Chapter 48. Don’t Play Me, Mr. Garcia

Andre’s POV

I find her at Savory Bites, her back turned to me as she balances a tray in one hand and takes an order with the other. Her voice is light, casual. She laughs at something a customer says.

She looks... different.

Not physically, but there’s something about her movements—the ease, the way her smile lingers just a second longer than necessary. It twists something inside me.

She’s happy.

Without me.

And I can’t stand it.

I push open the door. The moment she spots me, she freezes, her fingers tightening around the tray.

Her eyes lock onto mine, cold and sharp, and I could guess what she might be thinking in that little head of hers, (What the hell are you doing here?!)

I don’t answer. I don’t even acknowledge her glare. Instead, I slide into a seat by the window, pick up the menu, and pretend to be interested in the overly designed fonts and tacky graphics while waiting for her.

She doesn’t come to