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“You take it easy for a bit. Don’t need you blowing a knee while in the middle of the twist.”
He threw his head back and laughed. “You sitting at the bar?”
“There’s a free seat here,” Simone, Vine Valley’s very best realtor, said with a wave. Her office was two doors down from my shop and almost every morning we bumped into each other at Espresso Yourself for our morning caffeine fix. She pointed to an open chair between her and Bill, who owned the gas station and mechanic shop and whose wife was the very best waitress at Don’s.
I glanced toward the dining room and spotted Damian. He rose from his chair and offered me a smile that accentuated his already handsome face. I smiled at Simone and tilted my head toward Damian. She glanced over, and her eyebrows rose before giving me a not-so-subtle thumbs up. “I’m in the dining room tonight,” I said to Clyde.
“Good on you! Silvia will be over with a menu soon.”
“Thanks.”
I ran a hand down the front of my fitted long sleeve black top that was snuggly tucked into an olive green, high-waisted mini then made my way to Damian.
“You look beautiful,” he said as he pulled my chair out for me.
“He compliments and gets my chair. What a gentleman. Thank you.” I slid my bag off my shoulder and looped it over the back of the chair. I eyed the half-finished glass of wine on the table. “I hope you haven’t been waiting long.”
“Oh no. I’ve been here for maybe ten minutes. I wanted to get a lay of the land first.”
“Bathrooms in the back to the right. Bar you passed on the way in and then here we are in the dining room. That’s about all you need to know. Oh and there’s a backdoor if by ‘getting a lay of the land’ you meant staking out your exit strategy.”
“I got you to agree to a date. There is no way I’m leaving. Only an idiot would.”
My smile crested downward as memories of waking up alone in a hotel room slammed into me, but I quickly shook those thoughts from my head. Tonight wasn’t about Nero. “Lucky for me, you’re not an idiot.” I picked up my menu even though I had it memorized from top to bottom.
His brown eyes peered over his menu. “What’s good?”
“Everything, but there are a few you can never go wrong with. I’d say the chicken Milanese, the marinated filet…” My gaze drifted over mozzarella sticks, and the urge to throw my menu almost overtook me. I cleared my throat. “Or you can’t go wrong with a good ol’ fashioned burger.”
I knew it was a date, and Damian would most likely pay, but I didn’t want to be presumptuous and assume, so I was mindful of the prices. With Nero paying for the car repairs, it was one less expense I could worry about at a later time. I had every intention of paying him back, but I knew I had time.
“What are you getting?” Damian asked.
My attention kept getting pulled to the burger. I loved burgers, but a burger from Don’s? Well… there was nothing better.
I bit my lip. Was it okay to order a burger on a date? I didn’t see why not. But did that make things more casual? Why was I overthinking this?
“Probably a burger.”
“A burger over the filet? Interesting.”
I shifted in my seat. “Why is that interesting?”
“I thought I was the only one who would choose a burger over a filet. But there’s just something about taking it in your hands that can’t compare to cutting a steak.”
A smile pulled tight at the corners of my mouth. “Exactly.” Heat shot through my cheeks when he smiled back.
“Hey there, sweetie,” Silvia said as she placed a glass of wine in front of me, not intentionally ruining the moment. “A glass of Sauvignon Blanc, as per usual.”
“Thank you, Silvia. And since Damian already has his wine, I assume you two have met.”
“I took his order.” Silvia placed her notepad under her arm and held her hand out. “Nice to meet you, Damian.”
“Pleasure is all mine.”
“Have you two decided what you’d like to eat?”
“We’ll each have a burger,” Damian said.
