Four Men Thought I Was Unconscious, Now They Wait for My Yes novel · Chapter 12 of 24

Chapter 12: Dinner for Twelve

On Sunday at seven, twelve neighbors sat down at the long table on the Seehaus porch.

Lanterns hung along the dock again.

Dominik had cooked a whole lamb, and he carved it with a hard, closed face.

He had not looked at me since the kitchen.

Florian sat across from me, bouncing his knee.

Felix sat at the far end with his hands under the table.

Vincent sat beside me and kept his eyes on his plate.

In my bag, under the table, my phone was charged and ready.

Dominik poured wine into every glass but mine.

"Water for Lena," he said evenly. "She's had a rough week."

"Thank you," I said. "That's thoughtful."

The old doctor from the village sat two seats down.

He had known Dominik's grandfather for fifty years.

He patted my hand. "You're very pale, my dear."

"I've been sleeping badly," I said.

Dominik's fork stopped moving.

Everyone ate. The neighbors talked about the lake level and the price of fish, and the baker's wife told a long story about her son's wedding.

Then Dominik stood and raised his glass, as he had on my birthday.

"A toast," he said. "To the house. To another year on this water."

"To the house," twelve neighbors said.

I stood up.

The table went quiet.

"May I add something?" I said.

Dominik's hand tightened on his glass.

"Of course," he said, as smoothly as he could manage. "Lena. Go ahead."

I took my phone out of my bag and set it face up beside my plate.

"On my birthday, four men carried me upstairs in front of you," I said. "You all laughed. You told me I was adorable. I want to thank you for that, because I woke up an hour later."

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