Chapter 50

At the end of the day… By the time I got to the restaurant, Declan was standing by the entrance. He gave me a polite smile. "No trouble getting here?" he asked. I shook my head. "No. It was fine." He nodded and motioned for us to go inside. He led the way to a quiet, private booth, then pulled out a chair for me. That stopped me for a second. Declan? Pulling out a chair? That wasn't like him. Back when we were together, he never bothered with small acts like that. Politeness wasn't really his thing—at least not with me. So what was this? A performance? An attempt to win me over? I didn't let myself dwell on it. Whatever game he was playing, I wasn't here for it. I had one reason to accept his invitation tonight: he said he'd help pay for my mother's treatment. That was all that mattered. As Declan took his seat, he flagged down the waiter and started ordering. What caught me off guard was that he ordered all the dishes I liked. It weirdly hit me. Why now? Why suddenly remember what I l