because it was something. I just didn't know what yet.When Enzo texted Tuesday night asking if I was free Thursday, I'd stared at the message for

I'd been staring at the same shelf for ten minutes when Maya finally intervened."Okay," she said, taking the book from my hands. "You've rearranged this section three times. What's going on?""Nothing.""Liar." She set the book down and crossed her arms. "You've been smiling at nothing all morning, you keep touching your lips like you're reliving something and you just put a children's book in the true crime section. So spill."Before I could answer, Judy appeared from around the corner, Olive right behind her."Are we having an intervention?" Judy asked, far too cheerfully. "Because I'm here for it.""There's nothing to intervene about," I protested.All three of them stared at me.I sighed. "Fine. He kissed me."The library got noisy immediately."FINALLY!" Judy practically shouted before Maya shushed her. "Sorry, sorry. But FINALLY. When? How? Was it good? Scale of one to ten, how much did it scramble your brain?""Last night. At my door. And..." I touched my lips again without me

He left on a Tuesday morning.I knew because he texted me at 6 AM: Flying to New York for a few days. Business stuff. Miss you already.I stared at the message, still half-asleep, feeling sad about him leaving. Missing someone after one night apart shouldn't be possible. We'd been separated for five years, why was I suddenly bothered about three days?But apparently, my traitorous heart didn't care about logic.Me: Safe flight.Enzo: That's it? Just "safe flight"?Me: What do you want me to say?Enzo: That you'll miss me too.I bit my lip, fingers hovering over the keyboard.Me: Have a good trip, Enzo.Enzo: Stubborn woman.Me: You knew what you were getting into.Enzo: Yeah. And I'd do it all over again.I threw my phone across the bed before I could type something ridiculous like, I'll miss you too or come back soon or any other pathetic confession that would prove just how far gone I already was.Three days. I could handle three days."You're checking your phone again," Maya observ

I didn't sleep.Every time I closed my eyes, I saw him walking away. Saw the look on his face, hurt, angry, done."I'm done chasing you."The words played on a loop in my head, taunting me, accusing me.By the time my alarm went off, I'd been staring at the ceiling for three hours, my phone clutched in my hand like a lifeline, waiting for a text that never came.Nothing at all, just radio silence.Enzo, who texted me good morning every single day since he came back into my life, who couldn't go two hours without checking in, had gone completely quiet.This silence was louder than any argument we'd ever had.I was a mess. I showed up fifteen minutes late to work, which never happened. My hair was in a messy bun that wasn't the cute kind of messy. I was wearing jeans and a sweater that didn't match, and I'd forgotten to bring my bag.Maya took one look at me and knew."Oh no," she said."Don't," I warned, heading straight for the break room.She followed anyway."What happened?""Nothin

I woke up to sunlight streaming in through unfamiliar windows and the steady rhythm of someone breathing beside me.For a wild, disorienting second, I forgot where I was. Then I felt the arm around my waist, the solid warmth at my back, and remembered.Enzo's house. His couch. We'd talked until we both fell asleep sometime around two in the morning. My first instinct was to panic. To extract myself carefully and leave before things got awkward.But then I remembered what I'd promised.I'm done running.So I stayed.I turned slowly, careful not to wake him, and found him already watching me."Morning," he said, his voice rough with sleep."Morning." My own voice came out softer than intended. "How long have you been awake?""A while.""And you didn't wake me?""You looked peaceful. Didn't want to ruin it." His arm tightened slightly around my waist. "Plus, I liked watching you sleep. That's not creepy, right?"I laughed despite myself. "A little creepy.""Noted." He smiled, and it made