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Grace reached for a menu and was surprised to find she was actually hungry. Considering the amount of food she’d consumed the night before, she figured she’d be good for most of the day.
“So I swung by your place last night,” her sister commented as she perused the menu.
Grace hummed, hoping her sister would move on to other things.
She should have known better. Once they’d given their order to the server, Gabby made sure Taylor was occupied with the placemat and crayons the restaurant had provided, and then leaned in toward her sister. “It was after seven and you usually don’t go out that late.”
If she made a big deal of hiding her evening out, it would only make things worse. “I was invited to dinner.”
Gabby’s eyes lit up. “With?”
“An Army buddy of Kurt’s stopped by the other day. He gave me his number and told me to call him if I needed anything. I had some car trouble yesterday, so I called him. Afterward, he invited me to have dinner with him.”
Her sister’s eyes looked as if they were about ready to bug out of her head.
“What?”
“What, she asks. What?” Gabby shook her head in disbelief. “You got asked out on a date and you didn’t tell me?”
“It wasn’t a date.”
Gabby sat up straight and folded her hands in front of her on the table. “Did he pick you up?”
“Yes.”
“Did he pay for dinner?”
“Yes.” Grace didn’t like where this was going.
“Did he walk you to the door afterward?”
“What does that matter?” She was deflecting and she knew it.
“I guess that answers my question.” Her sister leaned forward again, lowering her voice as if she were sharing some big secret. “I know you’re a little rusty at this, sis, but that’s what we in the modern world call a date.”
“He’s new in town,” Grace said, trying to convince her sister. “He just wanted some company.”
“Uh-huh.”
“Fine, don’t believe me. But it wasn’t a date.”
Her sister chuckled, but let it go. Their server brought their lunches a few minutes later and conversation turned to their mother’s impending retirement. “She’s going to go stir-crazy.”
“Maybe she’s looking forward to slowing down,” Grace said without much conviction.
Gabby snorted. “Yeah, right.”
Although the thought had crossed Grace’s mind as well, she’d chosen not to dwell on it. “Maybe she could babysit Taylor more. Free you up to, you know, do other... stuff.”
A wicked smile bloomed across Gabby’s face. “Are you suggesting I need to get laid?”
“No,” Grace barely managed to spit out through her shock. Her sister had always been blunter than she was. “I just meant you’d have time to... to go out. That’s all.”
The gleam in her sister’s eyes hadn’t lessened. She was enjoying Grace’s discomfort. “Date.”
“Sure,” Grace said, looking anywhere but at her sister. “If that’s what you want.”
Her sister opened her mouth to say something that would no doubt embarrass Grace more, but she stopped short when Grace’s phone rang.
